EDWARDSVILLE/TROY – The Troy/Maryville/St. Jacob/Marine Chamber of Commerce will host its fifth annual Women’s Conference next week.
On Nov. 6, 2024, community members are invited to attend “Women’s Conference: Be the Change: Transforming Generations” at the Outlet Event Center in Edwardsville. Attendees will learn from different panels and breakout sessions throughout the day.
“We just want a day where people can learn, network, have some good food and just enjoy the day,” said Dawn Mushill, CEO of the Chamber of Commerce.
The event begins at 8:15 a.m. with opening remarks and a panel titled “Successful Women in a Male-Dominated Industry.” From there, attendees can choose three breakout sessions to attend, including “Breaking Imposter Syndrome,” “Step Into Your Domme Power,” “Why Are Women Perceived Bossy Instead of Decisive,” “Emotional Intelligence – Understanding It and Using It,” and “Shared Leadership: How To Influence Culture From Every Position on the Organizational Chart.”
The event will continue with a taco bar for lunch — “probably the most important thing,” Mushill said — and then a panel about how to use AI as a tool. The day will conclude with a panel titled “Bridging Generations.” Mushill anticipates that this final panel will bring in a lot of attendees.
“I think that it’s just a matter of understanding why people do what they do and then trying to figure out what to do about it,” she explained. “With our speakers, we tried to get a wide variety. All of our speakers are professional speakers in the industry, so we felt like we wanted to make sure that we had something for everybody.”
Speakers include Tracy Bianco, Wendy Symer, Jeff Koziatek, Michell Stockmann, Joe Harris, Carol Sparks, Linda Manley, Lisa Philipson, Jennie Bellinger, Megan Martin and Beth Newcom.
In addition to the panels and breakout sessions, there will be multiple “five life tips” presentations throughout the day, when different speakers will share five tips they’ve developed for success in their personal and professional lives.
Mushill noted that the event is open for members of the Troy/Maryville/St. Jacob/Marine Chamber of Commerce as well as nonmembers. She said many of their members voiced that they wanted more educational opportunities, and she believes the Women’s Conference is a great example of this.
“We have two educational opportunities a month, and then this just fit right in,” she said. “Our goal is to continue to offer and change things up every time. We change things up for every conference.”
Individual tickets to the Women’s Conference cost $100. There will be a limited number of tickets available at the door, but Mushill encourages you to purchase tickets online or call the chamber at 618-667-8769. Visit the official Troy/Maryville/St. Jacob/Marine Chamber of Commerce website at TroyMaryvilleCOC.com for more information.
