Is it worth your time to attend business conferences?
“What am I going to do here?” Silvia de Tommaso asked herself when she arrived at the Dell Women’s Entrepreneur Conference in Rio de Janeiro.
“Now I know!” she told me later as she recounted her networking. “It’s very good to exchange experiences. I found so many answers to my problems talking to people here. I thought I needed a lot of money to expand my company. I even thought I was going to sell parts of my company, but after being here for two days, I’ve seen that I don’t need to do that.” For Silvia, the networking alone was worth the trip. Through interacting with other businesswomen, she was able to discover creative and unexpected solutions to her most pressing business problems.
“Being entrepreneurs, we always have so many fears and questions,” added Silvia. “I never thought it would be possible to meet so many people in the same situation! It is such a unique opportunity.”
Suzi Dafnis speaks to Silvia de Tommaso:
Enjoy this interview with Silvia de Tommaso at the Dell Women’s Entrepreneur Network 2011 event in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Dell Women’s Entrepreneur Network 2011
From June 5-7 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, more than 120 female business leaders from around the world gathered with Dell to learn about technology, marketing, brand, social media and raising capital while building relationships and sharing insights. It was an impressive group of participants, including Moira Forbes, Arianna Huffington and Luiza Helena Trajano, the founder of the third largest retail chain in Brazil. Over the course of two days the conference participants explored and learned that women entrepreneurs truly share a unique perspective and approach to business. Building on Dell’s entrepreneurial heritage and recognising the unique challenges and rocky journeys entrepreneurs can face led to the inception of the Dell’s Women Powering Business Initiatives, including Dell’s Women Entrepreneurs’ Network (DWEN). DWEN strives to help women entrepreneurs expand their networks, innovate and grow their businesses. The DWEN event and LinkedIn community supply a social network to grow B2B and exchange ideas to help build confidence. Dell’s believes never in the history of the world has the entrepreneurial spirit been more alive or in a more favourable position to drive global growth. Australian women business leaders are invited to join in the conversation and share who and what inspires and motivates them as entrepreneurs and leaders via the Women Powering Business Network group on LinkedIn.
