Empowering Women

The Omar Shrine Auditorium in Mount Pleasant hosted the seventh annual Women in Business Conference on February 24. This day-long conference brings together women business owners and professionals for a day of learning, empowerment, and inspiration. The Graduate School of the College of Charleston provided three master’s candidates with tickets to attend this conference, hosted by the Center for Women and the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce. Ann-Marie, a Public Administration candidate, shares her experience.

Being a student at The Graduate School at the College of Charleston sure has its perks. Besides studying in the no. 1 most beautiful city in the nation, with the most beautiful people, and at a best value university, there are plenty of opportunities to network with the most remarkable female entrepreneurs in the country.

At the Annual Women in Business Conference sponsored by the Center for Women, I mingled with over 370 professionals in fields that ranged from non-profit administration to weapons engineers.  Besides the dozens of booths and delicious food, everyone got a chance to participate in speed networking exercises and listen to seminars on useful topics like social media tactics for organizations.

The icing on the cake was the very special address by Charlotte Beers, the undersecretary for Colin Powell, the first woman to be featured on Fortune magazine, and a worldwide advertising mogul.  She shared her wisdom on the necessity of acknowledging personal traits and becoming an effective communicator.  She stated that the rise to top positions is never ever based on your work alone.  Women have a destiny, and they must truly believe that in order communicate effectively and to become leaders.

What great place Charleston must be, Center for Women CEO Jennet Alterman pointed out, for magnates like Anita Zucker and Charlotte Beers to retire here out of all the places in the world?  I have to agree with the Director of the conference.  My hometown has never been brighter.