Yesterday I had the privilege of attending the Women in the World Summit, which was presented by my former employer, Newsweek Daily Beast. The experience is unlike anything that I can put into words. At the Summit, moderators who include people like Hillary Clinton, Diane Von Furstenberg, Angela Jolie, Barbara Walters, Meryl Streep, and more, help women from countries near and far testify to some of the atrocities they have experienced or witnessed in their lives. Atrocities that I could never imagine – honor killings and beatings, genital mutilation, rape, not being allowed to work or leave the home, being denied education, and the list goes on. A former Stern part-time student/former coworker of mine provided tickets for myself and another classmate. Knowing my interest in women’s issues, he was happy to extend the invitation to the Summit. Much like Stern, this gathering is a transformative experience. It brings perspective to my MBA as I stress over a quiz that is worth 10% of my grade in one course. Moreover, to see a media company create such a forum for women’s issues reminds me that corporate America can participate in meaningful corporate social responsibility (CSR) beyond the purpose of branding or the bottom line.
My friend who accompanied me has a particular interest in CSR, whereas I am simply a person who was inspired by the conference last year and as a woman, finds these issues fascinating and engaging. As I sat at the conference this year, I found that I was looking at it through a different lens since attending Stern. I thought about the ways that pressure could be placed upon companies to improve not only women’s rights, but also human rights. I considered some of the management techniques we have discussed in my Leadership in Organizations (LiO) course that could be applicable to some of the organizations represented at the Summit. I further considered the role that celebrity played in branding the conference and how it was leveraged for good rather than to simply sell tickets to an event. I considered the way that macroeconomic conditions colored the lives of many of the women presenters and how the decisions made in the US could have far reaching effects that often go unseen globally. These are all things that hardly crossed my mind last year when I was simply awestruck by the conference.
Again, I was thrilled to share this experience with fellow Sternies. In fact, next I might suggest partnering with Stern Women in Business to have a greater presence at the conference. I feel that Women in the World presents a great fusion of EQ and IQ. You can check it out for yourself here.