Women hear inspirational speakers during STEM conference

NEWARK — A room full of women in STEM fields gathered on Thursday, Sept. 26 at Deerfield Golf Club in Newark for an inspirational conference that hoped to prepare them for easier conversations in the field and at home.

Delaware BioScience Association President and CEO Michael Fleming called it a “robust program” as dynamic speakers such as local author and national speaker Henna Pryor and strategic networker Sarah Baker Andrus headed to the stage for the 11th annual Inspiring Women in STEM conference hosted by the industry-based organization.

The conference focused on networking techniques and creating a healthy work-life balance, or work-life integration, as Fireside Chat panelist and Johnson & Johnson President of Neuroscience Pearl Pugh called it.

She was joined by Capital One Managing Vice President Lo Li Carper for the Fireside Chat that has become a yearly discussion at the conference, focusing on authentic conversations with STEM leaders. This year’s chat was moderated by Pryor who led a discussion in the morning session about how to brag about accomplishments in a professional setting in a positive, goal-oriented way.

Carper and Pugh told the room about obstacles they both faced in getting into their industries, including self-confidence issues and gender-based barriers. But both also mentioned having supportive families and coworkers over the course of their careers that helped them grow in unique ways.

“The hype people are very important, you have to find them for yourself,” Pryor said.

As women in STEM-based industries, both Carper and Pugh mentioned negative comments they had dealt with over the course of their careers, some even coming from themselves as they climbed their own ladders to success.

“I’ve learned to accept it in stride. I learned that those comments [from others] are not about me. It feels like it’s about me at the time, but it likely isn’t. Being able to grasp that. . . and then make a decision about what I’m going to do about that has really helped,” Carper said during the Fireside Chat.

Pugh agreed, adding that “feedback is a gift,” even though it might be hard to hear.

“There’s always a little something in the feedback that could be a reflection of them, but  it also could be something to ponder,” she explained, focusing on the growth that could happen during potentially negative conversations in the field.

The three women circled back to Pryor’s earlier session on bragging by discussing wins they’ve had during their career and how they have shared those wins over the years.

“To get ahead in corporate America, it’s not just about performing. It’s almost about the entry ticket, for lack of a better term. You really need people to champion you,” Pryor said, highlighting the concept of a professional hype squad.

Pugh admitted that celebrating her wins is still a work in progress for her personally but spoke about how getting ahead in professional roles does require that “sizzle,” or hype, that Pryor mentioned earlier.

“It’s hard but you have to get comfortable with the conversations if you’re going to get ahead,” Pugh said.

The women also agreed that while finding a similar comfort in their work-life balance, or work-life integration, is important, it will never be perfectly aligned for women in professional fields.

“Generally speaking, the day you’re actually in alignment is the day that things implode. It might be a snapshot millisecond of your life, but it won’t last and we have to learn to accept that,” Pryor said to the group.