Now that you’ve met all our leaders for the year, we’d like to highlight some of the people who help with AWIS DC’s most successful program: our mentoring circles. Our mentoring circles are a success because of the fantastic leader who organize and keep everyone on task! Please welcome mentoring circle leader Sherry Marts.
Sherry A. Marts, Ph.D. is CEO of S*Marts Consulting, LLC. She offers executive and career coaching with an emphasis on career and leadership development for women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Dr. Marts is an experienced mentor, a Radical Honesty™ coach, and meditation teacher. She is co-author (with Raven Dana) of The Book of How: Creating the Life You Want. She is an expert speaker and workshop leader with a lively personality and sense of humor.
Dr. Marts provides expert consulting services to nonprofits and academic institutions. She is a former association CEO with experience in nonprofit governance; strategic planning facilitation; and program development, planning, and implementation.
She received her B.Sc. (Hons.) in Applied Biology from the University of Hertfordshire, and her Ph.D. in Physiology from Duke University. She has a wide-ranging background in biomedical research, regulatory affairs, nonprofit management, public education, and advocacy.
Why did you want to lead a mentoring circle?
I was interested in working with a group on the process and exercises from the book “What Color is Your Parachute” by Richard Bolles. I work as a career and executive coach, so doing this was a natural fit for me.
What do you hope people get out of the mentoring circle you lead?
I’m not sure I would call what the group does “mentoring” – it is more like a peer-to-peer support and advice circle. It’s a chance to explore solutions to career challenges, and get new ideas on where to look for the next career step, and learn from each other’s experiences. We must be onto something, because two of our members have found new jobs in the past year.
What ideas do you have for your mentoring circle? What have you tried?
We area combination book club and support group. We usually start with each person checking in with news and any new challenges. Then we discuss a relevant book or articles on women and work. For example, this month we’re discussing “What Works for Women at Work” by Joan Williams and Rachel Dempsey.
What do you get out of your mentoring circle?
I get a chance to spend a couple of hours a month with some really smart, funny, engaging women. I get new ideas for my own work and writing.