Held all day on site at Sahalee Country Club on June 8 of championship week of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit brought together 100 of today’s most accomplished women leaders in business, politics, sports and the media, along with 200 next-generation women leaders who were selected by the CEOs of their organizations to attend.
Keynote speakers of the Summit were Condoleezza Rice, the former U.S. Secretary of State and LPGA legend and entrepreneur Annika Sorenstam. They joined a group of highly-accomplished leaders in the worlds of business, sports, and the media in a distinguished lineup of speakers and panelists that included KPMG U.S. Chairman and CEO Lynne Doughtie; KPMG Global Chairman John Veihmeyer; Microsoft CFO Amy Hood; Facebook VP of Engineering Regina Dugan; Concur President Elena Donio; Intel Data Center Executive Vice President and General Manager Diane Bryant; LPGA Tour champion golfer Stacy Lewis; Olympic Gymnastics Gold Medalist Shawn Johnson; Olympic Basketball Gold Medalist Lisa Leslie; and Olympic Soccer Gold Medalist Megan Rapinoe.
“The goal of our Summit is to increase the number of women in the C-suite by empowering the next generation of women leaders to reach their highest aspirations and potential,” said KPMG’s Doughtie. “And we are so very pleased to bring together a remarkable group of leaders, representing many fields and industries, who will share their perspectives on how women can move forward with great confidence and resolve.”
Highlights of the summit included Sorenstam receiving the 2016 KPMG Inspire Greatness Award. Given by the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit advisory council with the support of the PGA of America and the LPGA, Annika was recognized for her unmatched career achievements in women’s golf, and her ongoing commitment to empower new generations of women. Last year, 66th U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice received the inaugural KPMG Inspire Greatness Award.
Aligned with the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship goal of elevating women’s leadership in business and golf, the KPMG Inspire Greatness Award honoree is an industry pioneer who has exemplified a personal commitment to the community to empower future generations of women, and who recognizes golf as a relationship development tool.
“Exemplary leaders inspire rising generations by demonstrating and redefining what is possible, and helping to pave the way for their future successes,” said Doughtie. “Annika’s unparalleled success in golf, entrepreneurial spirit in business, and the impressive ways she continues to pay it forward to young women through her foundation make her a tremendous role model for aspiring women leaders. We are very pleased to celebrate her many achievements with this year’s KPMG Inspire Greatness Award.”
“I’m so encouraged to see women leaders continue to break barriers in business and on the golf course,” said Annika. “I’m honored to receive the KPMG Inspire Greatness Award and look forward to the new heights that will be achieved by our next generation of women leaders.”
The other highlight was the announcement of a new charitable initiative, the KPMG Future Leaders Program, focused on developing future generations of women leaders. The firm also named Condoleezza Rice as its ambassador to help facilitate the program.
Funded by proceeds from the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit, the KPMG Future Leaders Program affords top female high school seniors across the country the opportunity to enhance their personal growth through college scholarships, a leadership development retreat at Stanford University, a mentoring relationship with a woman business leader, and an introduction to golf.
“KPMG is passionate about developing women leaders at various stages of their careers and the KPMG Future Leaders Program will play a powerful role in shaping future generations of leaders,” Doughtie. “Through this initiative, we are paying it forward by investing in promising young women and instilling the confidence and leadership skills they will need to succeed and lead in college and their careers. We’ve joined with Condoleezza Rice, who serves as an exemplary leader to help inspire and equip them.”
Rice commented: “The KPMG Future Leaders Program will help prepare these young women to be leaders at their universities and in their communities. I’m proud to work with KPMG on this important mission to strengthen future generations of women leaders.”
Sixteen remarkable scholars have been selected from a pool of hundreds of applicants to participate in the inaugural KPMG Future Leaders Program – Class of 2016. In addition to receiving an annual KPMG Future Leaders Scholarship of $10,000 for each year of college, recipients will attend the three-day KPMG Future Leaders Retreat in July at Stanford University focused on leadership training, career development skills, and an introduction to golf. Recipients also will be paired with a mentor – a woman leader participating in the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit.
For a complete summary of the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit, including video highlights, please click here.