Better Together: Aligning Women of Radiology & Women of Industry

It was a little over a year ago that we met and were having lunch together at Radiology Leadership Institute, talking about our career paths and interests, that we came across the all too common conversation around the staggering number of women in business and promotions. 

A shared ‘aha’ moment, followed by several conversations and an RSNA panel discussion, soon became a brainstorming session on creating what we felt could be a revolutionary approach to women’s leadership — bringing women from Academia and Industry together to collaborate on new ideas for healthcare while also giving women innovative and unique learning and growth opportunities.

LEAD (Leading Empowering and Disrupting) was founded through our shared passion to see more women in leadership positions in our respective organizations. This past October, GE Healthcare and Society of Chairs of Academic Radiology Departments (SCARD) launched the program designed to bring Women Radiology leaders together with the goal of elevating their careers.

The year-long program incorporates leadership training and education, mentorship/sponsorship and real-life applications of these experiences. LEAD presents a unique opportunity for healthcare providers and industry to align around similar diversity challenges and opportunities while creating a sustainable network of high potential female leaders. And let us tell you, it has been special.

What we’ve found is these women are trying to solve many of the same challenges in healthcare and their professional lives, just from different angles. The LEAD program has allowed them to tackle these challenges from new perspectives, while building professional relationships and a strong community that may not have existed otherwise.

The 2018/2019 inaugural class consists of 20 leaders, selected via an application process, and includes top talent female Radiologists and GE Healthcare emerging and current leaders. Over the year, these women have come together virtually and in-person to learn from each other, network and hone their leadership skills. 

We see this program as being foundational, with the alumni carrying on these relationships and sharing their learnings across their organizations. Our goal is to build a network of women that not only help each other professionally but also personally, lifting each other up.

This program and its early success highlight the importance of building these relationships to change the statistics for our future women leaders. Our challenge to you is to think differently: mentor and sponsor women, give them the tools for equal opportunity, and help shape the next generation of healthcare and its leadership. 

You won’t be disappointed.

Rachel Gilbreath & Dr. Cheri Canon