News / Through the Work

Rebecca Etessami, ZS, Strategy and Operations Manager

When Rebecca Etessami first helped launch a negotiation workshop with Working for Women, she didn’t set out to create a long-running program or a legacy.

She was early in her career at ZS, a global consulting and technology firm, part of the company’s employee volunteering group, and looking for a way to move beyond traditional volunteer events like park cleanups or days of service. The question on the table was simple: How could employees give back using the skills they already had?

That question sparked what would become one of Working for Women’s most enduring skill-based volunteering programs, a negotiation workshop that has now supported hundreds of women throughout Working for Women’s nonprofit partners and helped shape the professional growth of the employees who lead it. 

Designed for Scale: Turning Employee Expertise Into Lasting Impact

From the beginning, the alignment was clear. Rebecca and her colleagues at ZS already facilitated negotiation workshops in their professional work. Translating those skills into a practical, accessible workshop for women navigating new career paths felt natural and necessary.

Over time, the program evolved. What started as a longer, more theory-heavy, in-person workshop was refined into a focused, two-hour virtual experience. Moving online expanded access on both sides: more women could participate, and employees from multiple offices could step into facilitation roles.

What also emerged was something unexpected, a model that worked not just once, but repeatedly.

“It became a productized offering,” Rebecca explains. “We had the materials, the structure, the learnings. And that made it sustainable — something we could run again and again.” 

Accelerating Leadership and Confidence Through Purpose-Driven Work

For the women participating, the impact is often immediate. Many arrive feeling intimidated by negotiation or viewing it as a confrontation to be won or lost. One of the most common “aha” moments? Realizing that negotiation isn’t limited to salary and that it can be collaborative, respectful, and expansive.

But the impact doesn’t stop there.

As Rebecca notes, the workshops create space for women to learn from one another — sharing questions, experiences, and strategies that go far beyond what any single facilitator could deliver. And occasionally, that impact circles back years later, when a past participant returns to share that she successfully negotiated for herself. 

For employees, the transformation is just as meaningful.

Skill-based volunteering creates opportunities that don’t always exist in day-to-day roles, especially for early-career professionals. Facilitating a workshop builds confidence, presentation skills, and leadership muscles long before those responsibilities formally appear in a job description.

“This was one of my first opportunities to really own something,” Rebecca reflects. “I was fairly junior when it started. In my client work, I was executing. Here, I was shaping ideas, making decisions, and leading.” 

Building Culture, Connection, and Commitment Across Teams

In large organizations, teams often work in silos. Skill-based volunteering disrupts that pattern.

Over the years, Rebecca has built relationships with colleagues she never would have met otherwise — people who now sign up again and again because the experience is meaningful, not performative.

“These events connect people through a deeper sense of purpose,” she says. “It’s different than a happy hour. You’re doing something together that matters.” 

That sense of shared purpose strengthens teams, deepens engagement, and reinforces why investing in people, not just perks, matters.

A Strategic Investment in Engagement, Retention, and Performance

For companies, skill-based volunteering isn’t just about doing good. It’s about building stronger, more connected, more capable teams.

Employees want to feel engaged. They want to grow. They want to know their work and their employer contributes positively to the world around them.

“Especially in professional services, our people are our advantage,” Rebecca explains. “Keeping people connected, engaged, and able to make an impact through their work is critical.” 

Partnering with an organization like Working for Women removes barriers that often prevent companies from getting started, identifying real needs, aligning skills with opportunity, and creating programs that are sustainable over time.

“It skips the heavy lifting,” Rebecca says. “You can create something meaningful — and then keep showing up for years.” 

A Legacy Built Through Meaningful Work

After its inaugural session in 2019, today, the negotiation workshop has taken on a life of its own — refined, expanded, and carried forward by new volunteers across offices and years.

For Rebecca, seeing something she helped build from the start continue to grow has been deeply meaningful.

“It feels like a legacy,” she reflects. “It’s grown with me as I’ve grown in my own role.” 

That legacy is exactly what skill-based volunteering makes possible: impact that compounds for women building their futures, for employees building their leadership, and for employers investing in both.