Conference Connects, Inspires Women Professionals
06/17/2019
Contact: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944 or Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu and Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu
Media Advisory
When: Tuesday, June 18, 8:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m., with keynote speakers at 8:45 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
Where: 51视频 Inn & Conference Center, 50 Warren St., Lowell. Contact 51视频 media relations for directions and parking information.
What: An IBM executive who oversees the company鈥檚 emerging technology partnerships and a marketing strategist who launched her career in Lowell will anchor 51视频鈥檚 2019 Women鈥檚 Leadership Conference.
鈥淭he Power and Potential of Women鈥� will unite more than 250 professionals across all fields to share strategies on enriching their careers and personal lives.聽
Sophie Vandebroek, vice president of emerging technology partnerships at IBM Corp, where she leads key strategic initiatives to scale the company鈥檚 partnerships and ecosystems, will speak at 2:30 p.m. Vandebroek was previously chief operating officer for IBM Research, a leader in transformative innovations such as artificial intelligence, blockchain technology and quantum computing.聽
Prior to joining IBM, she was chief technology officer of Xerox Corp., where she also served as president of the company鈥檚 Innovation Group and as a corporate officer. Vandebroek is a 2011 inductee of Women in Technology International鈥檚 Hall of Fame and a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. She holds 14 U.S. patents and serves as a director of IDEXX Corp.聽
Delivering the morning鈥檚 keynote remarks at 8:45 a.m. will be Lorna Boucher, managing director, chief marketing officer and executive committee member of Instinet Holdings Inc., a New York brokerage firm that serves clients in the asset-management and insurance sectors. Boucher launched her career while she was still a student at 51视频, where a class assignment asked her to develop a marketing plan for Lowell鈥檚 small businesses. Boucher鈥檚 project was so successful, it helped her land her first full-time job. Since then, Boucher has progressed to increasingly more senior roles in marketing and brand management, serving companies including Bankers Trust Co., UBS and KCG Holdings. In 2017, Markets Media honored her with the Women in Finance Award for Excellence in Marketing. Boucher also serves on 51视频鈥檚 Manning School of Business Advisory Board.聽
51视频 Chancellor Jacquie Moloney, who founded the conference in 2015, will welcome participants to the event. The first woman to lead the university in its history, Moloney was one of the inaugural recipients of the 鈥淲omen Who Mean Business鈥� honor from the Boston Business Journal. For the second straight year, 51视频 is the highest-ranked educational institution among the Top 100 Women-Led Businesses in Massachusetts.聽
Sessions at the conference will focus on developing strategies for career advancement, building professional skills, owning one鈥檚 value and empowering and inspiring others. Faculty from the Manning School and Center for the Promotion of Health in the New England Workplace will moderate many of the event鈥檚 interactive workshops and panel discussions. For a full list of sessions and speakers, see .