Women in manufacturing careers have a new resource to help advance their leadership skills.

Announced last week, the Leadership Lab for Women in Manufacturing program, a partnership between Women in Manufacturing (WiM) and Case Western Reserve University’s (CWRU) Weatherhead School of Management, will provide education and training to women in mid- to high-level management roles in the manufacturing industry.

The eight-day program includes three sessions covering topics such as “Women in Manufacturing: Bias Barriers and Opportunities,” “High-impact Leadership for Women in Manufacturing,” and “Skills and Strategies for Leading the Way Forward in Manufacturing.”

“As the only national trade association dedicated to providing year-round support to women in manufacturing careers, WiM is always looking for new ways to help our members thrive,” WiM President Allison Grealis, said in a statement. “The Leadership Lab for Women in Manufacturing program is an example of our ongoing commitment to women’s leadership in the manufacturing sector today and into the future.”

Taking place at CWRU’s Cleveland campus, the program is funded in part by the GE Foundation and builds on a previous leadership program that the university created for women in STEM careers.

“From our past Leadership Labs, we have found that, within six months of finishing the program, 40 percent of the women had sought and obtained a promotion,”  said Kathleen Buse, an adjunct professor at the Weatherhead School of Management and faculty director for Leadership Lab for Women in STEM. “We look forward to working with WiM members to help them leverage their strengths to achieve continued success in their careers.”

Manufacturing groups aren’t the only ones working to advance women’s leadership opportunities. In 2014, the Online News Association partnered with the nonprofit Poynter Institute to create the Leadership Academy for Women in Digital Media, which aims to teach female journalists how to get ahead in the field. And late last year, the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council announced a partnership with online speakers bureau Innovation Women to help create speaking opportunities for MTLC members.

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