Previous Events

Game On

Friday 2 November saw attendees of Coleman Greig's 'Game On' Women in Business forum joined by keynote speaker and CEO of Rugby Australia Raelene Castle, as well as a truly outstanding panel of professional sportswomen, including Olympic Rugby Union gold medallist and Order of Australia recipient Emma Tonegato, Wallaroo and NSW Waratahs Super W squad member Grace Hamilton and Australian netball superstar Kristina Brice.

Uniquely placed to touch on the leadership challenges faced by women in the modern Australian workplace, particularly for those working within traditionally male-dominated fields such as professional sport, Raelene's presentation covered a wide range of topics, including her own journey from running Netball New Zealand to her current role with Rugby Australia, the challenges she has faced along the way, and how both the Australian and international communities can create better pathways for women to excel in both the business and sporting arenas.

Also in attendance at the forum was Martin Bullock, CEO of the event's beneficiary, the Western Sydney Academy of Sport.  Thanks to the generous contributions of forum members combined with funds raised through the sale of raffle tickets on the day, the 'Game On' event managed to raise $5,490 for the Western Sydney Academy of Sport, who plan to use the funds to provide a range of scholarships for talented young female athletes residing in the Western Sydney region.

Unbreakable

'Unbreakable', our most recent Women in Business event was held on Friday, 24 August 2018 to a sold out Governor's Ballroom at the PARKROYAL Hotel, Parramatta.

We were lucky enough to be joined by a number of special guests, including Australian tennis powerhouse and co-author of her recently published biography 'Unbreakable', Jelena Dokic.

In an on-stage interview facilitated by ABC Political Reporter Brigid Glanville, Jelena opened up about her personal struggles, both with depression and mental health, as she relayed memories of her years as a professional tennis player under the aggressively watchful eye of her mentally and physically abusive father-come-coach, Damir Dokić.  

Following the up close and personal interview, a panel discussion saw Jelena and Brigid joined on stage by Dr Tim Sharp of The Happiness Institute and batyr’s Stephanie Vasiliou.  This panel took a range of questions from forum attendees, with many finding the courage to speak about their own personal battles with mental health.

Through the generous financial contributions made by attendees on the day, this event managed to raise $7,960 for the forum's two charity partners, Liptember and batyr.  As a beneficiary of the Liptember campaign, funds raised through the Unbreakable event will be specifically used by batyr to run programs for years 9-12 students in Western Sydney. 

In Conversation with Nikki Gemmell

Our most recent Women in Business signature event was held on Thursday, 31 May 2018 to a sold out audience at the PARKROYAL Hotel, Parramatta.

We were joined by the delightful, best-selling author, Nikki Gemmell, of "The Bride Stripped Bare", who spoke about her quest to "find quiet in today's shouty world". 

In her latest book "On Quiet", Nikki made the case for why quiet is steadily gaining ground and why we need it now more than ever! She also provided us with a personal insight into her events, relationships and ideas that continue to shape her life.

The event was timed to coincide with Mother's Day and a number of our guests took the opportunity to bring their mother, and biggest supporter, to this intimate and very personal evening of conversations.

All guests also received a complimentary signed copy of Nikki's book, "On Quiet".

The event was proudly partnered with Melbourne University Press.

Celebrating International Women's Day with special guest speaker, Tara Moss

Our most recent Women in Business forum, appropriately held on International Women’s Day (March 8), was a celebration of the achievements of women throughout Western Sydney, Australia and the world!

This year’s International Women’s Day (IWD) theme of ‘Press For Progress’ was an opportunity to reflect on progress, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination made by ordinary women.

Women in Business forum attendees were lucky enough to witness internationally acclaimed keynote speaker Tara Moss share her insights on women's representation in the media, fiction, politics and public life – as she addressed the topic of 'Labels, Leadership and Why We Need More Women's Voices'.

As has been the case with previous Women in Business forums, our IWD 2018 event helped to showcase the achievements of Western Sydney women by playing host to the Western Sydney University's Women of the West Awards.

Women in Business and Western Sydney University would like to congratulate this year’s winners; Martha Jabour – who won the Community award for her inspiring work with Grace’s Place, and Cynthia Payne – winner of the Business award for her work with Summitcare.

The event was set to raise funds in support of The Sanctuary - The Hills Women’s Shelter, a NFP organisation providing crisis shelter for women and their children who are fleeing domestic violence.  We’re incredibly proud to say that in total, the forum raised over $15,000 for The Sanctuary – which will go to assist their hardworking staff to provide ongoing safety and support to women and children in need.

A special thank you to everyone who attended this year’s International Women’s Day Women in Business forum with Tara Moss – the event was a resounding success, especially with regard to the amount raised for The Sanctuary!

The Power of Storytelling

Our final major Women in Business event for our 10th anniversary year finished off with a bang! Over 250 guests joined us at the picturesque Oatlands House to hear 'The Power of Storytelling' with the delightful Annabel Crabb, along with Cath Keenan, 2016 Australian of the Year Local Hero and co-founder of Sydney Story Factory.

Both Annabel and Cath shared how their love of words and writing stories have been an essential part of shaping their own lives, and how sharing that experience and instilling a love of writing in young people can make a world of difference for them too. Words and storytelling and being able to express one's ideas are vitally important skills in anyone's life.

We are thrilled to have raised $7,360 on the day for the Sydney Story Factory's creative writing centre opening in Parramatta in May 2018. From this new hub, creative writing and storytelling workshops will be conducted with thousands of marginalised young people aged 7-17 from all over Western Sydney.

We have a fantastic opportunity for those in our Women in Business community who may be interested in volunteering at Sydney Story Factory's Parramatta hub. Information sessions will be conducted from late January 2018 and more information can be found by contacting their Volunteer Manager, Craig New - craig@sydneystoryfactory.org.au

Read more about our lunch with Annabel Crabb and Cath Keenan in Lawyer's Weekly.