March 25, 2025—Four student leaders traveled to Harvard Business School for its 34th annual Women in Business Conference. The students—Sara Brzovski '26, Olivia Listro '26, Kailey Levinson '25, and Kara Macdonald '25 took the opportunity to engage with business leaders.

“It was so inspiring to spend a day with like-minded women from across the country and the world, all aspiring to enter the business world,” said Sara Brzovski '26, a double major in economics and business administration. The conference, themed “Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges,” provided a space for women leaders to connect and learn from one another.

Sara and Olivia both serve on the C-Suite of the Marist Women in Business (WIB) Club. All four attendees are members of Beta Gamma Sigma, the international business honor society.

For Sara, strong relationships with other women are a core part of her academic experience. “It was great to come together to advance our organizations and support fellow women leaders in such a male-dominated field,” she said.

Students gather for the February 22 conference themed, “Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges.” Photo courtesy of Katelyn Giordano.

At the conference, the students attended keynote speeches and industry panels.

“We were able to hear from so many amazing women in all areas of the business world, with speaker highlights including the CFO of Salesforce and the founder and CEO of Rent the Runway,” Sara said.

 "Kailey Levinson '25, a business administration major, and Kara Macdonald '25, a finance major, both found the keynote speech from Amy Weaver, chief financial officer at Salesforce, particularly impactful.

“My favorite takeaways from Amy Weaver’s keynote were that ‘kindness is a strength’ and the advice to ‘leap and then grow wings,’” Kara said.

“Amy talked about her experience as the only woman on her first Salesforce earnings call and being completely ignored by the investors,” Kailey said. “She worked incredibly hard to learn as much as she could and to prove herself worthy of the position, even though she was highly qualified and appointed by the CEO of Salesforce.”

The attendees look forward to applying the skills and knowledge they gained to their work in the business world and on campus.

“The School of Management is invested in providing hands-on learning opportunities for our students,” said Katelyn Giordano, associate dean for operations at the School of Management. “When our students attend conferences or visit companies on-site, they’re able to learn from and network with industry professionals and their peers. These experiences allow our students to connect their classroom learning to their future careers.”

About Marist Women in Business
Marist Women in Business is open to all students interested in the experience of women in the workplace. The club provides opportunities to expand knowledge and network while encouraging members to use their voices and take risks in their communities and organizations.