Distinguished Panelists Participate in WTC’s Engage in Trade
Celebrating International Women’s Day
On March 4th, the World Trade Center St. Louis (WTC) held an Engage in Trade, its monthly speaker series, for International Women’s Day, which is March 8th. The theme was Accelerate Action, calling for action beyond awareness, with a focus on long-term measurable outcomes instead of superficial changes. The theme also capitalized on the fact that all women, especially those most marginalized, need to benefit from progress made.
The event was kicked off by Tim Nowak, executive director of WTC, and Rodney Crim, CEO and president of the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership (STL Partnership), followed by opening remarks from Stella Sheehan, deputy director of WTC. The panel consisted of three leaders in their fields, Marcela Manjarrez, CEO of M Strategic Communications, Elzandi Oosthuizen, Head of Enterprise Corn Product Team Bayer, and Dr. Ekin Pellegrini, Associate Dean & Founding Director, Doctor of Business Administration Program (DBA), University of Missouri – St. Louis (UMSL). Moderating the panelists was Susan Spitz, who works in international business development for WTC.
Marcela Manjarrez was born in Mexico City and came from a big family where education was highly encouraged. Her middle sister chose college instead of secretary school and was the only woman in the Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science program. Once Manjarrez came of age, her family encouraged her to pursue education, and she went on to get scholarships to high school and one of the most prestigious colleges in Mexico City. After falling in love with someone from St. Louis, Manjarrez moved to St. Louis and finished her degree at UMSL. She then joined the Federal Reserve of St. Louis as a research analyst. The moment Manjarrez knew she had to be a proponent for acceleration was at the Federal Reserve’s Centennial Celebration. She looked around the room and noticed that in a room of over 100, only six were women, two of which were officers. After Forbes Books asked her to write a book, Manjarrez wrote one with the majority audience in mind, called The CEO’s Competitive Advantage. Through the book she highlighted invisible obstacles non-traditional individuals face as they go through their corporate and educational journeys. She also encourages CEOS to help others overcome those barriers as research shows that diversity leads not only to better business but also increased financial gain for businesses.
“Often, I forgot I was a woman because there were no women. I used to joke I was “professionally” raised by white males,” Manjarrez said of her time at the Federal Reserve. “After that [Centennial Celebration], every time I entered a room, I took a look around and noted the layout of the land.”
Dr. Ekin Pellegrini is originally from Istanbul, Turkey. Born into a well-educated family, higher education was expected of the women in her family. Life was prescribed for her, as she said, “we were like racehorses”. During her sophomore year, Dr. Pellegrini was talking to women employed in cleaning services and learned they wanted to pursue other jobs like cashiering. When she learned they were unable to do so because they lacked skills in reading and writing, she began spending the majority of her time in the city’s slums helping the community. She discovered changing lives through education was her passion. After moving to America with her husband who was pursuing a doctorate in Florida, she soon got a master’s degree and then a Ph.D. of her own. She felt empowered by her move to America. While it might have been a struggle with no connections in the country, she had the ability to recreate who she was to become who she wanted to be. The most poignant advice she received was from her father who asked her who she was. Was she a mom who is working or was she a professional? He told her if working was part of her identity, then the two are intertwined. Instead of asking whether she could do it, she started asking how she could it.
“I have the power as one person to change my community,” Dr. Pellegrini said. “Find things to energize you, things you enjoy, and that self-actualization phase will increase your energy.”
Something Manjarrez, Dr. Pellegrini, and Oosthuizel all agreed on was the importance of mentors who believed in them. Having someone who had been where they are, and building a network of women to support each other, were extremely important to all three women in their career journeys. Dr. Ekin noted that her research found that women often feel the need for someone’s permission to excel in their careers. Older mentors solve that problem, with their wisdom and advice inadvertently granting permission for younger women to pursue their own passions.
On their final thoughts and advice for women pursuing careers, these were their thoughts:
“Negative feedback and failure are the biggest gift. You need to understand your weaknesses and strengths. Invest time in learning your strengths and what you bring to the table. If you crystallize that, the whole team will buy into that.” – Elzandi Oosthuizen
“Play your own game, don’t let anyone define you. You define yourself, so be intentional. Sometimes you can’t do it all, so rely on your network. If your cup is empty, you can’t fill anyone else’s.” – Marcela Manjarrez
“Show up in life. Attend events, serve on boards, and so many doors will open for your future career or future skills. Take opportunities to see and meet new people. Take the job, do it your own way, and be a trailblazer for others.” – Dr. Ekin Pellegrini
