Skip to Main Content

WOMEN OF THE VINE & SPIRITS
INTERNATIONAL SUMMIT
 AGENDA

 QEII Centre

London

Thursday, June 28, 2018

Purchase Tickets Now

8:00 AM - 8:30 AM Registration & Networking - Continental Breakfast
8:30 AM - 8:45 AM Opening Remarks 
Deborah Brenner, Founder & CEO, Women of the Vine & Spirits
8:45 AM - 9:00 AM

Alliance Announcements

Maggie Berry, Executive Director for Europe, WEConnect International

Ian Harris, Chief Executive, WSET

9:00 AM - 9:45 AM

The Key to Gender Equality: Women Empowering Women

Today, women represent only 5.4% of CEO’s in the S&P 500 Companies, while making up 44.3% of the total employees. Our commitment is to support as many of those total females employees, so they can have an opportunity to make it to the top.

Hear from leading women in the industry how they have been self-empowered, collaborated with others and the steps YOU can take to make a change and an impact for yourself and women in the industry. 

Moderator:
Emily Saladino, Executive Editor, VinePair

Panelists:
Beatrice Cointreau, Owner & CEO, Champagne Tresor de France

Lulie Halstead, CEO, Wine Intelligence

9:45 AM - 10:00 AM Break
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

Unconscious Bias Awareness: Enhancing your business through Inclusion
Jeremy Lewis, Senior Inclusion Consultant, PDT Global

Is unconscious bias affecting you at work? Unconscious biases negatively impact diversity across nearly every industry, and can result in discrimination against certain races, ethnic groups, religions, sexual orientations, ages, and other minorities.

Discover your own bias and how it impacts your interactions in the workplace and beyond. Your background, personal experiences, societal stereotypes and cultural context can have an impact on your decisions and actions without you realizing. Implicit or unconscious bias happens by our brains making incredibly quick judgments and assessments. From this session you will realize and accept that we all have bias, and learn how to watch for it in yourself as much as possible because when we are aware of our biases and watch out for them, they are less likely to blindly dictate our decisions.

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Mentoring to Empower the Next Generation of Leaders
What role does mentorship play in building a successful career in the alcohol beverage industry? Learn from industry leaders how mentorship programs have aided them in guiding their career path, the difference and benefits of mentors vs. sponsors, the roles and responsibilities of mentees and mentors, and how mentorship plays an important role in ongoing learning opportunities and the development of a sustainable and rewarding career. 

Moderator:
Amy Englehardt, Vice President of International Strategy & Marketing, E. & J. Gallo Winery

Panelists:

Karen Betts, Chief Executive, Scotch Whisky Association

Stephanie MacLeod, Master Blender, John Dewar & Sons

Sue Knowles, Marketing & Admin Director, Costco Wholesale UK Limited & UK Chair LEAD (Leading Executives Advancing Diversity)

Cristina Mariani-May, President & CEO, Banfi Vintners

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM Networking Lunch
1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

30 Years and Counting - An Inspirational Journey & Principles for Success
Margareth (Maggie) Henriquez
, President, LVMH Estates & Wines & President & CEO, KRUG Maison de Champagne

Margareth Henriquez, who has just been appointed president of Estates & Wines at luxury company LVMH, is current president and CEO of the Champagne House Krug. Born in Venezuela, she studied engineering at Harvard, to which she returned in 1995 to undertake the advanced management programme, paving the way for her successful career as a corporate executive. Renowned for her ability to steer companies through difficult circumstances, Henriquez has spent more than two decades as president of multinational companies in Central and South America. Her achievements include a stint as president of Seagram in Venezuela, and in Mexico with Nabisco, which at the time was reportedly losing $24m a year, but which she returned to profitability. She was then asked to run Bodegas Chandon Argentina in 2001. Subsequently, Henriquez was head-hunted by Moët-Hennessy to lead the House of Krug. More

2:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Why Gender Diversity & Inclusion is Good for Business
Ana Ines Mendy, Associate Partner, McKinsey & Company, Inc  

Organizations that embrace diversity and inclusion will be more competitive in the coming decades and outperform the companies that fall behind. A recent study on business and diversity by McKinsey & Company found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on their executive teams were 21 percent more likely to experience above-average profitability.

Additionally, the study found a positive correlation between gender diversity on executive teams and two key measures of financial performance: operating margin and longer-term value creation, as measured using an economic-profit margin. This is likely why measuring diversity is now becoming a key financial metric that investors and analysts assess when making investment decisions.

3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

The Path Forward: Understanding YOUR Role in Achieving Gender Equality
Jan Jones Blackhurst, EVP, Public Policy & Corporate Responsibility, Caesars Entertainment

Gender equality in the workplace is about more than equal pay. In some industries, it’s about getting hired in the first place. More often, it’s about unbiased review processes and access to opportunities such as high-profile projects, face time with senior managers, and promotions. Without doubt, being a woman and establishing a corporate career has its challenges. While gender inequality exists, woman will have to navigate through uneven playing fields to receive the same remuneration and opportunities for progression as men. The good news? YOU have an active role to play in the path to gender equality. Hear from Jan Jones Blackhurst what YOU can do to accelerate gender equality in your company. Join our movement.

 

Caesars Entertainment has committed  to achieving Gender Equality in management by 2025. Caesars is undertaking a number of initiatives focused on enhancing the Company's commitment to creating an environment in which all employees are treated fairly and are part of a company that values them and their contribution to this organization. Among the new initiatives Caesars will be implementing is the creation of the Equality Council – a Taskforce including employees and external experts, implementing unconscious bias-training across all management teams and conducting surveys broadly across the company about diversity and inclusion.

4:00 PM - 4:15 PM Break
4:15 PM - 5:15 PM

Be Empowered: Jancis on Her Life in Wine... Looking Backwards and Forwards in the Wine Business
Jancis Robinson, OBE, MW, Wine Critic, Journalist and Wine Writer

Described by Decanter magazine as 'the most respected wine critic and journalist in the world', Jancis went from someone who couldn't type but somehow wangled their way on to a wine trade magazine to running a website with members from more than 80 countries. 

1984 Master of Wine, first person outside the trade to pass these demanding exams
2003 Made Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty the Queen
2004 Member of the Royal Household Wine Committee advising on the Queen’s cellar
2012 Honorary President of the Wine & Spirit Education Trust 
More

5:15 PM - 5:30 PM Closing Remarks
Deborah Brenner with European Advisory Board Members
5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Closing Reception