Elizabeth Rieke T'00 is at the top of her game. After successfully launching new products for Power Bar and (via Bain & Company) Nike, she is now senior director of brand strategy at Gap Inc. and has just given birth to her second child. With an infant and a toddler at home, she would like to arrange a more flexible schedule—but the Gap has just instituted a new rule requiring all high-ranking employees to work full time. Rieke must decide whether to stay at the Gap, eventually moving to the next level while still working conventional hours, or look elsewhere for a job better suited to this particular phase in her life. Whether this type of choice is seen as gender discrimination or an opportunity for change, it's a decision that few, if any, of her male colleagues have to make.
Rieke presented her dilemma to the 200-plus participants—current students, alumnae, and some 60 potential applicants—who attended Tuck's first Women in Business conference last October, where she was a keynote speaker. They listened intently, for this was what they had come to hear: the stories of women farther along in their careers and thus presumably wiser about the challenges women face in what is still a predominantly male-oriented culture.
The three-day event, subtitled "Make It Happen," had a twofold purpose. The first was to showcase Tuck (in addition to multiple panels, workshops, and social events, the program also included a mock class on operations given by Associate Dean Dave Pyke). The second goal was to encourage more talented women to consider an MBA as a way to acquire skill sets that can open many doors. The first goal was easily met. "Tuck sells itself once you get up here," says Meagan Nichols T'06, who co-chaired the conference with classmate Kate Andrews. The second goal is more problematic. "At Tuck, our first-year class is approximately 30 percent women, and our second-year class is approximately 25 percent women. While these numbers are on par with our peers, we strive to do better," said Dean Paul Danos, who rallied institution-wide support for the event.
In addition to encouraging bright and motivated women to apply to Tuck, the conference was also designed for those already enrolled. Its sponsor was Women in Business at Tuck, which is evolving into a forum for networking and career development for all women in the Tuck community, including partners. The content for the conference was shaped by the members' priorities. "The women here are cognizant of differences that affect women in the workplace," says Nichols. "The conference was a way to examine how choices in work and life play out for real."
The conference's panelists were chosen to provide that perspective. All were established business leaders, such as Jennifer Uhrig T'87, vice president and portfolio manager at Fidelity Investments; Adele Morrissette T'82, founder of North Haven Partners Inc.; and Patty Wolff T'94, vice president of marketing at PepsiCo International. All spoke frankly of their struggles as well as their achievements. "How can you avoid the bossy female image when delegating?" was a question asked at several sessions. "Focus on the outcome, set interim deadlines, and be clear about what needs to be done," said one panelist, acknowledging that "it took me a while to realize that when I did this I was doing people a favor."
"It was a weekend of change for me," says Nykia Wright, who flew up from Atlanta, where she works in commercial marketing for GMAC. She saw the cost of her flight as a career investment and felt amply repaid by what she learned about interviewing techniques. She plans to apply to Tuck next year. Vishala Thiagarajan T'06, who was a project manager at IBM before entering Tuck, also came away with a new perspective. "I had always assumed that my bosses would pay me fairly based on my talent and skills. But now I plan to negotiate my own terms. When I tell this to my male classmates, they say 'Of course.'"
Perhaps the event's greatest impact will be seen in the intergenerational connections it fostered. "The conference merged the whole Tuck community over time," says Thiagarajan. "I learned what people before me did and what people coming after are thinking about. We're all looking at the same things but going about it differently." Nichols is particularly gratified by the conference's success in this regard. "It brought together Tuck women of today, the past, and the future." The next initiative for Women in Business at Tuck, she says, will be centered on mentoring.
