Executive Leadership for Women

The Mirrored Door – Women Breaking Through!

Women continue to face underrepresentation and perceived bias when attempting to ascend into the top ranks, and even while occupying roles within the executive sphere. Top business schools agree, women must learn to both navigate the external realities of the current environment and also unlock their own inner potential by refining their leadership skills in order to succeed at the top. This unique challenge compels us to provide a convenient, tailored platform, for women and their allies seeking to explore yet unrecognized opportunities and build excellence.

The Executive Leadership for Women program is designed for women leaders, allies, and mentees who aspire to actively accelerate their own and other women’s careers, helping women to advance and thrive within the top ranks.

Rice Business Executive Education and the founding board of directors announced the inaugural session of their new program – Executive Leadership for Women. The keynote speaker for the first event was Ellen Taaffe, a former Fortune 50 senior leader turned professor. Attendees joined to hear insights about how to break through the hidden barrier that locks successful women in place, and received a signed copy of her book, The Mirrored Door. This one-day program provided a convenient, power-packed event, served à la carte, without the need to commit to ongoing sessions or cohorts.

The leadership is working with board of advisors on the Fall 2025 program. Please fill out an interest form below to be the first to learn about the next program.

Read about the Inaugural Program

Interest Form

FOUNDING BOARD

The founding board of advisors selected by Rice Business to prepare, launch, and lead this program, is an elite and distinguished group of accomplished executive women with longstanding connections to each other. The board consists of Rice Business alumni, staff and community members who have each transcended barriers, developed insights, and gained a following and reputation for their contributions to empowering other women to prepare for successful careers and advancement into executive roles. Our board is also honored to include the student President of the Rice Business Women in Leadership Conference.

Message From the Founding Board of Advisors
September 2024

Our story begins when… over the past couple of years, our founding board members served as senior advisors to the Jones School of Business, as we cultivated ideas, acted with persistence, contributed energy, and built necessary preparations for the program we named Executive Leadership for Women.

In keeping with our purpose, we are creating opportunities for women executives, senior leaders, and mentees to experience community, to learn real-world strategies of other successful women, and to strengthen their resolve toward actionable steps that can propel their career forward.

With great enthusiasm, we are proud to have reached the launching point of the program and are dedicated to continue leading the evolution. As we continue working together, we envision, our ties together strengthening, as we inspire each other to leverage the beauty and pain from our own success and lessons learned.

For our inaugural event, we are incredibly proud to have author Ellen Taaffe as our keynote speaker. In preparation for the event, she has become a friend, an ally, and an inspiration to the cause. We are confident the participants will gain valuable insights and enjoy the program immensely.

We have considered it a pure honor to serve and support the team in preparation with Rice Business over this last couple of years. And now we look forward to your support of “Women Breaking Through,” our additional future events, and to engaging, informing, and inspiring women during the journey forward together!