Although I wasn’t able to attend in person, I had the privilege of listening to the CEO panel recording from the She Has a Deal event a couple of weeks ago. Tracy Prigmore, founder of She Has a Deal, launched the organization with the goal of increasing the number of women hotel owners and developers. She’s making a positive difference at a rapid rate. Tracy coordinated and moderated an extremely impactful panel with CEOs from Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, and Choice Hotels. She didn’t just address the issues at hand, but asked each panelist what action they will take to help accelerate this change and promised to hold them accountable. 

One thing said during the session that really resonated with me is that all women leaders need to show up in full force to lead the charge. I’m in amazement every day with our Women Leading Travel & Hospitality (WLT&H) community, which is comprised of leaders that do exactly that and truly walk the walk. WLT&H is a space for us all to truly show up for each other, lead by example, help each other, grow together, learn from each other, build each other up, and accelerate this change as leaders in all sectors of the travel and hospitality industry.

This Thursday, during our Virtual Exchange, we will be kicking off the event with a very real conversation with Tracy and Castell Project Founder Peggy Berg! They will be discussing entrepreneurship, making the ask and continuing to make the ask (even after you get multiple nos), building a business, and how to accelerate the change that needs to be made in this industry. Following Tracy and Peggy’s conversation there will be a session on male allyship, and we will wrap up the afternoon with a panel of change agents in sustainability.

I’m looking forward to seeing you at this week’s Virtual Exchange! If you can’t make it Thursday, make sure you still register to get the recording on-demand!