Charter

We the Professional BusinessWomen of California’s Board of Directors are committed to modeling responsible visionary leadership. The principles embodied in our work include: a fundamental belief in our responsibility for reflecting the equal participation of women and people of color in all facets of our work, advancing bold and compelling ideas, maintaining a shared vision and focused purpose, and developing product that is accessible and relevant. These principles will be continually realigned as the environment affecting them changes.

We are committed to providing a powerful product. This will be achieved through a design process that inspires quality programming. We will champion, design and leverage state-of-the-art and future technologies that incorporate nationally recognized speakers, creative relevant education, and effective tools. We will enroll active sponsors and generous corporate partners. We are capable visionary women, dedicated to collaborating with all partners who have a passion for and a commitment to creating abundance for all.

History

Twelve years ago, in the spring of 1988, the idea for a unique conference for professional and business women emerged - the result of another successful Women's Day for San Mateo County women. Since 1980, the group, inspired and led by then Assemblywoman Jackie Speier, has sponsored the event for women entering or re-entering the job market. The overwhelming response to the event indicated that Bay Area career women desired a larger forum within which to become inspired to break through the glass ceiling and to more quickly reach economic parity with men. In April of the following year, the Professional & BusinessWomen's Conference was incorporated as a non-profit organization. The board of directors has evolved from its initial membership of long-term volunteers from the public sector to its present composition of corporate executives, entrepreneurs and leaders from the non-profit and public sectors. In 1998, the organization announced its new name, Professional BusinessWomen of California. This step acknowledges the far-reaching success of our efforts and our commitment to increase PBWC's presence throughout the state.