Southeastern Women in Financial Services (SWIFS) was founded in 2016 as a network of women attorneys directly working within financial institutions or acting as outside legal advisors in the financial services industry. The SWIFS motto is “advancing careers while paving the way for tomorrow’s female leaders.”

The SWIFS mission is two-fold: (1) enrich the professional lives of SWIFS members through leadership, education, networking with industry professionals, coaching, mentoring, and continuing legal education and (2) support the financial education and economic security of women in the Southeast through community partnerships, education, and advocacy. Affinity groups like SWIFS offer women in financial services a sense of belonging – a place to make connections and provide support to women by women as they navigate their professional landscapes.

The women of SWIFS are leaders in the industry and leaders in their communities. What started on the back of a napkin, has evolved into an unbelievable network of over 200 women from over 10 states, numerous financial institutions and law firms, committed to the mission and the motto.

As SWIFS has grown and evolved, so too has the leadership. Recently, the two Co-Founders/Co-Chairs stepped down, paving the way for the next leaders of SWIFS. As the previous Board Secretary and new Co-Chair, I have the privilege of also stepping down and simultaneously stepping up. In this series, I had the opportunity to interview Co-Founder and Former Co-Chair Erin Linehan and current Co-Chair Alise Johnson Henry on “paving the way” and all things SWIFS.

Q [Stefanie]: As Co-Founder of SWIFS, how did you bring the idea of SWIFS, which started at SIFMA on a napkin, to reality?

A [Erin]: I think women, throughout history, have a unique ability to make things happen through their relationships. So, Andrea Greene Wells and I basically spent an afternoon coming up with a framework we thought might be interesting to women in the industry, and then just started talking about it. The more we talked about it, the more realized we were on to something. At that point, we just needed to choose a date, the chance that people would show up. And they did. And continue to do so. We wanted it to be an organization that met the needs of its membership – so, we have thrown varies ideas or initiatives out there – some take off – which is great. And some don’t – and that’s fine too. We are never afraid an idea failing – we just want to keep evolving.

Q: While you [Erin] are still very involved with SWIFS and serve on the Advisory Board, what inspired you to pass the torch and why is that important?

A [Erin]: There were a couple of reasons. First, change and new ideas are so critical to organizations. New energy, a new way of doing things, and fresh set of eyes. Also, I believe it is critical for women to create space for other women. I learned and grew so much from leading SWIFS for eight years, and had a lot of visibility at my firm and in the industry because of it, and I felt it was time for other women to have that opportunity to grow, and gain the same visibility for the work they were doing.

Q: Turning to Alise, when you stepped up as Co-Chair of SWIFS in 2023, what was your goal or strategy for the organization? A [Alise]: When I first started my goal was to keep up the good work of the former Chairs and keep the programing fresh. I really didn’t want the organization to fail under “my watch.” I had little to fear as our dedicated board always stepped up when needed. My goal for the future is to get to the next level by increasing our membership and expanding on member events.

Q: What has been your biggest challenge as Co-Chair?

A [Alise]: Hurricanes! But the challenges within my control have been keeping our membership engaged and building momentum. It’s a struggle to offer programing that appeals to in-house and outside counsel. We are a group of hardworking busy women so we always want to make sure SWIFS is value added and worth spending our member’s time with.

Q: Turning back to Erin, after passing the torch and serving on the Advisory Board, what changes and developments have you seen in SWIFS that have had a positive impact?

A [Erin]: Well, obviously, two new amazing leaders, in Alise and Stef, who have worked so hard for SWIFS for years and do such an amazing job. The Advisory Board has changed as well, with new members joining and bringing great new ideas. The “One Great Night” event that SWIFS did in 2023 and will do again in February (rescheduled due to Hurricanes) – was such a smart idea – having separate events in different cities to include a wider range of our colleagues and our networks, while connecting virtually for content, CLE and to support Pace Center for Girls – was quite brilliant.

Q: What advice do you have for the new Co-Chairs to continue the mission of SWIFS?

A [Erin]: I think the question is the answer. When working on strategy and planning – always tie back to the mission. How can we continue to advance the mission? How can we continue to support women in our industry reach success, as they define it, and do so on their terms? How can we continue to ensure more junior women, see women in the space they hope to be in? How can we ensure, that we all remember to never ride the elevator alone?

Q: Alise, what goals do you have for SWIFS for the next year?

A [Alise]: We have two marquee events coming up next year -- “One Great Night” and The Spring Symposium -- that are going to be terrific. I would really like to see record attendance for those events. We are also trying to pair up with some other organizations for those events to get some “synergy” and present something different and engaging. We are also going to extend our outreach to additional laws schools. I am excited about spreading the word to new lawyers about the joys of working in financial services.

Stefanie: And no interview would be complete without a call to action! SWIFS needs its membership to become more involved – join a committee, join the board, invite new members, bring new ideas!

To learn more about SWIFS, upcoming events, and membership, visit www.SWIFS.net. To become more involved in SWIFS, email SWIFSmembers@gmail.com.

* Alise Johnson’s comments are her own and do not reflect the opinions of the staff or the other Commissioners of the SEC.