Hundreds of women learn interpersonal, financial skills at Montana State Women’s Leadership Conference

BOZEMAN - Scores of business professionals with an interest in women's leadership congregated in Montana State University's Strand Union Building for the annual women's leadership conference on Tuesday.

Hosted by the Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship, the highly anticipated conference welcomed around 250 women from across Montana for a day filled with interactive keynote lectures, panel discussions, a slate of breakout sessions, catered lunch and a networking hour.

Many of the attendees have been to the conference year after year and hail from local workplaces such as Charles Schwab, a financial services company; Zoot Enterprises, a Four Corners-based software company; LexisNexis, a global data analytics company; Lone Mountain Land Company, real estate developers in Big Sky; and the MSU Alumni Foundation.

The day centered around the theme of "leading without permission," and various speakers addressed what the concept meant to them and how they apply it in their professional lives.

The morning keynote speaker, entrepreneur and leadership coach Cindy Peterson, presented her talk, "The Power of Presence: Leading with Confidence, Clarity and Connection." She discussed strategies she uses in her leadership, including emphatic listening, knowing who you are in order to identify your leadership presence and responding to ideas with the phrase "yes, and..." as to not shut people down when they still might need redirection.

"When leaders stop listening, people stop sharing," Peterson said.

Following the keynote, there were two breakout session periods that each offered three presentations for attendees to select from. Conference organizers intentionally curated a range of topics to appeal to a variety of interests. The sessions included talks on navigating confidence, women-specific financial planning and finding clarity in motivation to turn off "autopilot mode."

Other breakout sessions included finding intention and mindfulness and using the Enneagram method to identify leadership styles.

The afternoon included a presentation by the Jabs Women in Business Chapter and a workshop by financial strategist Katie Dow about financial psychology and personal money motivators, and how the narratives women tell themselves about money may be holding them back.

"What happens when you shift your mindset from 'money is something I'll never have enough of' to 'money is a tool that I direct toward what I value'?" Dow asked the audience.

Women leaders also got personal and honest about their challenges in the workplace and how they overcame obstacles to forge their own paths in the keynote panel, "Not Asking: Women Leading Forward."

Moderated by business coach Emma Bonthius, the panel featured Anne Meree Craig, an executive with Airbnb; Anne Donovan of Donovan HR Solutions; and Jenny Moore, executive director of Tinworks Art in Bozeman.

The women discussed examples where, as leaders, they acted unapologetically, didn't ask for permission, took ownership of their ideas and refrained from unnecessary apologies. Moore spoke about the role of emotions in female leadership and being authentic to yourself - it's okay to be a real person and not suppress every emotion you have, she said.

The day culminated with the afternoon keynote speaker, comedian and life coach Katie Goodman, who presented "Unapologetic Leadership: Now is Our Time." Goodman, who is a longtime fixture of improvisational theater, discussed how lessons from common improv games can be used as leadership strategies in a professional setting. For example, one game involved telling a story with each person at a table saying just one word at a time. The exercise helped teach the importance of staying present and genuinely using the ideas of others to build your own.

These lessons are also contained in Goodman's book, "Improvisation for the Spirit: Living a More Creative, Spontaneous and Courageous Life Using the Tools of Improv Comedy," which every conference attendee received a copy of in their gift bag to take home.

The conference was capped off with a networking hour that featured a photo booth and silent auction, allowing attendees a chance to meet new people and forge connections in a more informal setting.

"An event like the Women's Leadership Conference simply doesn't happen in a vacuum. A huge, heartfelt thank you goes out to our incredible speakers, sponsors and silent auction donors," said Kayla Lee, director of student and community engagement for the business college. "Without their immense generosity, we wouldn't be able to make this day the special, impactful experience that it is.

"I walked away so inspired and am already implementing the advice we heard," Lee added. "My biggest takeaway so far? Learning to stop asking for permission to get my work done and to stop apologizing for just doing my thing."

Several businesses sponsored the conference, including Charles Schwab, Bozeman Health, Eide Bailly, the Yellowstone Club Community Foundation, Decisionpoint Financial, BlueCross BlueShield of Montana, Billings Clinic, Chicago Title and Bozeman Economic Development.

The Women's Leadership Conference was previously called the Women's Circle of Excellence. It was rebranded to its current form in 2023.

Next year's Women's Leadership Conference is scheduled for June 8, 2027. People can check the WLC website for more information.