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Empowerment, Education and Community: Bank of America Supports the 20th Anniversary of the Pennsylvania Conference for Women

On October 19, Bank of America proudly joined business leaders and entrepreneurs at the 20th annual Pennsylvania Conference for Women in Philadelphia for a day of empowerment, education and community. Bank of America served as the “Champions for Women” sponsor of the event and exclusive sponsor of the Village of Women Business Owners in the Interactive Hall, where the company supported a day of engagement for women business owners.

The Pennsylvania Conference for Women has served as a nonprofit professional and personal development event to uplift and advocate for working women for the last two decades. The conference convenes women leaders across areas including executive leadership, entrepreneurship, personal finance and workplace management. More than 9,000 attendees gathered this fall for an inspirational conference offering skill-building workshops, career development coaching, leadership counseling and networking opportunities.

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A welcome breakfast sponsored by Bank of America and hosted by Greater Philadelphia Market President Jim Dever and Carol Lee Mitchell, Head of Small Business Strategy and Segmentation, provided a keynote speech to attendees. Following the keynote, the audience was able to listen to a fireside chat featuring Bank of America economist Anna Zhou and bestselling author and leadership coach Sally Helgesen about the impact of women-owned businesses. Following breakfast, the opening of the Interactive Hall took place, which featured mini masterclasses, one-on-one career coaching and networking opportunities for attendees.

Two ladies smiling at a booth

Attendees were also encouraged to visit the Village of Women Business Owners throughout the day – a marketplace where women-owned business could display their products and services to attendees. Bank of America showed its support of women-owned small businesses by donating four booths to small business and business banking clients: A’Pros Creations, A’s Aprons, DossoBeauty and Smile Team.

Carol Lee Mitchell speaking

The Pennsylvania Conference for Women officially kicked off with an opening keynote featuring former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, New York Times writer Lulu Garcia-Navarro, Olympic gold medalist Gail Devers and ABC-6 Action News Philadelphia anchor Alicia Vitarelli.

The afternoon keynote featured remarks and an introduction by Carol Lee Mitchell. Mitchell discussed with attendees the various programs, initiatives, and commitments Bank of America provides to women business owners.

Human Resources Executive Diana Van Natta hosted a leadership workshop following Mitchell’s keynote, which was titled Cohesive Culture: Creating a Team Built for Success, with bestselling author and leadership coach Sally Helgesen. Jenny Kim Park, D&I Client Executive, Tech, Ops, GSEP, Staff Support, also spoke on the career panel Creating Workplaces that Work for Everyone. These panels offered advice for leaders to establish a positive and productive environment for the workplace and maximize growth opportunities for all employees.

At Bank of America, we believe women entrepreneurs play a vital role in the economy, their communities, and the world. We are proud to support the Pennsylvania Conference for Women and other importance events to uplift and celebrate women entrepreneurs.

Whether you’ve been in business for decades or are just starting out, Bank of America is committed to helping provide you with the resources necessary to build, sustain and grow your business.

To learn more about how we support women business owners, please visit https://promotions.bankofamerica.com/smallbusiness/sbwomen.

12/20/23

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