The lack of know-how,  in some cases, with basic financial terminology is a factor that affects your success in business and can imply your total results.  Acknowledging the high need to empower women with financial tools, along with the know-how gathered through the years in the financial arenas, was one of my leading triggers for initiation of the Money Academy workshops.

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Women talks about money   

Following a clear agenda which was settled to answer the growing needs of businesswomen in Romania, we have initiated an open frame, together with BWFR association and Business Woman magazine management, we embraced the mission to spread out financial know to whoever needs it and by that improve the financial results for women in business.

Businesswomen forum Romania (BWFR) is a nonprofit organization. The association supports businesswomen and managers in all sectors and domains, meeting almost on a weekly base, to inspire each other via workshops and seminars, as well as creating strong networking and business collaboration between the BWFR members.

The Money Academy workshops are held each month in partnership with  Business Woman magazine conduct a unique series of workshops, dedicated to company owners and corporate managers who are seeking to acquire practical know-how relating to financing, money management and access to funds.

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The participants in these workshops are coming from all kinds of background  - corporate managers, company owners, entrepreneurs and NGO leaders, all seeking to

“The way it affects my business and the way I look at money, was not predicted…” shares Catalina, the owner of “Catalina Moraru” Swarovski made Jewelry gallery and an online shop.

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“First I must say that BWFR changed my life and my business all around. After the Money Academy seminar, I realized what I can do better in my business, what it's missing from it and all the improvements I can bring in. The Money Academy seminar was a special one for me, from all the other seminars before, because I never realized that there are so many ways to access funding in addition to the classical bank credit, some are even easier to access. …

I have a jewelry business that is in a changing process right now, thanks to the BWFR and this experience “

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Through the money academy workshops, businesswomen from all domains meet up around the monthly topics which are published in Business Woman magazine. The topics cover all the financial information needed for a company and a manager during her day to day work, among it – Startup financing, access to investors, meeting your bankers, creative financing and more…

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“I can share my thoughts, my fears, and my doubts, meet professional financiers, consult with them and learn from them what exactly I need to do to gain success in my business. These are not things you can learn in the university …these are “hidden secrets” that nobody usually shares! Now I know that whenever I need some help and access to know-how, I can gather it directly “summarized Catalina.

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Cristina Moraru, Managing partner CCMC Advertising, has been managing her business for many years already and still had several needs and questions which she needed to settle in promoting her business “The Money Academy provides a fresh brainstorming that helps you find a solution to one of the many challenges an entrepreneur has to face in the dynamic Romanian market” said Cristina.

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“ I had an investment made a while ago and of which development I was not satisfied at all, during the BWFR workshop, and the questions that were posed to me , I was exposed to different solutions  presented by each participant, other business women from all kinds of sectors,  adding to the debate has new perspective that honestly I would not have thought about before. I believe money is a very important factor in everyone’s life and it very much depends on how you approach it: with the mind and heart open or with reluctancy. The Money Academy workshops have opened up new horizons regarding the way I think about and approach an investment” Cristina summarized.

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Osnat Peled, General Director of Mentor Finance (from Mentor group Holdings consortium) has relocated to Romania from Israel. Having 19 years of business experience she has been working with banks, governments and leading companies in assisting them to achieve their business goals and recruit financing.
Mentor Finance provides financing solutions to companies, developers, entrepreneurs and NGOs in all types of domains. www.mentor-finance.com

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Foto: Sebastian Moise  Make-up: Monica Panait    Şedinta foto a avut loc la Hotel Prince Park Residences Bucureşti   *Articol apărut în Business Woman Magazine, ediţia 67

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Business Women Forum Romania (BWFR)  “The money academy “ workshops, in collaboration with the Business Woman magazine, aims to bring the real know-how directly to hundreds of women which are company owners and corporate managers.
Can women create the change and break the glass seal for better access to money? Well the answer is “yes- we can! “, and the results are already in place.

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For more details: www.bwfr.org

 

The freedom to talk about Money

A lot has been said about the challenges women face when dealing with money (or even talking about it). To test this connection, I challenge you, my colleague, businesswomen, to think instinctively how do you feel when you are required to give a quotation or to negotiate a price offer you have provided to a client? Do you speak freely about money? How do you feel about getting a loan from your bank or even from a family member?
Most of the businesswomen I meet,  without any relation to their business seniority level, keep saying that talking about money is an unpleasant situation; they simply don’t like to discuss that. How come? Is this about the education we receive since we were little girls? Putting aside any feminist agenda, one of our missions as businesswomen should be the freedom to talk about money and feel comfortable to raise this topic.
The issue is even more important, once you become a business owner, or entering a senior position.