Women’s Leadership Program: Now is Your Time. Be Unstoppable.
August 2, 2023 Vasso Dusoe-Galanis, 2023 WLP Graduate & Class Speaker
Women’s Leadership Program is a nine-month learning & development program that empowers women professionals to navigate and propel their careers to the next level while also creating conditions for other women to thrive. Participants graduate with the skills, experiences, & connections needed to lead businesses into the top tiers of success. Women’s Leadership Program Graduation is an opportunity to celebrate the graduating class and all their accomplishments alongside their peers, supporters, and loved ones. Our class speakers were chosen by their cohort to represent their class in their Graduation speeches.
Thank you, Rachel! Ladies and gentlemen, members of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, Simmons University, Zipcar, esteemed guests, and my fellow superstar peers, welcome.
I am Vasso Dusoe-Galanis, my pronouns are she/her, and I am a Human Resources Director with National Grid.
It is my privilege, and I am just thrilled to deliver the commencement address on behalf of the “In-person” WLP Class of 2023 graduates.
Thank you for asking me to represent all of you today. Thank you to National Grid and Chief People Officer Jen Briere for putting me here in the first place by nominating me for this program. And my forever special thanks to my family for being my biggest fans!
Interior Design Directors, Attorneys, Architects, Senior Program Managers, Finance Leads – these are just a few of the careers of women in my cohort this past year. Dynamic professions, women leaders in their industries, many who are trailblazers and several on the verge of that greatness, just looking for a way to unlock their true potential. And we all met at the right place: yes, of course I mean The Seaport… but I also mean The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Women’s Leadership Program.
Why did I select the WLP over other leadership programs? Well, it had a pretty powerful hook: the program promised to empower us with the skills we need to excel in our careers and create the conditions for other women to thrive.
To say that it achieved its objective would be an understatement. It did in such a systematic and thoughtful way, with each monthly theme building on one another like pieces to a puzzle that in the end, created a crystal-clear image of the unstoppable force of women.
The formal program was made up of incredible facilitators and speakers, who taught us how to understand our strengths, identify the best ways to lead, network through reciprocity, manage perceptions, negotiate for ourselves and others, and learn how to “break up” with thoughts that are just not good for us! So, from the perspective of its official curriculum, the program delivered on its promise. But I also credit it with another win, just as important, if not more: the relationships we built with one another… I won’t forget 35 weeks ago, during those early sessions, how easy and natural it felt to connect with other female leaders: others who shared the same fears and frustrations as me. It felt like that first breath when you’re underwater and you finally break the surface. The WLP provided a safe forum to discuss challenges and find support. A platform not to spread problems but to spread solutions. One that helped replace negative self-talk with conviction and self-doubt with confidence that “we’ve got this”. Akin to a band of brothers, we developed a sisterhood. Thank you WLP!
In closing, I have a message for my exceptional fellow peers: this is your time. Your time to crush those stereotypes and shatter those ceilings. Your time to take your leadership to the next level, to inspire, to impress and to make a difference. You had the talent. Now you have all the right tools. You symbolize the hopes and dreams of our sisters, daughters, nieces, and all other young girls out there, because you are the next generation of Boston’s finest leaders.
Congratulations! Thank you all. Erin, over to you.
About Vasso Dusoe-Galanis (she/her)
Vasso Dusoe-Galanis is a Director, HR Business Partner for National Grid where she is passionate about people and optimizing the employee experience. She values authenticity and bringing one’s whole self to work safely: both physically and psychologically. Vasso is skilled at building strong stakeholder relationships, she loves to collaborate, coach and challenge, and foster inclusive talent management practices. Remember that one person who impacted your career? Vasso likes being that person but what she likes most is empowering and inspiring others to be that person.
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