More than 120 women from across campus took part in Purdue’s 14th annual Monarch Conference, an event hosted by Purdue Women in Business (WIB) with support from the Brock-Wilson Center for Women in Business.
The conference strives to help participants develop key professional skills, realize their potential, expand their confidence and acquire the tools necessary to accomplish their personal and professional goals. Attendees came from the Daniels School of Business, the colleges of Engineering, Liberal Arts, Health and Human Sciences, and Science, as well as Purdue Polytechnic Institute.
This year’s agenda was kicked off by keynote speaker Tiffany Sauder, a Purdue alumna and founder and CEO of Element Three, an Indianapolis-based marketing consultancy.
“She discussed what advice she would give to her college self now,” says Sydney Burns, WIB’s vice president of conferences. “She mainly hit on notes of balancing work and personal life, how she became a successful woman in business, and how long it might take to reach your goal.”
The first afternoon breakout session helped students connect through a variety of LinkedIn tips and tricks, highlighting networking resources they have at Purdue and demonstrating how to use them, Burns says.
Participants also learned about networking for introverts, took part in interactive elevator-pitch exercises, and actively connected with other student groups including the Women in Engineering and Women in Science programs.
The second breakout session covered topics such as gender discrimination and women empowerment, and outlined specific actions that attendees could take to build each other up, take action, and accelerate their value.
“It empowered attendees through speakers’ personal stories on how they have overcome discrimination and received support from other women in their field, explaining gender bias traps and how to avoid them, teaching productive goal setting, and elaborating on the importance of mental health,” Burns says.
Zimmer Biomet, Northwestern Mutual, Caterpillar, and Perella Weinberg sponsored the 2023 event.
