Empowering Women to Lead | Pepperdine Graziadio Business School

Organizations are seeking what women have to offer as leaders. At the Pepperdine Graziadio Center for Women in Leadership (CWL), we focus on building your confidence and instilling the strongest sense of competency and readiness for the challenges and rewards of leadership. Through mentorship programs, industry engagement, and research on gender diversity, we contribute to an ongoing dialogue about women in leadership all around the world.

We believe now is the time to inspire and develop our women — our students, our faculty, and our staff — to their greatest leadership expression. In the words of Bernice Ledbetter, Director of the Pepperdine CWL, "Now is the time. Tomorrow may be too late."

Executive Speaker Series

Our Next Event

Women in the C-Suite - Breaking Barriers and Unconscious Bias

The Center for Women in Leadership is pleased to welcome Mary-Ann Somers, Senior Vice President Chief Commercial Officer, Intuit, Inc., Consumer Group to our West Los Angeles campus for an informative session on executive leadership at the intersection of financial management and technology. In her role at Intuit, Mary-Ann is responsible for revenue, strategy, marketing, sales, insights, and analytics for the Consumer Group which includes the #1 tax preparation TurboTax®, the new TurboTax Live with on-demand CPA’s, and Turbo and Mint personal finance apps.

Prior to joining Intuit in 2018, Mary-Ann held a variety of leadership positions in companies responsible for some of the world’s best-known brands such as Hershey, Coca-Cola, Colgate-Palmolive and Unilever. Ms. Somers will comment on trends in FinTech along with her career journey and leadership wisdom from the perspective of an executive who has worked at the intersection of reviving brands through a commitment to being Consumer driven, Creativity inspired, and Commercially grounded.

What We Do

Bernice Ledbetter leading discussion at Pepperdine Graziadio Villa Classroom — About Us

Learn more about the Pepperdine CWL and the women behind it.

Student smiling at Pepperdine Graziadio event — Opportunities

Find out how you can benefit from your involvement with the CWL.

Bernice Ledbetter presenting at Pepperdine Waves of Innovation Conference — Our Research

Explore our faculty research initiatives and grant opportunities.

The Broader Conversation

Woman climbing wordmark - Pepperdine University

What is the "Confidence Gap"?

When You're Ready, But Not Confident

Studies show that women don't feel prepared to step into their careers due to a lack of confidence. Yet women inherently possess in-demand skills and talents that organizations now seek for contemporary leadership.

Find out how the Pepperdine CWL is working to close this confidence gap with programs outside the classroom.

More about Our Purpose