2026 WILL Conference: A Closer Look at Leadership Across Generations

We often learn about the lifecycle of a butterfly in grade school - appreciating the transformation each stage signifies and marveling at the magnificent result. At the Ninth Annual Women in Leadership League (WILL) Conference hosted by the Lucas College and Graduate School of Business at San José State, keynote panelists whose careers vary in lifecycle and industry enlightened a Spartan-filled audience with poignant narratives in a "Leadership Across Generations" conversation.

The conference, held April 17, and sponsored by Cisco, joined Madison Huang, senior director of product and technical marketing for physical AI platforms at NVIDIA, Lavanya Gopalakrishnan, senior vice president of customer success at Cisco, and SJSU President Cynthia Teniente-Matson, to break down pivotal career moments, the future of leadership and more.

While exploring leadership principles, moderator and Lucas College and Graduate School of Business Dean Rangapriya "Priya" Kannan, elicited a profound story from Gopalakrishnan - one with the potential to encourage young professionals in any industry.

"It's my leadership principle to make sure that no voice is left unheard," Gopalakrishnan said, outlining how she makes a conscious effort to ensure voices are heard from different personalities, and in whichever method that works for that individual.

"Speak up and use your voice" is something Gopalakrishnan learned later in her career and now advocates for others to do. Early in her tenure at Cisco, she faced impostor syndrome while working with a group of professionals with Ph.D.s from private, highly-recognized institutions, whereas she had come from a state school. She felt intimidated, and questioned whether she knew enough, opting to sit quietly during multiple group discussions. Afterward, she would share her opinions with her manager. Eventually he asked her, "Why didn't you just say that in the meeting?"

That eye-opening exchange sparked Gopalakrishnan to break free from the pattern. Convinced that she was wasting everyone's time by not speaking up, she formed the habit of sharing one observation at each meeting, and slowly built up her confidence.

For Teniente-Matson, her primary leadership principle when leading diverse multigenerational communities is "setting people up for success at every level of the organization - from students to middle managers, staff, executive leaders - and then having clarity of purpose."

"[I]f everyone is doing their best work through that line of sight, from being student-centered to what we do to build our brand and reputation, then you have consistency and alignment across the organization and across generations," she added.

First-time WILL Conference attendee, Camillia Creese, '27 International Business, says what resonated most for her at the event was Huang discussing how career focus should be on purpose, not task.

"…[T]hat motivated me because it's something that I feel strongly [about]," Creese said. "I have a strong sense of purpose, yet I'm not sure where to funnel all that."

Creese was referring to Huang's opinion about how "AI has fundamentally reset every single industry and every single job."

"It's not something to be afraid of," Huang said. "There's a difference between a job's purpose and a job's task."

Huang shared that her purpose was a deep appreciation and love for mastering some sort of craft, or inventing something that's long-lasting and meaningful, like a brand or a product. For those going into the workforce, she recommends knowing what you want your purpose to be and asking yourself what you have really fallen in love with. By deciding what you want your purpose to be, you can then match the job to that.

"Evaluate the tasks that you previously thought these jobs were," she said, "How is it going to be reinvented with AI?"

Huang proposes dedicating yourself to learning how to adapt and adopt AI to serve those needs, and "really embrace and try to understand and reflect on what you want your purpose to be, because jobs now are mostly aligned to purpose and not aligned to tasks."

In the latter half of the conference, participants curated their experience by choosing from 20+ breakout group session topics, including "Building A Strong Personal Brand" and "Top Three Strategies For Your Career Growth" and "Stop Networking, Start Connecting: How to Build Relationships that Open Doors," just to name a few.

Dean Rangapriya "Priya" Kannan; Meg Virick, Associate Dean; and Divya Aggarwal, 2026 WILL Mentor and Director, Food Safety & Regulatory Compliance, Weee! Photo by Adriana Avila.[/caption]

Director of Food Safety and Compliance at Weee!, Divya Aggarwal, headed the discussion topic entitled "Skills That Actually Matter Early in Your Career: What Employers Look For and How to Build Them." She credits her passion for mentoring early-career professionals with big dreams and ambitions for compelling her to participate in this year's conference.

"I was particularly interested in creating a space where students could ask candid questions, share their uncertainties, and walk away with actionable guidance they can immediately apply in their careers," Aggarwal said.

After leading three group sessions, Aggarwal found the students to be curious, thoughtful, and eager to learn, which made for an interactive discussion. Among the recurring themes were communication and confidence.

"What stood out most was their willingness to be open about these challenges," she said. "It reinforced the importance of conversations like these - helping students realize that success early in their careers is less about knowing everything and more about being adaptable, proactive, and willing to learn."

Visit Women in Leadership League to learn more about WILL and the extraordinary 2026 keynote panelists and mentors who contributed to this event's success.