A Tampa-based networking group for female professionals and entrepreneurs is expanding throughout Florida.
Working Women of Florida is an expansion of the
Working Women of Tampa Bay professional networking group, which Jessica Rivelli founded in Tampa in 2009. WWoTB currently has 750 local members in Tampa, with an additional 100 statewide. The group expanded to include an Orlando chapter in 2012.
"Our immediate goal is to grow Working Women throughout the state of Florida to includes chapters in Fort Myers, Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, Orlando and Jacksonville,'' says Rivelli.
Events include lunch-and-learns, coffee chats and educational seminars with local and national successful female entrepreneurs and businesswomen.
The group's
second annual state conference will be Sept. 11 and 12, 2014, at
Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater, FL. Rivelli expects 300 female entrepreneurs and executives from around the state to attend.
Keynote speakers include Alex Sink, former Chief Financial Officer for the state of Florida; Bevan Gray-Rogel,
Encore Tampa Bay president and founder; Lisa G Jacobsen, Executive Coach at
Workplace Solutions Tampa; and Dr. Jennifer Hall, Director of Coaching at the
Leadership Development Institute at Eckerd College.
Tampa Bay-based speakers also include Angela Ardolino, founder of Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine; Dotty Bollinger, COO and president of
Laser Spine Institute; and Lee Lowry, past president of
The Junior League of Tampa.
Registration for the Working Women of Florida State Conference is available on the
event website.
To help grow WWoF, Rivelli hired
Lauren Tice as Director of Development for Working Women of Florida. Tice is a Florida native who grew up in Temple Terrace, northeast of Tampa, and graduated from the
University of South Florida with a degree in Communications.
"Lauren's role is to expand Working Women through out the state,'' says Rivelli. “She'll be traveling regularly to grow chapters and get talented professionals involved. I'm very excited to have her on board.''
Tice has a background in networking and communications, having previously served as Coordinator of Member Services for the
Greater Temple Terrace Chamber of Commerce for close to five years. More recently, Tice worked as events manager and eventually director of
The Regent, a special events and performance venue in Riverview, southeast of Tampa.
Writer:
Justine Benstead
Source: Jessica Rivelli, Working Women of Tampa Bay
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