WILC draws over 300

Now in its fourteenth year, the annual Women in Leadership Conference at the Ross School of Business tackled the challenging nature of career and life changes in this year's event, "Learning to Navigate Change: The Power of Transitions." Over 300 attendees, including BBA and MBA students, panelists, company sponsors and area businesswomen, convened to listen to two keynote addresses, participate in two sessions of panels and a lunch and reception at the Michigan Union on September 22.

The event was organized by the student-run Michigan Business Women and the Women's Initiative, with major sponsorship by General Motors, Target, and Ford.

The theme of transitions could be felt throughout the event. Conference Co-Chairs Hilary Cantor, MBA2 and Leigh Myers, MBA2, came up with the concept for the theme after brainstorming a range of issues facing women in business. "We realized that many of the issues could be grouped under a broader theme of 'transitions.' Then, we could use our break-out panels sessions to address each of those specific transitions," said Cantor. After further collaboration with the team of conference chairs, the group presented panels including, "Power Couples," "Leadership in Challenging Times," "Off-Ramping/On-Ramping," and "Can You Do It All?"

The topics were meant to provoke engaging discussions between attendees and panelists, and from what feedback the event organizers have received so far, it worked. "[Attendees] were having candid, relevant discussions about broad issues facing businesswomen, as well as personal choices facing all of us," Myer reported of the feedback.

Keynote addresses by Paula Sneed, former executive VP, Global Marketing and Initiatives, Kraft Foods, Inc., and Laura Walker, President and CEO of WNYC New York Public Radio opened and closed the day's activities. Sneed's speech pushed attendees to reflect and learn from the transitions they have already experienced in the past. The speaker asked attendees to take out paper and write down the major transitions they have experienced since the sixth grade, and to think about which ones went well, and why. Attendees were then asked to list their goals for the next twenty years. Sneed then tied it all together by explaining some of the ingredients that help make for successful transitions, such as advance planning and a strong network of friends, and also advised attendees to be prepared for negative transitions, such as issues with children and the health of loved ones. In an ironic twist, Sneed announced that she was currently going through a major transition of her own-she had recently left her post at Kraft after a reorganization occurred at the company, and now plans to explore opportunities in volunteer or public sector work.

During Laura Walker's closing keynote, she discussed the importance of choosing a career path one is passionate about. Walker recalled the lasting impression her mother made on her when she returned to work after being a stay-at-home mother, telling Walker to "make sure you find something you are passionate about, and that you connect with [the people you work with], you will spend more time with them than your own family." Walker went on to talk about how she transitioned from being a consultant to working in the non-profit media segment, and then described major transitions WNYC experienced under her leadership. In particular, she described how events unfolded at the radio station during 9/11, and the its decisive fight to stay on the air throughout the disaster to help New Yorkers stay informed and cope with the crisis.

The transitions the keynote speakers described, and those shared throughout the day among attendees, left event organizers feeling the conference had met their aims and optimistic about the fifteenth annual conference. "We're very proud of the end result and hope the enthusiasm continues into 2007," said Conference Co-Chair Leigh Myer.