Women in corporate America share strategies to success

Four-day summit brings top female execs to Orlando

South Florida is rich in history with women that have made tremendous strides in business. From Juliet Murphy Roulhac, who was recently appointed as the regional manager for external affairs for Florida Power and Light to Kymberlee Curry Smith and Ericka Turk-Moore who have become the newest members at delancyhill, P.A, women are making their mark. Many of these women joined other female executives at last week’s Black Enterprise Women of Power Summit in Orlando.

The four-day executive leadership conference was aimed at offering a unique forum for women of color to network, share experiences and learn career advancement strategies. The conference featured female leaders in business including Carole Simpson, veteran broadcast journalist, Anita Hill, who has been a trailblazer in sexual harassment rights and Felicia Guity, general manager at Microsoft. Simpson was the first Black woman hired by NBC’s D.C. Bureau; she later became an anchor for ABC. Guity represents a small handful of female executives among Microsoft’s management team and negotiates contracts and other services on the international landscape.

“My color and gender may have played a role in ABC’s strong interest but I also had the experience and skills,” Simpson said.

About 700 women attended the Summit. Aspiring businesswomen were able to take part in breakout workshops that focused on topics like management, social media and learning the more about risk-taking management. Hill, most recognized for her sexual harassment claims against Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas nearly 20 years ago, said speaking out against Thomas brought her more attention than she would have liked.

“The hearing for me had an unexpected consequence,” she said. “I didn’t have any sense that it was going to resonate in the way that it did. It has been kind of difficult for me.”

Guity also adds that being a great thinker is a key aspect to being successful.

“You really have to be aware of how you think and process information,” she said. “Critical thinking in the marketing area and having vision is key.”

By Randy Grice
rgrice@miamitimesonline.com