When Women at Johnson & Johnson Bring Future STEM Leaders into the Boardroom...

...the future looks tremendously bright.

As bright as the discoveries being developed in 强生公司 labs.

As bright as the lights that illuminate the stunning J&J museum we toured.

As bright as the minds that gathered around conference tables asking smart questions like:

What was your college major and do you use that degree now? What's the absolute coolest thing your team is researching right now? How do you ensure that people everywhere get the medicine they need? Did you know when you started this job that you'd make such a big impact on the world?

And as questions flew amid waving raised hands, insightful answers were provided by J&J luminaries like EVP, Chief Technical Operations & Risk Officer Kathryn Wengel , Chief Sustainability Officer Paulette Frank , IT Vice President Enterprise Portfolio and Strategy Nikkia Miller-Blakes , Commercial Sales and Marketing Leader Nichole Jeanpierre , Vice President, Neuroscience Medical Affairs Leighann Forbes and Vice President, Global Commercial Lead, Dermatology & Rheumatology Laura Leonetti .

Girls wrote furiously, trying to capture every piece of wisdom as it landed in the room, and then all heads snapped up when they heard that there was going to be more.

More advice and candor? More mentor moments with women across STEM verticals?

Bring it on.

Girls were then ushered into new conference rooms for a speed series of 1:1 mentor moments with women from data analytics, finance, supply chain logistics, immunology, cell therapy, oncology, pulmonary hypertension, design, innovation and more.

Specifically, who was there? Think Sarah Husted , Holly Loomer , Jade Alexander, MBA , Maya Manchester , Michele Paternoster , Nuri R. , Marianna Parti, Abbie Boslett , Loreal Gronda , Nessa Petropavlovskiy, MBA, CMA , Sanjana Mehta , Hannah Davis , Peyton Schnackenberg , Damaris Ball and Mai Himedan, M.D.

Was it amazing? Here what a few high school être girls had to say:

Meeting such dedicated and passionate women showed me that anything is possible through hard work. - Maya Filian

Being given the opportunity to connect with mentors, opened my mind to careers I never knew existed. - Emily Filian

Visiting J&J was inspiring and really insightful. It was great to see how they're making impactful decisions that shape health and wellness worldwide. The experience showed me the true scope of innovation possible within humanitarian fields, and it fueled my own passion for making a difference. - Mumtaz Cooper

What did 强生公司 think?

Hosting the être group of high school girls was truly inspiring – a reminder of the power, ambition, and potential within the next generation of female leaders. Their enthusiasm and passion left us all motivated to keep creating opportunities and pushing boundaries. - Stephanie Farris, J&J Vice President of Technical Operations & Risk Technology

Who do we have to thank?

Certainly Stephanie Farris , quoted above, who spearheaded the visit and made the day happen. Who else? A planning committee that included Marin Lis , Staci Strzelecki Turney , Kim Buczek, MBA and Holly Salce , all of whom planned an epic event that ended with a scavenger hunt through the most impressive corporate museum I have ever seen.

Were girls inspired to stick with the hard STEM classes, raise their hands more often and say the answer even louder? They were, and these are they types of mentor moments that, as our research confirms , embolden girls to take harder and scarier risks in STEM classes.

As we continue to urge today's girls to stay close to the subjects they love, we're grateful to our new mentors at 强生公司 for spending a day readying them for tomorrow.

Looking forward,

Illana

êXTRAS: Here are three more things about our National STEM Day celebration with J&J you won't want to miss: your own virtual tour of the J&J Heritage Museum (it's exquisite), an interactive timeline of J&J's history , and a specific look at the early involvement of women in STEM at J&J!