MGT3120TAWIL

Panelists

Amy Abrams, Co-founder, In Good Company

ShaSha Dai, Journalist, Dow Jones & Co.

Bonnie Kerker, Assistant Health Commissioner, Department of Health

Karen Lukas, Executive Director, Folk Arts Rajasthan

Maria DiMeo Calvelli, Lawyer/professor

As a group project for Dr. Abe Tawil’s management class, we were faced with an assignment to put together an event about “Successful Women in Business.” It seems as though New York City is filled with successful businesswomen, but getting them to come speak to our students for free doesn’t happen too often or easily. We began our search through the young entrepreneur council, Baruch’s women’s clubs, and websites. We even paid a fee to join a “celebrity contact” website in hopes of recruiting Oprah. Little did we know, the search was not going to be easy. After weeks of attempts and failures, we had a few contacts that gave us some hope. We were persistent with them, and they agreed to come do us the favor. Our group was very lucky to find the speakers that we had at our panel. They were intelligent, successful, inspiring, and enjoyable to listen to.

Before the panel, we were nervous about the speakers showing up, getting along, and performing well. Each of our 5 speakers arrived (on time too), and gave an excellent contribution to the panel discussion. We also had a spectacular moderator, Barbara Lambert from the STARR Career Development Center, who led the discussion (and took some stress off of our shoulders). The panelists’ comfort and understanding between each other was incredible, especially for people who had just met. It reminded me of the same relationship our group members had when we first met, and it made sense that a group with a good relationship can set up a remarkable event such as this one. Our speakers found a connection shortly into the discussion. They began by talking about their road to success. They assured us that it is okay to search for something you’re passionate about. One key point that they illustrated is that the road to success isn’t a straight path, and you may end up somewhere else before finding your place.

Another topic they discussed is the possibility of gender problems in the work place. None of our speakers faced serious gender problems in their career, and they felt that as long as you have the drive, your gender will not stand in your way of success. The only constraint that they expressed for women is the difficulty to balance time while being a mother and a career-oriented woman. A lot of women find their balance over time, and they learn to be flexible. Another key point that they stressed is that it is important to maintain leverage between work and your personal life. You must give attention to both and neglect neither. Our panelists also touched upon the importance of networking. Amy Abrams stated that today, “80% of people find their job through networking while only 20% find their job through a regular job listing.” This number is only increasing so you must always network, look for mentors, be courteous to those who help you, and build your reputation. The speakers ended us off with some words of wisdom and advice for our future – explore the world, don’t be constrained, look for your passions, and implement your creativity! We were extremely happy with the outcome of our event. From our speakers, to the pizza – everything was delightful. Once again, we thank all of our panelists, our moderator, and our audience for making this a successful event.

Guest List:

1.  Bonnie Kerker, Assistant Health Commissioner, Department of Health

Dr. Bonnie Kerker is the Assistant Commissioner of the Bureau of Epidemiology Services at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The Bureau focuses on collecting, analyzing and communicating data to inform policy-makers and program-planners both within and outside of the Health Department. The Bureau also conducts epidemiologic analyses to help further the work of the agency and improve the health of New Yorkers.

After college at Tufts, Dr. Kerker joined the Peace Corps, and spent two years (Aug. 1990 to Oct. 1992) in the Dominican Republic developing community health and education programs in Sabana Alta, a village of 8,000. She has two degrees in public health, a master’s and a Ph.D., from Yale. She joined the city health department in 1995 as an epidemiologist, returned to Yale for her doctorate, and was rehired in 2003 to analyze data and help write a report on health disparities in New York City. She is now Assistant Commissioner of the Bureau of Epidemiology Services at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

2.  Karen Lukas, Executive Director, Folk Arts Rajasthan

Karen Lukas maintained a decorative painting studio in New York City for twenty-four years after receiving a BFA from Mass College of Art and Design with a focus in crafts. Her work drew on a broad spectrum of influences culled from extensive travel and study of traditional decorative arts, textiles, and crafts. Simultaneously, Ms. Lukas founded Folk Arts Rajasthan (FAR) out of a desire to preserve the vanishing folk art, music, and culture of the Rajasthani Merasi (musician) clan. Her vision and artistic ingenuity have initiated and cultivated FAR’s invaluable American support base for Lok Kala Sagar Sansthan (LKSS) FAR’s collaborative partner organization in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India.

3.  Amy Abrams, Co-founder, In Good Company

Amy Abrams, co-founder, has over 10 years of entrepreneurial experience. Through her work over the past decade, Amy has helped hundreds of individuals launch and grow their own businesses.

Amy is also the founder of Artists & Fleas (www.artistsandfleas.com), a marketplace for emerging artists, designers and vintage collectors in Brooklyn. Over the past seven years, Artists & Fleas has helped thousands of artists and designers showcase their creations. Artists & Fleas has been recognized as a major tourist destination in New York City and has received numerous press accolades. Amy also founded Interactive Pipeline, a recruiting firm specializing in placements for start-up companies.

Amy served as a as a Principal Partner at Berkman Fives, LLC, a consulting firm for women professionals and entrepreneurs. Prior to these ventures, Amy worked as Marketing Director at a software company and at an investment bank and consulting firm in Israel. In addition to an M.A. in Counseling Psychology from Fordham University, Amy has a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Amy is currently on the board of the Open Space Alliance of North Brooklyn (www.openspacealliancenb.org/)

4.  ShaSha Dai, Reporter/journalist, Dow Jones

ShaSha Dai was born in Nanchang, China. She holds a masters’ degree from Columbia University. ShaSha has worked for The Wall Street Journal, and has been working at Dow Jones for the past 7 years.

5.  Maria DiMeo Calvelli, Lawyer/professor

Maria DiMeo Calvelli holds a bachelors’ degree in political science from Fordham University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. She currently teaches law at Baruch College and she has practiced law for over 20 years. She worked for Clifford Chance LLP, and worked and made partner at Werbel & Carnelutti LLP and Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe LLP.

Topics which were discussed:

1. Tell me a little bit about yourself and the field of work that you do.
2. Was it difficult for you to find success in your field as a woman? Have you experienced the “glass ceiling”?
3. Have you ever encountered a major crisis in your job? If so, was it ever gender related?
4. Do you feel that being a woman has helped your career growth or hindered it?
5. What is your greatest achievement thus far?
6. How did you start out in your career? What obstacles did you have to go through to get where you are now?
7. Do you find it hard to maintain a steady successful position and also carry other responsibilities of a woman? Do you have time for a family? Children?
8. What advice can you give to other young women who want to get into your field of work?