In the years since she moved to Pittsburgh, native Chicagoan and established business professional Kyshira Moffett felt that something was lacking.
“I noticed that in Chicago there were always events for career and entrepreneurial women, and I was missing that,” says Moffett, who serves as assistant director of career management at the University of Pittsburgh Katz MBA program, current president of Urban League Young Professionals of Greater Pittsburgh and as VP of Administration for the National Black MBA Association. She also runs her own blog thisisHERmovement.com. “I decided to create something here and provide the experience that I’ve been able to have with other women in Pittsburgh.”
To fill the void, Moffett organized the first-ever Hustle HER Way Summit, a two-day event that “aims to provide personal and professional development experiences for career driven and entrepreneurial women in Pittsburgh.” Sponsored by AlphaLab, AlphaLab Gear, Innovation Works and other local organizations, the summit will feature four female keynote speakers, among them Moffett, minister and author Miracle Reed, loan repayment strategist Robin Rectenwald, and world traveler and blogger Ellyse Williams. It will also include a panel on entrepreneurship and opportunities for networking.
As Moffett explains, the speakers will cover a broad range of topics, from balancing personal life with career goals to traveling worldwide on a budget. In addition, the panelists will represent a diverse array of women from the Pittsburgh startup and business community, with freelance marketing consultant Jenelle Coy, PR2Politics founder Raven Robinson, Billz Productions founder Shanice Parker and Endorsevent founder Amber Stradford.
Though the summit will showcase personal and professional stories, the main focus is to provide a space where women can interact, build relationships and share skills.
“I hope all the attendees will leave feeling empowered and inspired and actually put what they learned into action,” says Moffett.
The Hustle HER Way Summit will kick off on Friday, June 17 with Heels & Deals, an evening networking event at Savoy Restaurant and Lounge in the Strip District. The main activities will take place on Saturday, June 18 at AlphaLab Gear.