Free, Online “Fearless Femme Summit” From Feb. 3 to 6 Offers Career-Boosting Advice for Women in STEM

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SANTA BARBARA, California – More women than ever are working in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, but they’re still vastly outnumbered by men. For many women professionals that can lead to a feeling of isolation, as well as problems with discrimination, unconscious bias and a lack of role models and support.

Leadership coach Mary Jean Vignone, Ph.D., aims to change that. From Feb. 3 to 6 she will be hosting the second annual “Fearless Femme Summit: Propel Your Career in STEM” The free event, which will be held entirely online from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day, is designed to help women in STEM reach new heights in their careers and become authentic leaders.

Registration is open to STEM professionals, students and the public at no cost by signing up at www.fearlessfemmesummit.com. Participants can also sign up for a paid group coaching program and individualized emotional intelligence assessments that include free access to Fearless Femme Summit speaker videos.

Vignone is a leadership coach, consultant, and educator with over 25 years in executive roles in large and mid-size organizations. She founded her coaching practice, SuccessReach, Ltd., because she believes that women in business are a wealth of untapped leadership talent. 

“Women are a powerful and important segment of the STEM workforce, yet so many of the women I’ve coached have felt undervalued in their jobs and have struggled to get ahead,” Vignone said. “My goal with this summit is to support, empower and inspire women in STEM so that they can lead with confidence, successfully navigate obstacles, and achieve their career dreams.”

About 35% of STEM professionals are women, up from about 32% in 2011, according to the U.S. National Science Foundation. The increase shows progress toward gender parity in STEM, but women remain significantly underrepresented, especially in certain fields such as engineering and computer science.

The Fearless Femme Summit will feature twenty speakers offering guidance on how women in STEM can unleash their full potential, strengthen their resilience, assert themselves to achieve their goals, and lead with influence and vision.

Each day focuses on a theme, moving from how to cultivate confidence, to building strength through self-care and safe spaces, to learning vital skills that can advance your career, and ending with leadership strategies. Topics covered include cultivating charisma, self-advocacy, self-care techniques, balancing career and family challenges, negotiation skills, body language, emotional intelligence and leading with confidence.

Speakers at the conference include Vignone, Professional Development Consultant Suman Kapur, productivity expert Sara Caputo, former Women’s Economic Ventures CEO Kathy Odell, leadership and career story coach Lisa Gates, UC Santa Barbara immunologist and postdoctoral fellow Melina Messing, and many others.

Registration for the conference is free. Recorded speaker videos will also be available on the website for free during the week of the summit. After that time, participants can access the videos by purchasing an Impact Pass for $47, career group coaching package or emotional intelligence coaching program. Each day’s sessions include a 30-minute question and answer period during which participants can ask questions of the experts, and free action-oriented speakers’ bonuses.

The Empower Edge career group coaching program is available starting at $197 and includes three live coaching sessions and full access to a group coaching platform with videos and resources specifically designed for aspiring women leaders in STEM. Participants will learn how to develop a clear understanding of their long-term career goals, achieve success through goal setting, and create action plans for every goal.

Additionally, participants have the option to purchase a complete coaching and emotional intelligence assessment package that includes an Emotional Intelligence Inventory assessment, an individual de-brief coaching session, six live group coaching sessions, two individual coaching sessions, lifetime on-demand access to video courses, and unlimited access to Fearless Femme speaker videos. This option, valued at $2,500, is available at a special summit rate of $997 if booked before Feb. 21.

SuccessReach, Ltd., is dedicated to empowering women in midsize organizations to reach their full potential and reach higher individual and corporate success levels. The company works with emerging women leaders to understand how to use their talents to contribute to organizational success. Programs include workshops, webinars, and coaching programs focusing on women executives, managers, and high potential individual contributors. Services are customized to each organization’s culture, mission, and core competencies.

–For information about The Fearless Femme Summit and to register, visit http://www.fearlessfemmesummit.com/.