The Shatter Summit, set for this Wednesday, March 10, is a virtual conference designed to celebrate the "critical importance" of investing in women.
The one-day digital event will feature female executives, authors, startup founders, and media personalities from finance, technology, sports, and other industries. Some big names on the agenda include Amy Trask, former CEO of the Oakland Raiders, and Stephanie Mehta, editor-in-chief of Fast Company.
"There is a clear link between diversity and innovation, which leads to greater returns," Shelly Kapoor Collins, founder of the Shatter Fund, told Cheddar on International Women's Day.
She added that it is critical for women to take on leadership roles in major companies so they can better engage with female consumers.
"When there are women at the helm of a company having a hand in the direct product-market fit that's being designed for us, you're bound to cast a wider net in terms of the consumers that you're bringing in," she said.
The goal is for attendees to the summit to take away actionable items, such as navigating workplace inclusion issues, closing the funding gap, and disrupting their respective industries.
As a former technology advisor to Vice President Kamala Harris, Collins also commented on the role Harris' historic achievement has in helping other women shatter the glass ceiling.
"She has an amazing platform now where representation matters," she said. "Women and girls can't be what they can't see, so she has the ability to really shine the spotlight on what is possible for us in terms of the different roles, the policies that are going to be evolving for us."
