Emily Lee, the Co-Director of Davis Women In Business’s (DWIB) OWN IT conference, exudes an infectious sense of excitement. She focuses on the outreach portion, finding sponsors and speakers as the External Affairs Director. Alongside her, Katie Philips figures out the logistics of hosting an event for two hundred local women as the Internal Affairs Director. But both women share the majority of the responsibilities and are assisted by their board members- it is truly a team effort.
So what is the OWN IT conference? Well, it’s fairly simple. It’s a business conference by women, for women. Women in various fields are invited to speak about their experiences, give advice, and connect with other like-minded women of all ages. As directors, Emily and Katie are responsible for creating new relationships, mentorships, and friendships between professional women in the business world and aspiring college-aged women. 2020 will be DWIB’s fourth time hosting and planning OWN IT.
OWN IT aims to connect women across the various stages of professional life, from a freshman who is still exploring her options to upperclassmen who have committed to accounting jobs straight out of college to CEOs and everything and everyone (and I really do mean everything) in between.
Katie and Emily emphasized to me that they both love empowering other women and that organizing OWN IT was a way to give back to DWIB and affect its members on a grander scale. “My peers, young women like me, get a chance to talk to women who are already leaders in their field and receive advice,” Emily said.
Katie nodded, adding to her past OWN IT experience as an attendee: “Going to the conference and hearing from people who were in the fields I have always wanted to be in was so cool. If I wasn't in DWIB, I would not have been able to connect with them [in] that way. After the conference, I knew I would take this information that I learned into my day-to-day life.”
Both directors told me they felt DWIB was home, and that the organization was a perfect fit. Katie, a second year, is still figuring out what she is interested in doing, and is grateful DWIB is there to help. “I’ve learned a lot more about what I like, but also what I want to steer away from. And I wouldn’t have had that hands-on experience without being in DWIB.” Emily, who is about to graduate, agreed. “We [DWIB] are hosting these events for you. Stay proactive and take these opportunities.”
“We offer these opportunities to you. And that’s what special about DWIB: in your professional life, you’re going to have to seek out those opportunities yourself. Nobody is just going to come up and offer you a job,” Katie said. She and Emily hope, that by providing a space for networking through OWN IT, conference attendees will be able to find lucrative opportunities they would not have otherwise been exposed to.
Emily closed by saying, “I’m really excited to close this chapter of school and open a new chapter of being able to assert myself and be a professional for the first time. I’m also excited about OWN IT. It’s going to be a great feeling to step back and know that I was a really big part of this conference.”
OWN IT will happen on April 11, 2020, at the UC Davis International Center. Tickets can be purchased on Eventbrite and the Davis OWN IT website can be found at davisownit.com.