Discussion: View Thread

Shattering the Glass Ceiling: A Dialogue Addressing Solutions to Gender Bias in the Upper Echelons

Monday, Aug 8 2016 1:15PM - 2:45PM at Hilton Anaheim in Mezzanine 9

Dear Colleagues,

Please join us for an exciting symposium, with Jeanine Wright, General Counsel for ZestFinance, and gender and strategic leadership scholars, regarding the obstacles female executives face as they navigate their careers and how research can help lay the groundwork for mitigating these challenges. The goal of this session is to connect practicing executives and scholars, to begin to facilitate a dialogue regarding the challenges women face as they climb the corporate ladder. In order for research to bring about change, scholars must develop a deeper understanding of the realities female executives encounter, from their own point of view. We must also cultivate conduits for communicating our research findings to the practitioner audience. The purpose of this symposium is to set these important plans in motion by bringing executives and scholars together. If you are actively researching gender and strategic leaders, testing the waters, or just interested in hearing from a highly successful female executive, this panel discussion is relevant to you.

Featured Executive:

Jeanine Wright, General Counsel, ZestFinance

Jeanine Percival Wright is currently general counsel for ZestFinance. ZestFinance, Inc. applies its unique credit-decisioning technology - based on data science and machine learning - to help lenders effectively predict credit risk so they can provide lower cost credit to people. Further, the company uses its technology to provide loans to consumers. As of August 4, 2015, ZestFinance announced several commitments to increase diversity in its workforce as part of the first-ever White House Demo Day focused on inclusive entrepreneurship aimed at providing more Americans with the opportunity to pursue their bold, game-changing ideas. "Good ideas come from everywhere, and people with radically different worldviews approaching a problem together will always generate more creative ideas and solutions," said Douglas Merrill, Founder and CEO of ZestFinance. "Simply put, diverse teams yield better business results. Every company should be focused on hiring for diversity. It's good for the world and good for business."

Prior to ZestFinance, Jeanine was the Director of Legal Affairs at True Religion Brand Jeans. Before True Religion, Jeanine was the General Counsel of Media Temple, a webhosting company in Culver City, California. As General Counsel, Jeanine built a legal department from scratch, oversaw all of Media Temple's legal issues and led the legal team that successfully sold Media Temple to GoDaddy at the end of 2013. Prior to joining Media Temple, Jeanine was an attorney with the Entertainment & Media group at Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P., primarily practicing in the areas of entertainment, employment, new media, intellectual property and commercial litigation. Jeanine earned her J.D., from USC in 2006. Immediately after law school, she clerked for the Honorable Manuel L. Real, United States District Court, Central District of California. She went to UCLA for undergrad. Jeanine is very involved with the Beverly Hills Bar Association, regularly volunteers at the Santa Monica Homeless Shelter, and represents victims of domestic violence pro bono.

Symposium: Shattering the Glass Ceiling: A Dialogue Addressing Solutions to Gender Bias in the Upper Echelons

Monday, Aug 8 2016 1:15PM - 2:45PM at Hilton Anaheim in Mezzanine 9

Program Session: 1153 | Submission: 13917 | Sponsor(s): (BPS, GDO, HR)

Organizer: Abbie Griffith Oliver, U. of Georgia

Organizer: Felice B. Klein, Michigan State U.

Organizer: Kevin McSweeney, Texas A&M U.

Organizer: Cynthia E. Devers, Texas A&M U., College Station

Organizer: Gerry McNamara, Michigan State U.

Moderator: Cynthia E. Devers, Texas A&M U., College Station

Participant: Christine Shropshire, Arizona State U.

Participant: Ryan Adam Krause, Texas Christian U.

Participant: Craig Crossland, U. of Notre Dame

Participant: Quinetta Roberson, Villanova U.

--

Abbie G. Oliver, Doctoral Candidate

Management

University of Georgia

Terry College of Business

Athens, GA 30602

E-mail: agoliver@uga.edu

Shattering the Glass Ceiling: A Dialogue Addressing Solutions to Gender Bias in the Upper Echelons

Monday, Aug 8 2016 1:15PM - 2:45PM at Hilton Anaheim in Mezzanine 9

Dear Colleagues,

Please join us for an exciting symposium, with Jeanine Wright, General Counsel for ZestFinance, and gender and strategic leadership scholars, regarding the obstacles female executives face as they navigate their careers and how research can help lay the groundwork for mitigating these challenges. The goal of this session is to connect practicing executives and scholars, to begin to facilitate a dialogue regarding the challenges women face as they climb the corporate ladder. In order for research to bring about change, scholars must develop a deeper understanding of the realities female executives encounter, from their own point of view. We must also cultivate conduits for communicating our research findings to the practitioner audience. The purpose of this symposium is to set these important plans in motion by bringing executives and scholars together. If you are actively researching gender and strategic leaders, testing the waters, or just interested in hearing from a highly successful female executive, this panel discussion is relevant to you.

Featured Executive:

Jeanine Wright, General Counsel, ZestFinance

Jeanine Percival Wright is currently general counsel for ZestFinance. ZestFinance, Inc. applies its unique credit-decisioning technology - based on data science and machine learning - to help lenders effectively predict credit risk so they can provide lower cost credit to people. Further, the company uses its technology to provide loans to consumers. As of August 4, 2015, ZestFinance announced several commitments to increase diversity in its workforce as part of the first-ever White House Demo Day focused on inclusive entrepreneurship aimed at providing more Americans with the opportunity to pursue their bold, game-changing ideas. "Good ideas come from everywhere, and people with radically different worldviews approaching a problem together will always generate more creative ideas and solutions," said Douglas Merrill, Founder and CEO of ZestFinance. "Simply put, diverse teams yield better business results. Every company should be focused on hiring for diversity. It's good for the world and good for business."

Prior to ZestFinance, Jeanine was the Director of Legal Affairs at True Religion Brand Jeans. Before True Religion, Jeanine was the General Counsel of Media Temple, a webhosting company in Culver City, California. As General Counsel, Jeanine built a legal department from scratch, oversaw all of Media Temple's legal issues and led the legal team that successfully sold Media Temple to GoDaddy at the end of 2013. Prior to joining Media Temple, Jeanine was an attorney with the Entertainment & Media group at Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P., primarily practicing in the areas of entertainment, employment, new media, intellectual property and commercial litigation. Jeanine earned her J.D., from USC in 2006. Immediately after law school, she clerked for the Honorable Manuel L. Real, United States District Court, Central District of California. She went to UCLA for undergrad. Jeanine is very involved with the Beverly Hills Bar Association, regularly volunteers at the Santa Monica Homeless Shelter, and represents victims of domestic violence pro bono.

Symposium: Shattering the Glass Ceiling: A Dialogue Addressing Solutions to Gender Bias in the Upper Echelons

Monday, Aug 8 2016 1:15PM - 2:45PM at Hilton Anaheim in Mezzanine 9

Program Session: 1153 | Submission: 13917 | Sponsor(s): (BPS, GDO, HR)

Organizer: Abbie Griffith Oliver, U. of Georgia

Organizer: Felice B. Klein, Michigan State U.

Organizer: Kevin McSweeney, Texas A&M U.

Organizer: Cynthia E. Devers, Texas A&M U., College Station

Organizer: Gerry McNamara, Michigan State U.

Moderator: Cynthia E. Devers, Texas A&M U., College Station

Participant: Christine Shropshire, Arizona State U.

Participant: Ryan Adam Krause, Texas Christian U.

Participant: Craig Crossland, U. of Notre Dame

Participant: Quinetta Roberson, Villanova U.

--

Abbie G. Oliver, Doctoral Candidate

Management

University of Georgia

Terry College of Business

Athens, GA 30602

E-mail: agoliver@uga.edu

--

Abbie G. Oliver, Doctoral Candidate

Management

University of Georgia

Terry College of Business

Athens, GA 30602

E-mail: agoliver@uga.edu