How will women entrepreneurs succeed? By building networks and opening doors for others

At a Women Who Empower Summit held on the Boston Campus on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023, about 20 Innovator Award winners and more than 200 others gathered on the eighth floor of the EXP research complex to share their stories and experiences with one another.

Betty Francisco, MBA'97, stressed the importance of social capital in an entrepreneur's journey. “Ask, ‘who should I meet with?'” Francisco said.

Students in attendance marveled at the example of powerful women who have gone before them. Aashka Dave, DMSB'26, reflected on how these women achieved great success despite the barriers in front of them. “Women deal with imposter syndrome way more than men do,” Dave said. “So the fact we saw these women come up today, talk about the work they do, the networks they leverage and how they killed it in their industry is so interesting and amazing to see.”