No Girls Allowed: How to Thrive as a Young Woman in the Federal Workplace

As a young female government leader, Nicole knows firsthand what opportunities and challenges exist in this dynamic, but highly bureaucratic environment. Being a millennial is tough enough, but for young females, it is easy to let habits and tendencies go unchecked, leading us down a road to disaster rather than the road to success we desire. Nicole highlighted some of most common faux paus that are made, often with no awareness of their consequences, and provided tricks and tools to help maneuver through this with grace, poise, and a pinch of pizazz.

This session walked through the three biggest mistakes young women make in the federal workplace, and the three positive steps you can take to successfully navigate into leadership positions leveraging your female millennial status. Are you walking away from an opportunity for the Government to give you free money? Are you dressing to be taken seriously at work or dressing for happy hour? Are you capitalizing on opportunities to grow your skills and expand your qualifications on your resume?

These tips come from years of personal experience as a young millennial leader, as well as engaging stories and tales from other successful federal employees. This talk is especially relevant for woman of the millennial generation, but also includes insights and tactics that will help men and women of all ages, and promises to be eye-opening for everyone.

Nicole began her federal career as an intern with the Department of State in Political Military Affairs, and has spent the last seven years supporting various federal departments, including the Department of State, Department of Defense, and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). She currently works for the VA in the Office of Information and Technology and specializes in business operations and strategic communications. Nicole was recently appointed the National Communications Chair for the Federally Employed Women (FEW) Organization, a private non-profit organization for women that supports equality in the workplace and the advancement and professional growth of women in federal service.

Nicole relocated from the DC area to Knoxville in 2013 with her husband Brad and golden doodle Mason. Nicole holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Government and International Politics from George Mason University, and is pursuing an Executive Master of Business Administration from the University of Tennessee.