Chicago Women in Business: 2013 Conference Recap

Booth’s Chicago Women in Business (CWiB) recently held its Fall 2013 conference. CWiB is one of the largest and most active student groups on campus, and provides great programming for Booth’s women to network with one another and alumni in a variety of fields, and participate in educational programming such as golf and self-defense lessons, wine tastings with Booth faculty, and investing strategies.

To get a sense of what the conference was like, check out The Booth Experience’s interview and video with conference organizers Gigi Wong and Aditi Mehta (Class of 2014). In this edition of The Booth Experience blog, second-year students Michelle Breunig and Elizabeth Kim also offer their perspectives on what the conference meant to them.

--Matt

  

Michelle Breunig

One of the best things about being at Booth is having the chance to hear and learn from top business leaders. There are so many different opportunities –the Corporate Speaker Series, the Alumni Breakfast Series, conferences organized by the various student organizations, and more. As a first year student last year, CWiB’s annual fall conference was one of my favorite activities and was a great start to the year and the recruiting season. I was excited to attend the event again this year – and it was another great conference! The CWiB co-chairs and volunteers did an excellent job.

The theme of this year’s conference was Success Redefined – Defining Success in a Personal Way. This theme was reflected in the keynote addresses and throughout the different panels. Panel topics included the art of negotiation, networking, leadership stories, and managing career changes. Two Booth alumnae gave the keynote speeches. Paula Fasseas, ’96, Founder and Chair of PAWS Chicago, talked about starting her career in banking and bringing her business training and knowledge to PAWS in Chicago to help spread the No Kill model to shelters across the country. Valerie VanMeter (’04), Senior VP and CFO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, took her own spin on Sheryl Sandberg’s popular “Lean In” message to women. Her message was incredibly powerful and very personal!

I enjoyed learning about the different paths to success everyone has had – and the constant message of pursuing your passion. I also appreciated the candid advice – including the recommendation to take full advantage of all of the opportunities here at Booth. Definitely a great reminder to carry through my second year!

Elizabeth Kim

CWiB is a terrific resource for Booth women. Apart from the practical programming the group hosts to prepare women at Booth for internships and full-time jobs, women can also leverage CWiB to build meaningful friendships and professional networks. 

When Gigi Wong, one of the two Co-Chairs in charge of organizing the CWiB Conference, asked me to facilitate two of the panels, I was grateful for the opportunity as a second year to give back to Booth and to get more involved with the CWiB conference attendees and panelists. The panels I facilitated were called “Leadership Stories: Definition of Success” and “Moving Up and Managing Career Changes.” As I listened to the stories of the panelists, I recognized themes of flexibility, leveraging relationships, and being tenacious. Something that I learned from the panelists and observed first-hand last year was to be attentive and cordial to others. This will build goodwill with others and yourself, which will also pay dividends while at school and beyond.

About the authors:

Michelle Breunig is originally from the Milwaukee, WI area and went to the University of Wisconsin – Madison for an undergraduate degree in Accounting. She then worked for a big 4 public accounting firm. At Booth she is pursuing Concentrations in Finance, Economics, and Entrepreneurship. This past summer Michelle interned at Goldman Sachs in Private Wealth Management in the firm’s Chicago office, and will be returning full time after graduation. At Booth, she is an active member of Chicago Women in Business (CWiB), the Investment Management Group (IMG), and the Dean’s Student Admissions Committee (DSAC). In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her husband and their dog, traveling (currently planning a 2 week trip to Italy post-graduation), and enjoying Chicago’s fabulous restaurant scene.

Elizabeth Kim is a second year at Booth and is a Co-Chair of the Management Consulting Group and the Latter-Day Saints Students Association (LDSSA) in addition to being an Admissions Fellow. She is currently pursuing concentrations in Entrepreneurship and Operations Management. This past summer, Elizabeth spent her summer at McKinsey & Company in Chicago where she will be returning full-time. Elizabeth grew up in California and attended UCLA, graduating cum laude with a BA in Anthropology and a minor in Accounting. She joined Deloitte & Touche LLP upon graduation and was an Enterprise Risk Services Manager in the accounting consultations group in the D.C. area prior to coming to Booth. Elizabeth enjoys cooking for her friends and family and exploring the city of Chicago.

Binder Full of Booth Women

The past few weeks at Booth have been filled with conferences, giving students the opportunity to learn about particular industries, broaden their professional networks, and hear the thoughts of successful alumni. The Chicago Women in Business (CWiB) Conference, which was held on October 19, is one such event. This week, we have an update from Erica Nollen, a member of CWiB who attended the event. Many thanks to Diane Nguyen for sharing her photos of the event with The Booth Experience!

-Dana

Hey Booth Nation! I’m Erica Nollen, a second year at Booth studying marketing and strategic management. After a few years of working in management consulting and marketing strategy, I’ve come back to my Midwestern roots for my MBA. In addition to its proximity to the best state in the union (Ohio–my Buckeye state pride runs deep), I chose to come to Booth for its diverse student body, hands-on learning opportunities and flexible curriculum and my experience thus far has exceeded my expectations.

One of my favorite parts of being at Booth is getting to hear stories and glean insights from today’s business and organizational leaders. From daily Lunch and Learns, the weekly Alumni Breakfast Series, annual conferences and more, we’re fortunate at Booth to have so many opportunities to pick the brains of brilliant business minds that visit campus. It really keeps the big picture of why we’re in business school in focus, which sometimes gets lost in the details of balancing a statement of cash flows or calculating a project’s weighted average cost of capital.

Conference Season commenced for many female Booth students on Friday, October 19 when the Chicago Women in Business (CWiB) Group hosted its annual conference at the storied University Club of Chicago. Most professionally-focused clubs host annual conferences which not only draw in impressive alumni and business leaders from across the world, but also provide some of the best meals of the year (it’s embarrassing to admit how much I eat cereal for dinner). The all-star team of CWiB co-chairs and volunteers did a tremendous job putting this conference together for the benefit of all attendees and participants.

The theme of the conference, “finding a personal path to success”, was woven throughout the afternoon’s sessions. Two seasoned Booth alumnae gave heartfelt key note speeches connecting their business school experiences to the challenges they have thus far conquered in their professional journeys. Audra Lalley, ’98, the VP of Barclay’s Wealth Management, inspired the audience to set ambitious goals and seek balance in life with her account of training for an Ironman while working through the aftermath of the financial crisis. Karen Greenbaum, ’02, Partner at Nick Pierce & Associates Inc., captivated conference attendees with her story of rising through the ranks of Mercer to COO and the key ingredients to her successes inside and outside the office. Panel breakouts covered topics including speed mentoring, managing career changes, entrepreneurship and negotiating. After the formal sessions, students mingled with one another and company representatives over drinks and finger foods at a networking reception.

As I walked back to my apartment after the close of the conference, I felt inspired to chase my professional dreams and excited to attend other conferences and events offered through Booth, the University of Chicago, and the greater Chicago community.

Reflections on Applying to Booth

Considering Booth? There are a ton of events to help you get to know us better coming up in cities around the world. We are particularly excited about the Booth Women Connect Conference that will take place here in Chicago on September 21. Hosted by the Full-Time, Evening, Weekend, and Executive MBA Programs, Booth Women Connect offers an opportunity to meet with female business leaders and learn from Booth faculty and alumni. With all of these events on the horizon, I decided to share my thoughts on admissions events, now that I’m on the other side of the application process.

Beth
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Last week I was one of several rising (I’m still in denial that my first year is over) second years to participate in a Summer Student-Hosted Event in Chicago. During the happy hour, one attendee asked me “What’s something you wish you had known when you were applying to business school?” I almost jumped to respond back with a canned Miss America answer, “Well, nothing really. Part of the joy of applying to school is learning throughout the process so I wouldn’t have wanted to know anything more than I did going in.”

But instead, I paused and thought back to two years ago when I attended a Booth Student- Hosted event in DC. It was the first MBA admissions event I had ever attended and I was all nerves going into it. I had no idea what to expect, what was expected of me, or who I would meet. I cautiously approached the bar at the Clyde’s in Chinatown and struck up a conversation with two friendly young women. After a bit of small talk, I asked them if they had just finished up their first year. Blank stares. Turns out, they were just two random friendly young women at the bar. In my nervousness, I had not even made it to the event, which was just across the room. I graciously excused myself from the conversation and walked over to the Booth crowd. The students were relaxed and friendly, but I was still tense. Everything seemed low key, but I wondered, “Are they evaluating me? Am I putting my best foot forward?” The answer to both questions...probably not.

As a student who has been very involved with admissions events for the past year, I now know that these events are for you, the prospective students. We want to give you a chance to get to know the school, ask questions, and figure out if Booth is the right fit for you. The best thing you can do is relax, learn, enjoy the free food and yourself. Looking back, I wish I had known to have a little more fun during this part of the process. (Don’t worry, I’ve made up for it by having extra fun during my time at Booth).

Some other advice for making the most of admissions events:
* Jot down a few things that you thought were interesting and relevant to you. Some of the tidbits I picked up during info sessions were things I ended up discussing with my interviewer.
* If you connect with someone, or they are pursuing a path you want to know more about, don’t be afraid to ask them if you can follow up with an email. Generally, I find that students and alumni are happy to talk offline. I’m even meeting up this weekend with an alum I met during the application process!
* If you can’t make an event or visit campus, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at dsac@chicagobooth.edu. Like I said, the events are for you! If you can’t make one, we’ll put you in touch with current students. And, of course (shameless plug), keep checking back on The Booth Experience to hear what students have to say about their time at Booth.

I hope you’ll make it to one of our admissions events this summer/fall. And just remember, have fun, because before you know it, you’ll be an actual second year wondering where the time went!

Discover Forté...In L.A!

Hello TBE Readers! We’re back with another post about the Forté Foundation, an organization that brings together women from top corporations and MBA programs to promote their advancement in the business world. We hope you enjoyed reading Vivienne’s TBE post last week about her experience at Forté Foundation Financial Services FAST Track. This week, first year student Katie Blodgett shares how she geared up for business school by attending the Forté MBA Women’s Conference last summer. Whether a recently admitted or current female MBA candidate, this year’s conference, aptly titled “Advantage Women: Use Your Strengths to Build an Exceptional Career,” is a great way to prepare for the upcoming year and expand your network. The conference will take place June 29 - 30, 2012 in Los Angeles, California.

Check out Katie’s story below to hear firsthand about the conference experience and visit the 2012 Forté MBA Women’s Conference page for more details and information on how to register for the event.

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When admitted to an MBA program, a door is opened to innumerable opportunities – both for the two years of your MBA program and beyond. As a new admit last spring, I found this to be incredibly exciting, but I also found myself a little nervous about what the coming two years would entail and how to best use that time to build my career and grow as a person. When the invitation to attend the Forté Foundation MBA Women’s Conference hit my e-mail inbox and I perused the agenda for the weekend, I thought that it sounded like a great way to help acclimate myself to business school and allow myself to feel better prepared for what the next two years might hold. The event definitely lived up to my expectations and then some.

During the course of the Forté MBA Women’s Conference, I was exposed to so much helpful information about potential future career paths and ways to help prepare myself for internship interview season. I found a workshop session I attended on perfecting your elevator pitch to be extremely helpful and put my mind at ease a bit about the recruiting process. The panels of women leaders were inspiring and motivating, and I had the opportunity to meet wonderful women from MBA programs around the country, as well as from Chicago Booth.

Looking at the agenda for this year’s Forté MBA Women’s Conference, it once again looks filled with many helpful workshops and panels, and will surely be an opportunity for new MBA women to become better prepared to hit the ground running in August and September when orientation starts. If I can make it work with my internship schedule this summer, you may see me there!

Forté Foundation Financial Services FAST Track

It’s hard to believe that summer is almost here, and with summer comes one of Booth’s favorite events, the Forté Foundation MBA Women’s Conference. A founding sponsor of the Forté Foundation, Booth strongly believes in the organization’s mission of supporting women as they pursue leadership roles in business. In addition to the Conference, the Forté Foundation hosts the Financial Services FAST Track (FSFT), a two-day program for incoming MBA women interested in the financial services industry. This year’s program will be held June 4-5 at NYU’s Kimmel Center in New York City. If you were recently admitted to Booth and are considering a career in finance, you may be wondering if the program is right for you. Today on TBE, first-year Vivienne Ko recollects her experience at the 2011 Financial Services FAST Track and shares how it helped her with the recruiting process at Booth. ****

As a newly minted MBA admit last year, I was wondering what I should be doing the summer before the start of the MBA program. I had heard about the Forté Foundation’s Financial Services FAST Track Conference in New York City so I decided to apply. And I am so glad that I did!

The two-day conference provided a low-risk environment to explore the different career paths within financial services. The representatives from sales and trading, investment banking and asset management/private wealth companies were there to speak candidly about their positions more so than to recruit for their companies, so we really had an opportunity to learn about the industry. One of my favorite parts of the conference was the chance to hear about the challenges faced by women in the financial services industry and how the women overcame those challenges. Not only were the stories inspiring, they also provided practical advice for situations I may encounter in my career. Additionally, the Networking Reception and Career Expo that occurred outside the panels were great ways to network with recruiters who were coming to campus in the fall.

The conference helped fine-tune my career interest and gave me a head start in career exploration. I went into Chicago Booth with a better idea about the internship recruiting process and the positions I would like to target. Additionally, I got a chance to meet some of my future classmates for the first time at the conference and foster friendships with women from other MBA programs whom I have seen again during the internship recruiting process. The knowledge and connections gained through the conference have proven to be invaluable during my recent internship search, and I feel confident as I prepare to start my internship in a few weeks.

Are you interested in a career in financial services? Learn more about the Forté Foundation’s Financial Services FAST Track and how to apply here!