#IWD2026

Southeast Region

How Healthcare Leaders Can Transform Women’s Health Experiences

This session draws on EY research to reveal how today’s healthcare pathways, research investments, and support systems fall short in supporting women’s lifelong health needs. Participants will explore data driven insights and digital health innovations reshaping the experience, featuring leaders and entrepreneurs driving meaningful change.

Speakers: Kim Dalla Torre, EY Global and US Health Leader

New England Region

Beyond the Glass Ceiling: A Soul‑Level Invitation

You’ve broken through every professional ceiling — earned the titles, built the influence, delivered the impact. But if you still feel a quiet pull toward something more — a deeper well of wisdom, power, and purpose — you’re not imagining it.

Lisa Petrilli, a Fortune 500 executive known for blending intellectual rigor with a bold, conscious approach to manifestation, shares how to step into soul-level leadership — the place where strategy meets intuition and ambition aligns with purpose.

This is an invitation to move beyond traditional measures of success and into your most authentic contribution — where your greatest impact has been waiting all along.

Speakers: Lisa Petrilli, Fortune 500 Executive Turned Spiritual Business Trailblazer | Divine Mastery™ Creator | Soul-Level Business Guide

HBA Women in Science

The Major Economic Upside to Closing the Women’s Health Gap

Although women live longer than men, they spend nearly 25% more of their lives in poor health — much of it during their prime working years. This stark reality reflects decades of gaps in research, clinical care, and the systems designed to support them.

This session examines the root causes behind these disparities and what must change across research, healthcare delivery, and the workplace to close the gap. You’ll also hear real-world examples of organizations that are advancing women’s health while strengthening performance, productivity, and economic outcomes.

It’s a candid, solutions-focused conversation about redesigning systems so women don’t just live longer — they live and work better.

Mid-Atlantic Region

The Arc of a Career: Progress and Perspective

Over the past century, women’s participation in the workforce has grown from just 20.2% in 1920 to nearly half today and in 2025, women hold 29% of C-suite roles. Progress is undeniable, yet the path to leadership continues to evolve.

This session explores how career trajectories and leadership opportunities have shifted across generations. Through the stories of three healthcare professionals at different stages of their careers, you’ll hear how the environments they entered shaped their experiences, the milestones and support systems that propelled them forward, and how each is now intentionally lifting the next generation of leaders.

It’s a powerful reflection on where we’ve been, how far we’ve come, and what it takes to keep the momentum moving forward.

Speakers: Pamella Galluzzi de Castro, Theresa Wohlever, Kristin Zeigler

Midwest Region

The Ask Advantage: Reducing Burnout and Strengthening Your Career Through Confident Asking

Many people can find it challenging to ask for help—whether that means delaying the request or feeling hesitant to initiate it. These patterns can contribute to added stress, burnout, or even limited career progression, especially in the healthcare industry. This practical, skills‑focused session invites participants to explore how to make confident requests, navigate common barriers, and build the supportive networks that can strengthen long‑term resilience and growth.

Speakers: Kathryn Mayer

Women in Healthcare Give Back

Transformational Leadership Through Care, Presence and Advocacy

Unpaid caregiving — carried out predominantly by women — profoundly shapes workforce participation, leadership trajectories, and personal identity. As populations age and care needs accelerate, its impact on our organizations and economy has never been more significant. In fact, unpaid caregiving in the U.S. is valued at more than $1.1 trillion annually — a powerful reminder of the invisible labor sustaining our systems.

Aligned with the IWD 2026 Give to Gain theme, this session moves from the personal to the collective, revealing how caregiving cultivates transformational leadership competencies — resilience, empathy, strategic prioritization, and systems thinking.

Together, we’ll explore how organizations can better recognize, support, and develop caregiver-leaders — unlocking meaningful impact not only for families, but across workplaces and communities.

Speakers: Meena Kaushik, Manager Regulatory Systems, Lorenz Lifesciences (2) Chance Browning, Chief Operating Officer, Caregiver Action Network (3) Stacey DeFilippo, Associate Director, Capabilities – Market Access & Public Affairs Employee Experience at Novo Nordisk

Mosaic Leadership Collective

Men as Partners in Progress-Sponsoring for Meaningful Change

This dynamic panel explores the vital role men play in advancing meaningful change — through mentorship, sponsorship, and visible advocacy. Together, we’ll examine practical strategies to bridge differences, strengthen leadership pipelines, and foster workplaces and communities where everyone can thrive.

Grounded in real examples and candid conversation, attendees will leave with actionable insights and proven approaches to mentoring that accelerates progress — not just for individuals, but for organizations and the broader community.

Speakers: Donald Brown, Latrinda Williams, Karima Sharif

Pacific Region

Busy Is a Drug — Here’s How High Performers Quit

Modern work doesn’t just get harder — it gets louder. The constant noise, competing priorities, and decision fatigue create cognitive overload that makes execution feel heavier than it should.

In this practical, neuroscience-based session, Tanya Booke introduces The Execution Switch™ — a powerful framework designed to reduce mental overload so follow-through becomes simpler and more sustainable. Because the real barrier isn’t motivation — it’s overload.

Walk away with science-backed tools to quiet the noise, reclaim focus, and make meaningful progress with greater clarity and ease.

Speakers: Tanya Booke

Southwest Region

Rhinestone Cowgirl: A Journey of Resilience, Leadership, and Finding a Place to Soar

Nicole Mowad-Nassar, President of Global Allergan Aesthetics and Senior Vice President of AbbVie, shares a powerful career journey defined by resilience, growth, and ultimately finding a place to soar. Through candid reflection, she offers hard-earned leadership lessons shaped by experience at the highest levels of global healthcare.

With research showing women are 41% more likely than men to encounter toxic workplace cultures, her story highlights what makes the difference: supportive environments, transparent advancement pathways, and intentional leadership development.

This conversation underscores a critical truth — when organizations invest in cultures where women can thrive, they cultivate long-term, high-impact leaders who elevate performance for everyone.

Speakers: 'Nicole Mowad-Nassar Senior Vice President, AbbVie & President, Global Allergan Aesthetics

HBA Peak Performance

Silent Sabotage: What’s Really Getting in the Way of Great Leadership

Identify critical life lessons and transferable skills that support personal and professional advancement, particularly for leaders navigating complex workplace environments. 

Speakers: Marielle Hajducko, President & Leadership Advisor, The Leader's DNA

Brussels

Leading Beyond Yourself: How Developing Others Expands Your Leadership Impact

In today’s complex, fast-moving organizations, leadership impact is no longer defined by what you hold — knowledge, control, or indispensability. It’s defined by what you create.

The most effective leaders generate clarity amid ambiguity, empower others to act with confidence, and intentionally develop the next generation of talent. Influence now comes not from guarding access, but from expanding capability.

This session challenges leaders to rethink legacy — shifting from being the expert in the room to becoming the catalyst who multiplies leadership across the organization.

Bangalore and Hyderabad

Mentorship as a Leadership Accelerator

Dublin

How Leaders Multiply Impact by Elevating Those Around Them

This session explores how elevating the patient voice strengthens leadership effectiveness and improves the quality of care. Through intentional listening and meaningful engagement, leaders gain deeper insight, build stronger trust, and make more informed decisions.

By centering patient experiences, the conversation highlights how empathy and inclusive leadership fuel impact and innovation — driving better outcomes while fostering clarity, connection, and sustainable performance across organizations.

Speakers: Kate O'Reilly (Roche), Laura Brady (IPPOSI), Guido Guinti (SJH)

Voices of Tomorrow

From Disruption to Direction: Navigating Career Change in a Shifting Industry

In today’s challenging job market shaped by layoffs, hiring slowdowns, and intensified competition across the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, many leaders are rethinking how they approach job searches, career storytelling, and long-term planning.

This session delivers both practical strategy and emotional validation for professionals navigating a transition. Whether facing a layoff or proactively exploring the next step, attendees will gain actionable tools to refine their narrative, strengthen their positioning, and move forward with clarity and confidence within the industry.

Speakers: Tess Cole

Canada Region

Personal Branding as a Gift, not a Performance: An Honest Conversation About Navigating the Careers We Want

Research shows that personal branding is closely tied to career satisfaction and self-efficacy — underscoring how identity, social dynamics, and pivotal experiences shape professional growth and confidence.

This session brings those insights to life through candid storytelling. Speakers will share how generosity, partnership, and the open exchange of knowledge have shaped their authentic presence and expanded their influence.

By illustrating how giving time, insight, and support fuels both credibility and connection, the conversation reveals a powerful truth: when we invest in others, we strengthen our own careers — while elevating our organizations and the broader community.

Athens

With Women Leading in Pharma: Better Decisions, Better Outcomes

A discussion on confidence gaps, self‑evaluation differences, and how women can strengthen career pathways.

Puerto Rico

The Multiplier Effect: Small Actions, Big Impact

The Multiplier Effect: Small Actions, Big Impact explores how everyday micro-acts of generosity,  championing colleagues, sharing visibility, skill-sharing, and offering timely feedback - compound over time to create meaningful impact for individuals, organizations, and communities.

Through executive-level dialogue and real-world examples, participants will reflect on what they’ve gained throughout their own journeys and discover how to intentionally give it forward. Attendees will leave with practical perspectives and tangible actions they can immediately apply to amplify their leadership impact.

Speakers: Connie Losada, BMS General Manager LATAM, Margaret Lopez, Events & Education Lead HBA PR

NY Tri State Region

The Women’s Health Gap Remains Substantially Underfunded: Addressing Imbalance

This International Women’s Day, we shine a light on a critical imbalance: globally, only about 5% of health research and development funding is directed toward closing the women’s health gap — leaving many high-burden conditions under-researched and underfunded.

Addressing this disparity isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s smart science and better medicine for everyone. When we invest in understanding women’s health more fully, we accelerate innovation, improve outcomes, and strengthen healthcare systems for all.