The Tuck School of Business celebrated 40 years of coeducational study with the 2008 Women in Business Conference this weekend. Tuck, which first began admitting women in 1968 -- four years earlier than the College -- welcomed all female graduates for a two-day event that celebrated the growing influence of women in the business world.
The conference was comprised of panels, workshops, and various speeches honoring current students and alumnae and also featured events for prospective female students. The events explored topics ranging from how women can remain competitive in the predominately male business world to what makes Tuck a unique business school.
Christina Takoudes Morrison Tu '93, a speaker at the conference and the Senior Vice President and CFO for the Pharmaceutical division of Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, urged women to approach the business world without acknowledging gender biases. Morrison encouraged women to find mentors in the workplace in order to more easily adopt the successful attributes of their superiors. She warned against looking solely for female mentors, adding that ultimately the hardest worker and the best person for the job will succeed, regardless of gender. Morrison explained that women should be careful not to view men in the workplace as enemies and competitors to avoid teamwork suffering.
"The fundamental thing about a company is that everything and everyone is interdependent," Morrison stated. "If you work as a team, the success of one part of the team breeds the success of another. The company as a whole, as well as individual performance, suffers without this teamwork."
Morrison interspersed her talking points with personal anecdotes and humor, at one point encouraging women to be more like ducks, a metaphor which was met with laughter.
"You just want to look like you're gliding on glass -- you're under control," she said. "You have to stay focused and calm. You just have to deal with the problems that come without emotional overreactions."
Effectively balancing career and family life was a common theme throughout the conference. During a panel titled "The Working Woman: How to Manage Your Career and Everything Else Life Throws at You," women were advised to have "open communication" with their families and coworkers regarding their personal and professional needs and goals. Members of the panel said that if all parties involved are open and honest with each other, it is possible to have both a fulfilling career and family life.
Molly Prendergast, a prospective student, said she found the conference both encouraging and refreshing. Prendergast, who participated in the Tuck Bridge Program while an undergraduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, said she is looking at graduate school as a means of moving into a new career speciality.
"The quality of women that Tuck has attracted here is unparalleled," Prendergast said. "It's a great networking opportunity, and it has helped me decide that Tuck would be a great place for grad school."
