Juliet Bailin ’15

First, the basics! Tell us a little about yourself — where are you from, what do you study, and what do you enjoy doing in your free time?

First and foremost, my name is Juliet, a name that I adore and for which I can take no credit. I frequently indulge in frozen yogurt, love Sara Bareilles and Erin McCarley, and am passionate about healthy living. I grew up in Connecticut and went to Hopkins in New Haven with my two sisters before coming to Harvard. My older sister recently graduated from Princeton and is now my neighbor in Boston, and my younger sister has just started at Barnard! I am concentrating in History and pursuing a secondary in Global Health and Health Policy. When I genuinely have nothing to do for class or for an extracurricular, I surround myself with friends or settle in to read Marisha Pessl’s new book.

What are some of the extracurricular activities you are involved with on campus?

During Harvard Undergraduate Women in Business’ (HUWIB) National Women in Business Summit last year, Elizabeth Vale, Senior Advisor for Elizabeth Warren’s Campaign, told those of us in attendance that we should look for joys, not jobs. My extracurricular activities at Harvard are my joys. During pre-frosh weekend, I fell head over heels in amazement with HUWIB and currently serve on the Executive Board as the Chair of our Intercollegiate Business Convention. I also act as Outreach Coordinator for the hardworking team at Harvard Health Advocacy Program, as well as House Chair for my sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma. Finally, I am the house council Quartermaster for the best house on campus, Pforzheimer, and I have performed in a number of HRDC shows including Legally Blonde, Cabaret, and Title of Show.

Tell us more about the Intercollegiate Business Convention!

The Intercollegiate Business Convention (IBC) huwib.org/ibc is HUWIB’s conference for undergraduate women worldwide that will be held this year on October 5 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston. IBC is the keystone event of our Women in Business Weekend held October 4-6.

At IBC 2013, our ninth annual conference, over 1000 driven women and over 100 professionals across industries will participate in a full day of programming that includes keynote speeches, IBC Talks (think TED Talks), panels, workshops, a career fair, industry networking sessions, a mentorship program, a delicious catered lunch, and more. You do not need to be from Harvard or a member of HUWIB to attend IBC.

Our mission at IBC 2013 is to empower a global community of women to engage with and ask about the spectrum of opportunity in business. We hope our attendees will discover their passions, learn more about industries they know much or nothing about, and connect with successful professionals in the work world as well as inspiring peers.

What are some of the biggest challenges and rewards from planning this event?

Planning a conference of this size and caliber presents many challenges–from tracking  invoices to securing speakers to designing innovative programming–but the rewards far outweigh the obstacles. One of the greatest rewards is engaging our international community. We have a new Campus Ambassador Leadership Program with about 120 ambassadors at schools worldwide, and when women started posting on their Facebook group to get to know one another and share their ideas, we realized that IBC will have a significant impact on our attendees. We have an important opportunity to shape and inform their careers. Given the impressive line up at IBC this fall, I have no doubt that we will do just that.

Why do you think initiatives like this are so important here at Harvard?

Harvard offers fantastic opportunities to discover one’s academic interests, but for many at a liberal arts school, those may not translate into a future career. The extracurricular life here at Harvard gives students the chance to find out what they are passionate about outside of the classroom. Conferences, events, and initiatives like IBC that expose their attendees to myriad industries and ideas present ideal environments in which to learn about what is important to us as individuals and what we are looking to achieve in our lives after college.

What are the most meaningful things you’ve taken away from your experience?

The experience of running IBC has taught me first hand what the idiom “greater than the sum of its parts” means. I work with an excellent team (learn about them HERE http://huwib.org/leadership/co…) and we have become a second family. We challenge one another, encourage each other to pursue difficult, new ideas, and are all dedicated to making this day beneficial for our attendees. As a manager, I have learned how to organize and motivate a talented and capable group of women, and I learn from them every day.

Furthermore, IBC will be a success because of the efforts of our entire organization, which is headed by our impressive co-presidents. Each HUWIB committee, led by innovative chairs, is contributing to create a rich Women in Business Weekend (Oct. 4-6), which features our Innovation Competition and Make it Happen Magazine Launch. This has been a wonderful, whirlwind experience, and I feel extremely fortunate to serve as IBC Chair.  

Interested? Register for IBC at ibc2013.eventbrite.com and like Intercollegiate Business Convention on Facebookfor updates!