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Center for Microfinance Leadership
WWB’s commitment to supporting principled leaders at the helm of gender diverse microfinance providers dates to its establishment as a global network in 1979. Today the WWB network includes some of the most celebrated leaders in the industry, representing a global commitment to responsive, sustainable microfinance. As we work with institutions to create innovative products that meet the needs of women we are increasingly convinced that leadership commitment is crucial to the success of growing the institution while staying loyal to the mission. The Center for Microfinance Leadership supports senior executives of microfinance institutions to face the demands of an increasingly complex environment. Critical changes in the microfinance industry—increased commercialization, decreased presence of women staff at all levels of microfinance institutions, and rapid growth—require that leaders have both new skill sets and ongoing coaching support to effectively manage the immediate and long-term challenges.
Developing Leaders
The Center offers executive education programs and coaching for senior managers and executive directors of microfinance institutions. The Center’s partners—The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and Creative Metier Limited—are leaders in executive development and reinforce the excellence and best practice of the Center’s offerings. Courses include: Advanced Leadership Workshop, Coaching Program, Women in Leadership Workshop, Management Development.
Supporting Diversity
The Center works with microfinance institutions to understand the value of workforce diversity as a social and business imperative. WWB offers its partners a suite of services: from organizational gender diagnostics to support for design and implementation of diversity strategies. Our goal is to transform the industry’s approach to gender diversity from a ‘nice to have’ to a requirement for sustainable growth.
Celebrating Excellence—WWB’s Excellence in Leadership Award
WWB’s annual Excellence in Leadership Award recognizes a member of the WWB network that demonstrates excellence in financial and social performance, principled leadership and a commitment to gender diversity. The Award has been designed to celebrate and promote the strong synergies between these three institutional priorities that are core to the WWB network. WWB is committed to ensuring that diverse, principled and highly-skilled leaders continue to set the vision, the principles and the practices of the industry. The Center’s programs reinforce WWB’s fundamental belief that by addressing one of the most serious risks facing the sector, that of leadership and management capacity, MFIs will be better equipped to achieve their dual objectives of financial stability and poverty alleviation.
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Developing the Next Generation of Microfinance Leaders
The WWB network includes some of the most celebrated leaders in the industry, representing a global commitment to responsive, sustainable microfinance. Strong, visionary leadership is critical as institutions face the challenges and opportunities of rapid growth, particularly the capacity to pursue strong financial performance while maintaining a commitment to serving the financial needs of low-income women.
As a network, WWB is united in the belief that gender diversity matters in microfinance. Incorporating women’s voices into the design and delivery of microfinance products is particularly important when a majority of clients are women. Equally as important, microfinance clients often speak of the inspiration they derive from seeing powerful women leaders in the organizations that serve them. WWB believes that diverse perspectives lead to stronger decisions and healthier, more vibrant organizations. The Center will contribute to developing the next generation of successful men and women visionaries and managers in the microfinance industry.