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Carol Fishman Cohen

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Carol Fishman Cohen is the CEO and co-founder of iRelaunch, an author, a speaker and a consultant to employers, universities, non-profits and individuals on the subject of career re-entry.

Background and early career

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Cohen earned a B.A. in Economics at Pomona College in Claremont, California and an MBA at Harvard Business School.[1] Upon graduation from Harvard Business School, she worked for manufacturing subcontractor Flextronics. In 1987, Cohen joined the Boston Corporate Finance Group of Drexel Burnham Lambert, where she worked until the firm was forced into bankruptcy in February 1990.[2]

In 2001, after 11 years out of the full time workforce raising four children,[3] Cohen relaunched her career in a financial analysis role with Sankaty Advisors, a division of Bain Capital.[4] Subsequently, in 2003, Harvard Business School professors published a case study titled "Carol Fishman Cohen: Professional Career Reentry,” documenting her return to work after 11 years out of the full-time workforce.[4][5]

Return-to-work initiatives

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Cohen began assisting other women with the perceived challenge of returning to work after time out of the workforce.[6] With Vivian Steir Rabin, Cohen co-authored Back on the Career Track on the subject. A review from Booklist described the book as 'helpful' to Cohen's intended audience.[7] To research the book, Cohen and Rabin interviewed more than 100 women who had returned to work after a career break. They also interviewed Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in person about returning to work after five years at home raising her sons[3] and talked with employers, academics, work-life experts, recruiters, and family members of those making the return to work.[8]

In 2007, Cohen and Rabin co-founded iRelaunch as a career reentry programming company.[3] The following year, Cohen began studying the subject globally. By 2010 she saw internships as a means of returning to work,[9] and as a result of this study wrote 'The 40-Year-Old Intern' for Harvard Business Review.[10][11] Cohen became an advocate for formal career re-entry programs in the form of internships.[12][13]

Speaking and appearances

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Cohen gained attention as a career reentry advocate when the TED platform posted her TEDxBeaconStreet talk[14] called "How to get back to work after a career break" which has garnered more than 3.5 million views and has been translated into 30 languages.[15]

References

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  1. ^ Hart, Myra M.; Ely, Robin J.; Wojewoda, Susan (14 May 2003). "Carol Fishman Cohen: Professional Career Reentry (A)" – via www.hbs.edu. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  2. ^ Eichenwald, Kurt (February 14, 1990). "THE COLLAPSE OF DREXEL BURNHAM LAMBERT; Drexel, Symbol of Wall St. Era, Is Dismantling; Bankruptcy Filed". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  3. ^ a b c Johnson, Whitney. "Taking a Career Break? Talk to This Woman First". Forbes.com. No. October 17, 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  4. ^ a b Hart, Myra M.; Ely, Robin J.; Wojewoda, Susan (May 2003). "Carol Fishman Cohen: Professional Career Reentry (A)". Harvard Business School Case 803-186. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  5. ^ Hart, Myra M.; Ely, Robin J.; Wojewoda, Susan (May 2003). "Carol Fishman Cohen: Professional Career Reentry (B)". Harvard Business School Case 803-186. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  6. ^ Preston, Jennifer (March 17, 2014). "Helping Women Get Back in the Game". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  7. ^ Bush, Vanessa. "Booklist Review of Back on the Career Track". Whatcom County Library System. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  8. ^ Eisenberg, Richard. "TED Talk: Getting Back to Work After a Career Break". NextAvenue.org. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  9. ^ Williams, Grace L. (February 24, 2016). "Adult internships and returnships help the over-40 crowd get back to work". Today.com. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  10. ^ Cohen, Carol Fishman (November 2012). "The 40-Year-Old Intern". Harvard Business Review. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  11. ^ Cohen, Carol Fishman (November 2012). "The 40-Year-Old Intern". Harvard Business Review. Archived from the original on 7 February 2017. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  12. ^ Fredman, Catherine (November 8, 2016). "Helping women return to Wall Street after starting a family". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  13. ^ Kennedy, Eliza (August 20, 2014). "'Returnships': A great idea for fixing the 'leaky pipeline' of talented women". Women's Agenda. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  14. ^ "STEM Re-entry Task Force initiative: SWE teams up with iRelaunch". alltogether.swe.org. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  15. ^ "TED/TEDx How to get back to work after a career break". ted.com. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
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