The 16th annual San Diego Women’s Week is returning with new speakers, including the two women leading San Diego’s electric industry who will be talking about how they made it in a male-dominated field.
Two events will be held, including an all-day leadership conference at the Rancho Bernardo Inn on Friday, March 7. “The Women in Power” will be held right before lunch.
“We have a great lineup of speakers, including … Caroline Winn and Karin Burns, the two most powerful people in San Diego energy,” said Chris Thorne, CEO of the North San Diego Business Chamber, the Rancho Bernardo-based group that sponsors the event.
Winn has been CEO of San Diego Gas & Electric since August 2020. Before that she was the utility company’s chief operating officer, during which SDG&E gained recognition for its national leadership in sustainability, technology and innovation, according to her bio. This work included the company’s safety and wildfire mitigation efforts.
Winn, who ed SDG&E in 1986 as an associate engineer, also held leadership positions with Southern California Gas.
Burns became San Diego Community Power’s CEO in March 2022. The company is the second largest community choice aggregator in California. Before this role, Burns was the regional vice president and vice president of corporate strategy for Franklin Energy and the CEO of Build It Green, according to her bio.
“They are the two senior leaders in the energy industry in our region,” Thorne said. “They have professional careers in the energy sector … (navigated) male-dominated career pathways and have been successful while taking very different pathways.”
While SDG&E and San Diego Community Power are competitors, Thorne said Winn and Burns have found ways to relate to each other and collaborate, which he said “is kind of inspiring.”
Thorne said anyone who attends will gain something from the conference.
“I’m looking forward to the event because it focuses on women professionals and leadership,” she said. “It is an opportunity for me to be able to learn and … personally, what I enjoy is learning from this environment by being in a listen and learn mode.”
Though around 80% of attendees are women, Thorne said men are welcome and the 20% like he who come to the conference learn how to be more effective professionals.
The 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. conference will be held in the Rancho Bernardo Inn’s Aragon Ballroom, 17550 Bernardo Oaks Drive. The $299 ticket includes attendance at all sessions, networking at a vendor village, a swag bag valued at over $350, coffee bar, lunch, speaker books and ability to rewatch presentations on-demand for three months.
A $99 virtual is also available to those not able to attend in person. These attendees will have full virtual access to the conference, hear the keynote speakers and ists, can network with all attendees via mobile app, attend a virtual vendor village and watch the talks on demand for three months.
Thorne said he anticipates around 500 people will attend the conference. If tickets remain, they will be sold at the door, but he said there might only be a few if any available, so his advice is to buy online in advance.
Other morning presentations during the conference will include “Lead Bigger: The Transformative Power of Inclusion” featuring Anne Chow, founder and CEO of The Rewired CEO, talking with Samantha Mherson, an associate at Littler.
The speaker for “Lead Like You Mean It: Lessons on Integrity and Purpose from the C-Suite” will be Laysha Ward, who held numerous executive roles at Target Corp. (including strategic advisor and executive vice president – chief external engagement officer) during her 33 years with the company. Ward will talk with Nicole Wilson, associate director of medical affairs at BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company).
The first afternoon will be “The Confidence Code: Cultivating Self-Assurance in Leadership.” The ists will be Sarah Hassaine (head of corporate social responsibility, diversity and inclusion at ResMed), Emily Paup (vice president of business development at Lucia Capital Group) and Kristine Wexler (managing director at Bernstein), with San Diego County Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe serving as .
Another afternoon will be on “Toxic Productivity: Reclaim Your Time and Emotional Energy in a World That Always Demands More.” Israa Nasir, founder of Well Guide, will speak with Jizelle Del Rosario, regional controller of JC Resorts.
“Leading with Purpose: Building Mission-Driven Organizations” will feature speaker Sheri Nasim, president and CEO of Center for Executive Excellence, Inc., and Leah Sicat, head of community engagement – US and Asia at ASML.
A discussion on “The Art of Negotiation: Advocating for Yourself and Others” will feature ists Laura Bashore (franchise owner of TEAM Referral Network), Kim Carter (a shareholder at Littler) and Zandra Montes (a leadership and team productivity consultant at Montes Coaching & Consulting LLC). Serving as will be Sarah McSpadden, president and CEO of The Elizabeth Hospice.
The final speaker will be Julie Ducharme, a national best-selling author and serial entrepreneur with over 20 years in the empowerment field, talking about “Authentically You: Empower Your Way to Success.” Serving as will be San Diego City Councilmember Marni von Wilpert.
Thorne said the chamber worked hard to bring in new speakers. Some past ists and keynote speakers have returned several times due to their popularity.
“We wanted new perspectives, ideas and thoughts and are trying to look across the landscape,” he said. “They are coming from national, regional and local perspectives.
“These professional women have stories about their success, are speaking honestly about challenges and are providing insights,” he said. “They want to inspire and help others advance themselves, coming with broad perspectives, not just San Diego voices.”
San Diego Women’s Week will open on Tuesday, March 4 with a 4 to 7 p.m. networking event at Viasat, 2456 Town Garden Road in Carlsbad. Attendees must be 21 or older. Tickets are $69 to attend, which includes networking, a vendor village, appetizers and drink tastings from around the region.
Thorne said this event will likely draw a crowd of 200 to 250 attendees and tickets should be available at the door in addition to buying online.
For details and tickets to one or both San Diego Women’s Week events, visit sdwomensweek.com or call 858-487-1767.
