Bozeman Magazine

Montana State University’s ninth annual conference designed to help develop and strengthen women’s professional and personal success will be held Thursday, May 11, in Jabs Hall on the MSU campus. The Women’s Circle of Excellence conference morning sessions will include: “Who Are You? How Are You? How’s that Working for You?” with Lynn Owens, an associate professor of health and human development at MSU; “Developing Your Story: A Foundation for Funding,” with Anya Petersen-Frey of the Small Business Development Center; “Innovative Inclusion: Diversity in the Workplace,” with Ariel Donohue of MSU’s Diversity Awareness Office; and “Social Media Strategies for You and Your Business” with Nilam Patel, MSU social media strategist. A PechaKucha focused on the theme of “I Wish I Had Known…” will follow the morning breakout sessions. Interested persons are encouraged to apply online at www.montana.edu/business/wcoe by April 10 to be considered for a speaking slot. Afternoon sessions will include: “Making the Most of Your Community Involvement,” with Terry Profota of Sage Solutions Nonprofit Consulting; “Meaningful Mentoring” with Kitty Saylor of MSU’s Alumni Foundation; and “Myths and Benefits of Individual and Business Charitable Giving” with Erin Yost of D.A. Davidson and Kristin Bailey of Kristin Bailey Law. Frances Cole Jones, president of Cole Media Management in New York City, will give the keynote presentation, “10 Things You Can Do Today to Wow Tomorrow.” From effective body language and tonality to building trust with coworkers and clients, Frances will share best practices for optimizing potential in one’s personal and business life. Jones is a body language expert for The Insider, a business etiquette expert for Demand Media’s eHow video series and a job interview expert for About.com. Forbes.com voted her blog, www.francescolejones.com/blog, as one of the top 100 websites for women. Her company’s clients have appeared on The Today Show, Good Morning America, Charlie Rose, CNN, C-Span, Top Chef, Project Runway and others. Early bird registration of $89 is available until Saturday, April 15. Regular registration is $99, which includes educational sessions, event materials, attendance at a networking reception, hors d’oeuvres and a silent auction. Proceeds from the silent auction help fund a conference scholarship to benefit a business student. Up to 6.8 CPA continuing professional education credits are available. For additional conference information and to register, visit www.montana.edu/business/wcoe or contact Anna Reardon at (406) 994-6195 or anna.reardon@montana.edu. The Women’s Circle of Excellence conference is hosted by the MSU Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship. Sponsorship support is provided by BlueCross BlueShield of Montana and Northwestern Energy, with additional support from Foundant Technologies and First Security Bank.