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Real World Issues Aired at Student Led Conferences
Always impressive, the annual conferences organized by HBS student clubs bring together industry leaders, alumni, and students for meetings marked by informative discussions of key business issues. Earlier this year, gatherings sponsored by the African American Student Union, the Women's Student Association, and the Asia Business Club provided attendees with an opportunity to engage in lively discourse, thoughtful reflection, and gala celebrations.
AASU Conference: A Call to Action
"Leading the Restoration: Black Business Achievement into the 21st Century" was the theme of the 28th annual conference hosted by the HBS African American Student Union (AASU). More than 550 attendees gathered in late January for the three-day meeting, which featured academic and social events held on campus and at the nearby Hyatt Regency Hotel. Student cochairs Walter Frye and Frantz Alphonse (both HBS '00) characterized the conference as "a community-wide call to action" and an opportunity to explore the role of HBS graduates in contributing to development in the African-American community.
On the opening day of the conference, alumni participants enjoyed a return to the classroom for seminars led by HBS faculty, while aspiring MBA Program applicants had their first exposure to the case method during Prospective Student Day events, organized each year by the AASU and the HBS Admissions Office in conjunction with the conference.
Throughout the weekend, invited speakers and panelists shared a wide range of experiences, opinions, and practical knowledge about cultivating leadership, entrepreneurship, and empowerment. Six panel discussions presented on the second day of the gathering stimulated dynamic conversation about career management in the high-tech industry and in Internet start-ups, gaining access to venture capital, the benefits of acquiring and transforming existing businesses, the challenges of leading diverse organizations, and the successful management of community-based ventures. Several alumni participated on panels, including Edwin Reed (MBA '79), Don Cornwell (MBA '71), Lauren Love (MBA '95) and Rena Clark (MBA '90). Harvard University professor Cornel West, author Les Brown, and David Steward, CEO of St. Louis based Worldwide Technologies, were featured speakers.
A new element of this year's conference was the Entrepreneurial Venture competition, which drew 37 entrants competing for a total of $17,500 in awards. The winning team, led by Lawrence Brewster (MBA '81), submitted a plan for an e-business in the health-care industry. Lisa Skeete Tatum (MBA '98) and Daphne Dufresne (MBA '99) were instrumental in organizing the contest, with support from key sponsors, including Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership.
A traditional highlight of the conference is the presentation of awards to alumni in recognition of outstanding leadership and accomplishments. Those honored at the formal evening banquet this year were Robert Ryan (MBA '70) and Paula Banks (154th AMP) for professional achievement, the Reverend Jonathan Weaver (MBA '75) for civic commitment, and Lillian Lincoln (MBA '69) for service to the community. Presented jointly by the AASU and the HBS African American Alumni Association, the awards further a key conference objective of presenting inspirational role models to encourage both current and future students.
With a full roster of social events -- including a Super Bowl party -- on the last day of the conference, participants had a chance to catch up with old friends and to make new contacts before returning home with enhanced perspectives and renewed energy for the challenges ahead.
WSA: Celebrating Women's Accomplishments
On Saturday, January 22, about eight hundred women gathered on campus for the ninth annual Women's Student Association's business leadership conference. Titled "Women Enriching Business," the daylong event was designed to celebrate the scope of women's accomplishments in the business world as well as to strengthen the ties between current MBA students and women business leaders. (WSA Web Site)
More than seventy speakers, panelists, and moderators -- ranging from one of the first women to earn an MBA at HBS, to up-and-coming entrepreneurs who are making waves in the business world, to established executives in traditional industries -- brought a wide spectrum of expertise to the event.
After welcoming remarks from Dean Kim B. Clark and conference cochair Kimberly Allen (HBS '00), the opening keynote address was delivered by Heidi Miller, CFO of Citigroup. Miller, whom Fortune magazine cited as one of the fifty most powerful women in business, shared her belief in the importance of stretching boundaries, as well as some of the insights she has gained as one of the top women dealmakers in the financial-services arena.
Two sessions of morning panels addressed issues related to specific industries. During the first session, attendees could choose among panels that examined the fields of consulting, finance, health care, retail, or venture capital, while the second offered the opportunity to learn more about careers in entertainment and media, high tech, marketing, and nonprofits.
Judy Lewent, SVP and CFO of Merck & Co., another of Fortune's top fifty, delivered the second keynote address. After lunch, iVillage CEO Candice M. Carpenter (MBA '83) gave the final keynote speech and discussed many themes that were heard throughout the day: entrepreneurship, decision-making, failure, family, and mentoring. "Courage does not mean not being afraid," Carpenter told the crowd, "it means being used to being afraid. I've been scared in everything I've ever done."
A series of afternoon panels were organized around "hot topics," such as cultivating a mentor and building a career, strategies for personal and professional success, women as negotiators, and the power of women in the marketplace.
The event ended with a reception and a performance by the SheEOs, the School's all-female a cappella group. "Witnessing the conference conclude was bittersweet," conference cochair Lisa Gunther told the Harbus. Added Gunther, who worked on the event with cochairs Kimberly Allen and Anna Diaz (all HBS '00), "The conference is the best thing that I've done at HBS."
Portions of this article originally appeared on the HBS Working Knowledge portal (www.hbsworkingknowledge.hbs.edu).
Asia Business Conference: Welcoming the New Millennium
Over one thousand students, alumni, businesspeople, and scholars attended this year's Asia Business Conference, whose theme was "Asia at the Dawn of the Millennium." The high-powered gathering, held on campus January 2829, covered a broad range of topics and included ninety speakers from throughout Asia. The event, now in its seventh year, was sponsored by the Asia Business Club at HBS and the Harvard Asia Law Society.
Conference cochair Yat-Pang Au (HBS '00) was thrilled with the program and the turnout. He praised the organizers, whom he described as a "motivated, capable team of students who rallied together and put in countless hours to make the conference the success that it was."
Conference participants were greeted on Friday afternoon by Jim Hildebrandt, the director of Bain & Company Asia, who was followed by Ronald Chwang, president of Acer Technology Venture, the first of several keynote speakers. Next up was a plenary session titled "Asia: An Important Part of the Global Economy," in which panelists discussed the integration of financial markets and collaboration among different players in technology sectors as evidence of the power of globalization. Attendees could then choose one of several panel discussions that addressed issues such as China's entry in the World Trade Organization and the restructuring of Asian companies. That evening, guests were given a chance to talk with each other as well as with invited business and political leaders from Asia at a sold-out celebration at Harvard University's Fogg Museum.
Bright and early the next day, conference participants heard opening remarks from David Michael, vice president and director of BCG Hong Kong. After a keynote address by Andrew Miller, SVP of sales and marketing at China.com, attendees gathered for a plenary session on "The Next Frontier -- The Internet in Asia," in which content, commerce, career opportunities, and business models were discussed. The next series of panels considered topics that included start-ups in Asia and the Internet and entrepreneurship in Japan.
Saturday's lunchtime keynote speaker was Guangshao Tu, CEO of the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The rise of e-commerce in Asia and the role of women in corporate Asia were some of the choices for the afternoon's panels, which also included sessions on intellectual property, direct investment in Asia, and entertainment and media in Asia. The final event was the Shanghai Ball, an extravaganza held at the Copley Plaza Westin Hotel that celebrated the beginning of the new millennium and marked the completion of the conference.
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