Amy Stepnowski almost didn't make it to the last module of Back in Business: her children—aged 6, 4, and 2—all had the flu, her husband was away on business, and she feared she might be coming down with the flu herself. It appeared that the very situation the program was intended to address—setting aside careers to raise children—would prevent her participation. She did arrive, having missed only one day. "That week was a wake-up call," she says, a reminder that one can't do it all—at least not at the same time.
Stepnowski is a 38-year-old Yale graduate with a double major in Spanish and political science. She had risen to the position of managing director in Latin America Credit at JP Morgan Chase, with responsibility for approving corporate credit exposure in the region, before she decided to exchange career for family.
She'd wholeheartedly made the decision to leave New York City to raise her children in rural/suburban Connecticut but was ready to rejoin the financial world. Back in Business not only restored her confidence in her own market value but opened her mind to new possibilities. "It let me know that the skills I have are very transferable, that there are opportunities that don't require a full-time commitment."
Did she find one of those opportunities?
Since completing Back in Business, updating her résumé, and finding reliable child care, Stepnowski has started consulting for a Hartford financial institution, working two days a week in the office and other hours from home. Now she has the opportunity to make it all work in sync.
