Founder
Jacqueline Rogers, launched The Athena Network in December 2005 and now, heading up an operation that’s just ‘grown and grown’ rather wryly admits it wasn’t so much a question of choosing networking but networking choosing her – it just, she says, made such good sense!
Background
Lancashire born, into an RAF family Jacqueline’s probably endowed with rather more than her fair share of feet-on-the-ground common sense. An attribute enhanced by her peripatetic upbringing which taught her early to embrace new cultures and different ways of living. At the same time as giving her the ability to swiftly adjust and settle in various parts of the world, she also had to learn to swiftly make new friends, fresh starts and lots of even-minded judgments.
It was probably inevitable that such an upbringing, secure and happy but ‘different’, governed Jacqueline’s career choice and helping people make the most of the moment, together with managing life changes both large and small, took her into a variety of consultancy, training and sales roles in corporate businesses during which time she worked with organisations such as KPMG, BAe, Ernst & Young, BT and latterly for twelve years at Thomson NETg. Highly successful in her corporate life, Jacqueline nevertheless felt something was missing and made the major decision that the time was right to set up her own coaching and training business Phoenix Potential which, not being a woman for hanging about, she promptly did.
Jacqueline’s coaching and training practice allowed her to combine corporate experience with a wide range of communication and management tools and these, allied to her continued development of NLP skills and her natural empathy presented clients with a uniquely effective tool-kit with which to work towards success. However . . .
How It Started
. . . Success for any coaching and training practice depends on a steady and renewable client stream. And, unlike her former corporate life where the majority of meetings were sourced and scheduled by a telemarketing team, Jacqueline now needed to source them herself – bit of a shock there! However networking seemed the obvious answer and she sallied forth. But even with all her experience, and much to her surprise, she found herself sorely challenged – in fact she says, her knees were knocking so hard she could hardly hear herself speak!
Considering herself to be not only a confident woman but one used to meeting people and putting them at their ease, Jacqueline was distinctly unimpressed not just with her own reaction but with an arena that made her feel that way, nor was she wildly enthusiastic at being told she’d ‘get used to it’. When a friend mentioned a networking group based around businesswomen only, meeting in Watford she thought she ought to pitch up and see whether that had anything different to offer.
It did. She found herself instantly able to identify with the other businesswomen there and as a single parent herself, combining challenging career with bringing up two sons was only too aware of the dexterity of the juggling act most of us have to perfect. As she left the meeting that day, she knew she’d found the niche that suited!
However, what she’d also seen was a business opportunity that could only be enhanced by the inclusion of training and a simple replicable business model. With the enthusiasm, determination and speed, instantly recognizable to her current hard-pressed team – who say the only difficult thing about working with Jacqueline, is keeping up – she plunged headlong into this new project and The Athena Network, was launched in February 2006 with the aims of networking, connecting, inspiring and supporting women to reach and relish their professional and personal best. As Jacqueline says – it just makes such good sense!
”You know when you’ve reached your potential when you life feels effortless, purposeful, full of possibility and you still have time to buy shoes!”.
Here and Now
As well as heading up the entire Athena operation which now encompasses over 130 groups countrywide, Jacqueline personally runs three Athena regions, Central Middlesex, East Chilterns and South West Herts and daily blesses the fact that she has an outstanding support team.
Athena Abroad
April 2009 saw Athena plant the flag in Australia where we launched 8 hugely successful groups and in 2012 Athena will be planting a tastefully clad high heel in the U.S.A.
Jacqueline Rogers
CEO & Founder – The Athena Network
Telephone: 0845 004 9262
Email: jacqueline.rogers@theathenanetwork.com
Blog: www.jacquelinerogers.co.uk
Jacqueline supports several charities; The Watford Peace Hospice, Compassion and The Warrior Programme
I am a member of Athena Northwood, and Athena is my main networking focus for my business so I also attend Cappuccino Connections in 1-2 locations and visit other groups when I can.
Athena has been a great help to me and my business. I run a niche food and drink consultancy working with manufacturers and retailers predominantly. I use the services of several other Athena members including a VA and book keeper to help me run the business efficiently. I often ask members in my group and through Athena Connect for help reaching specific businesses and Athena members consistently come up trumps. I have been introduced to some great businesses by members too.Last year around 40% of all my new business contacts came through Athena.
Our group is great and we are always happy to meet visitors who want to come and experience Northwood
I am an accountant based at Hunton Bridge. I came to the launch meeting of the Kings Langley Athena group four years ago and was immediately impressed with the ethos of the organisation. The meetings are structured but this does not make them boring. There is an energy and enthusiasm that pervades every meeting. I have gained work, made useful business contacts, and got to know some great people, all through being part of Athena. Long may it continue.
I joined Athena in 2007 as I had recentlly entered the world of self employment after spending 25 cosy years in banking. I really needed the support and experience of other women who had done it for themselves. Well Athena provided that and more. The support is offered in many ways. I’ve received direct business and business referrals which really helped in the very early days. Just as importantlty people offer their time and a listening ear for new ideas. I can’t think of any other networking group offering the same environment of support, professionalism and fun.
I have been a member of Athena Hemel Hempstead since November 2009, and have met some really great members there. Jacqueline works tirelessly to organise many Athena events with great enthusiasm and energy which is infectious.
Athena has been a fantastic source of support and new contacts and I have had several 1-2-1′s with members from the Hemel group and various Cappuccino Connections meetings that I have attended.
Athena is an invaluable resource for any business, and it is also a great way to have fun and meet like-minded entrepreneurs.
I am a member of the Amersham Group and have been for about 3 years. Athena has been a fountain of knowledge for me, if I have not known the answer someone else I know through networking usually does.
My confidence in my own abilities as a business owner have been strengthened 10 fold from all the trainings talks & discusions I have attended. It is really good to have other people who are passionate about their businesses in the same way you are about your own. I have made countless friendships which I know will last and we have lots of fun on the way!
New member training. Despite being an Athena member for nearly two years, business commitments had prevented me from attending a training session until now.
The session was well organised & Jacqueline guided us through the importance of the monthly minute and how to create a memorable pitch. The additional networking opportunity was a bonus.
Interesting, informative & fun. Thank you Jacqueline.
Jacqueline led an informative and enjoyable New Member Training session this morning. I found particularly useful the practical exercise on working up a Monthly Minute, and running it past another member for critical feedback. As a bonus it was good opportunity to meet new members from other groups, as well as catching up with some old faces too (I mean that in the nicest possible sense of course!).
Thanks again Jacqueline.
New member training. I attended the training this morning and it was excellent. Jacqueline made me think about issues which I take for granted and also gave very helpful tips and more general business advice. I enjoyed meeting members from other groups and felt a very positive synergy in the training overall.
Thank you Jacqueline.
Venisha
I thoroughly enjoyed my New Member training today; I’ve been an Athena member for a number of years, belonging to two different groups. However, you can always learn something new and Jacqueline gave us some interesting insider’s tips on how to create a memorable Minute. Working in pairs enabled us to help one another – supporting another member, as well as receiving constructive insight into our own minutes. Analyzing your business by four quarters was another useful idea, which ensures you focus on what you want to achieve well in advance. A very useful morning!
The New Member Training hosted by Jacqueline was held yesterday for new members – who had not yet had the opportunity to be introduced to the skills of composing ‘the minute’.
It was a great opportunity to hear about being on the receiving end of networking – the impact that can be made by speaking for just one minute. It was made clear that our responses to verbal images can be quite different. We listened to Jacqueline’s observations – gained by many years of watching and subliminally digesting the content of business minutes – and found out about the most memorable moments including delivering a minute by singing, reciting poetry, undressing (yes!) – there are no limits to composing a business minute! Very enjoyable.
I attended the New Member training this week run by Jacqueline. I have to say I was slightly cynical before I went about what you could really learn about crafting the Monthly Minute since we all get used to doing it each month at our Athena meetings. However I am delighted that I was proved wrong!
Jacqueline provided a very refreshing approach to the monthly minute in terms of how to position it and how to make it stand out and most importantly be memorable for others. I found it very useful practising it against another Athena attendee and getting practical, constructive feedback. I will certainly be using some of Jacqueline’s tips going forward!
Thanks Jacqueline!