What to Expect from the Virtual Texas Conference for Women
Sent September 22, 2020
We’re nine days out from the first-ever Virtual Texas Conference for Women on October 1st, and we’re busy putting finishing touches on a program that will help you feel inspired, empowered, and connected.
Keep an eye out for our emails over the next week—they’ll contain important information about how to participate in this year’s conference, including your unique login.
And please note that registration for this year’s conference will close at the end of this week—if you know anyone who has been waiting to purchase their ticket, please encourage them to do so by Friday!
For now, here is an overview of what’s in store this year:
Getting There
No need to set up a carpool—just stay tuned to your email! We’ll be sending attendees conference login details on Monday, September 28th.
Once you receive that email, we recommend logging in to test your connection and begin building your attendee profile.
Understanding the Schedule
Just like our in-person event, this year’s Conference consists of two keynote sessions, three breakout session time periods, and an Exhibit Hall full of booths and bonus programming (like virtual career coaching & mini-sessions). * Note that all times listed are in Central Daylight Time.
Keynote sessions—featuring Melinda Gates, Issa Rae, and Elizabeth Acevedo—will be viewable only on Thursday, October 1st, at 10:00 a.m. and 12:50 p.m. CDT. There will be no on-demand replay of these sessions.
Breakout sessions will air at their scheduled times on Oct. 1st—10:50 a.m., 11:45 a.m., and 2:10 p.m.—and will then be available on demand until Friday, October 9th at midnight.
Please note, breakout session speakers will only be available for live Q&A on Oct. 1st at their session’s scheduled time. Their Q&A responses, however, will be viewable on demand through the 9th.
The virtual Exhibit Hall opens at 8:00am on October 1st, and remains available to attendees through the 9th. Many Exhibit Hall offerings—including booths with interactive office hours, Learning Bursts, live lunch sessions with breakout sessions speakers, and more—will be available on demand until Friday, October 9th as well. Thereafter, on demand access to recordings will continue until March 1, 2021.
Make Conference Day Lunch with
Celebrity Chef Ellen Bennett!
Because tacos aren’t just for Tuesday, we’re bringing you a quick & tasty cooking demonstration during the Conference Day lunch break on Thursday, October 1st.
If you’d like to prepare your lunch along with chef and kitchenwear entrepreneur Ellen Bennett, be sure you’re logged in and in the Keynote room by 12:50pm Central Time on the 1st.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need on hand for to make Bennett’s delicious steak or mushroom tacos:
1 lb. flank steak OR 3.5 oz oyster or shitake mushrooms •
1 orange • 2-3 scallions • 2-3 radishes • cilantro • 1 lime • 1 avocado • olive oil, salt & pepper • tortillas
How to Network at a Virtual Event
Because connection is more important than ever this year, we’ve worked hard to put together a series of six new networking opportunities for virtual attendees, as well as a Virtual Networking Guide to help you make the most of our online event. Thanks to our Official Networking Sponsor Cisco for underwriting these efforts!
Opportunities include:
Facilitated networking discussions on Oct. 1st via live videoconference in the Cisco Networking Lounge from 3:15-4:00 p.m. and 4:15-5:00 p.m. (To participate, you must sign up in advance, starting at 12:35pm CDT on Oct 1st. Please also ensure you have signed up for a free WebEx account in advance.)
Peer networking chat groups, organized by topic and available in the Lounge throughout the week.
Public breakout session chats, allowing attendees to communicate with one another and with speakers during breakout sessions.
Private and group messaging available from every room in the virtual conference environment.
Exhibitor office hours allowing attendees to interact with company reps in realtime.
Smart Matches—a new TexasWomen app feature that makes finding the right connection easier.
The Virtual Exhibit Hall
We’re happy to say we’ve managed to bring the most popular elements of our Exhibit Hall online! As usual, the Hall is organized into pavilions packed with offerings for you to explore:
Sign up for live one-on-one career coaching and résumé review in the Career Pavilion sponsored by Liberty Mutual—starting at 8:00 a.m. on Thuesday, Oct. 1st.
Support women-owned businesses in this challenging time by shopping in our Women-Owned Business Marketplace Oct. 1-9.
Attend Learning Bursts, or mini-sessions, in the Health & Wellness Pavilion presented by United Healthcare, the Community & Education Pavilion, and the Technology Pavilion.
Watch select speakers give readings from their books and shop in the Conference Bookstore.
Join us LIVE every day from Oct. 5 – 9 at 12:00 p.m. CDT for exclusive Lunch Break Live sessions, including LinkedIn training, guided meditation & more! Full schedule coming soon.
Stay tuned for our next email, which will contain a tour of the Virtual Texas Conference for Women and more important information!
Remember, if you registered for multiple attendees, you need to enter their names and email addresses into your registration account so they receive important attendee communications.
