During Women's Month, activities in recognition of the struggle of women began on February 29 with the presentation of the first Women Transformational Leaders (MLT) awards, given in partnership with the Awards of Happiness® organization and Estrategia & Negocios magazine.
This event honored 75 leaders from the region and brought together women from Costa Rica, Mexico, Guatemala, Canada, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador and the Dominican Republic.
The winners of this first edition were selected for their professional commitment, for their comprehensive assessment and commitment to conscious capitalism, for their notable contribution to the creation of happier and more productive work environments, for their relentless pursuit of the symbiosis between professional challenges and family reconciliation and for their desire for constant innovation.
Women leaders who transform are the ones who make a difference in the lives of tens of thousands of families. Without a doubt, these women make us better and live happier lives. We are happy to have been able to make the first of many editions we have in mind," said Lesslie Davidovich, CCO of Awards of Happiness.
At an Executive Breakfast organized by the media La República at the Costa Rica Convention Center, Professor Camelia Ilie, our Dean of Strategy and Institutional Affairs and Chair of CELIS, shared the main findings on women's leadership issues in Latin America and the challenges faced by women CEOs.
She also had the honor of leading a panel where she was accompanied by Monica Araya, executive president of Grupo INS; Montserrat Bonilla, head of corporate security and compliance at Walmart Central America; Melissa Concepción, CEO and founder of SOS Trabajo; Laura Moreno, vice president of corporate relations, marketing and sustainability at BAC Credomatic; and Jeannie Bonilla, country manager of Elev8 Costa Rica.
The event was attended by close to 200 people and its main objective was to bring together women leaders, CEOs and senior managers to share experiences, motivate other women and offer guidance on how to achieve outstanding positions in the business world.
Another event held during the month of March was called Networking with Purpose, a two-hour virtual session to which were invited women participants of CELIS acceleration programs: LEADS Mujer, LEADS Academy for Women and Empresarias Progresando EMPRO Guatemala; as well as EMPRO Honduras and the professional development programs Executive Women on the Move and Women LEAD.
The spirit of this event was to connect all the participants with each other so that they could establish alliances. In addition to the group sessions, the participants received a talk by Dean Camelia Ilie on the challenges of women leaders and how to face them.
And to celebrate with the population on our institution's campus, the Impact Center placed a back panel in the main dining hall with a message honoring the women who are part of the institution, including students, faculty and administrative staff, in which they were allowed to write phrases related to their feelings in commemoration of this important day.
