Texas Conference for Women

By Samantha White

This year’s Texas Conference for Women will be hosted right here in Austin. To give you an idea of what’s on tap at this month’s event, we took a look at the four keynote speakers.

Charlotte Beers is not just an advertising woman – she is THE woman of the advertising world. According to both Fortune and Business Week magazines, Beers is among the most powerful women in America. She was the first female Senior Vice President in J. Walter Thompson’s history as a firm, and later became the Chairman/CEO of Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide. She was inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame in 2009.

Cathie Black is also a media mogul. She served for 15 years as President of Hearst Magazines, a division of Hearst Corporation which publishes 20 titles in the U.S. and over 300 international editions. Black has been on Fortune Magazine’s “50 Most Powerful Women in Business” list since its inception in 1998. She has also been a member on the Board of Directors at IBM as well as The Coca-Cola Company, and is currently a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Dr. Brené Brown, a renowned speaker and professor, gave the closing talk at this year’s TED conference. For the last twelve years she has studied vulnerability, courage, worthiness, and shame. Her fourth book Daring Greatly talks about having courage to be vulnerable and was released this month. She is a Licensed Master Social Worker and currently is a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work.

Gretchen Rubin, an author and blogger, actually began her career in law working for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. She quickly realized she’d rather be writing and began to do so. Rubin has now authored seven books including this month’s release Happier at Home, in which she takes an entire school year (September-May) to explore ways to make the home a happier place. Her previous book, The Happiness Project, was a #1 New York Times bestseller and shares a name with her current blog in which Rubin chronicles her daily pursuit of happiness.

Since the four keynote speakers have such differing backgrounds, the conference is sure to offer something for everyone. Tickets are now available for the October 24th event.