Meet Maryam Banikarim, the exec powering the future of Fortune’s Most Powerful Women community

In her new role, Maryam will be working to build and evolve Fortune‘s Most Powerful Women and Brainstorm Tech franchises. These are some of the gatherings and communities that often power the material you read every day in the Broadsheet, convening leaders for fascinating conversations about their work, careers, and the issues driving the global news cycle today.

Rainer Hosch

We are all so excited to have Maryam on board; she brings a wealth of knowledge from her career across media, hospitality, and tech including at Nextdoor, NBCUniversal, Gannett, Hyatt, and most recently the organization NYCNext and the “We ❤️ NYC” campaign. You can also learn more about her from her TED talk. Below are some of Maryam’s thoughts on the Most Powerful Women community and where it’s headed.

Why did you take this job leading Fortune Most Powerful Women?

For me, MPW was a game-changer. It was one of the first places I really found community at work. As we gather these women, we’re thinking about how do we create a global community that supports each other and builds bridges.

What are today’s women leaders looking for?

Big things are happening in the world and in the world of business. So they’re looking for insights on the world we live in. They’re businesspeople, and they want to do their jobs—they want to excel. They also appreciate the power of community because it can be lonely at the top. Having people that you can turn to—not on the golf course, but in other circles—does make a difference.

Why do we still need a community focused on women leaders?

Until we’re 50/50, there’s value in gathering to think about the big issues of the day and also how we can get to parity. Not just for us, but for all kinds of groups. The day that we don’t have to count the percentage of 10% of female Fortune 500 CEOs—then we can say, we don’t need that anymore.

Where would you like to see MPW in a year, in five years?

I love the idea of us breaking news—having it be a moment you always remember. I think that’s the special sauce of Fortune—that we are a trusted news organization that can convene and break news.

I want people to come in as strangers, but leave as friends. If you make it to MPW, you’ve spent a lot of your life at work. So that is also your friend group in some ways. We have to think about all the different stages that people go through and be there to support them.

Maryam has one question for readers: What would you like to see from MPW in the future? Send your suggestions to me at emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com. We look forward to working together to bring them to life in 2024 and beyond!

Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com

The Broadsheet is Fortune’s newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women. Today’s edition was curated by Joseph Abrams. Subscribe here.

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

- Star power. The Elite Eight game between LSU and Iowa Monday night—a rematch of last year’s championship—was the most-watched women’s college basketball game on record. Viewership, powered by Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and LSU’s Angel Reese, two of the game’s biggest stars, peaked at 12.3 million, making it the most-watched college basketball game—men’s or women’s—to ever air on ESPN. Meanwhile, Reese, whose team lost Monday’s back-and-forth battle, has until Wednesday night to decide whether she wants to play another year of college ball or declare for the 2024 WNBA draft. 

- Put it to a vote. A coalition of reproductive rights groups in Arizona received enough signatures to put an extension to the state's abortion rights on the ballot in November. The proposed measure would let people receive abortions until about 24 weeks into their pregnancy, up from the 15 weeks currently allowed, and add exceptions to protect “the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual.” Seven other states, including Nevada, are hoping to put abortion rights on November ballots. NBC News

- Bad apple. On The Daily Show Monday night, comedian Jon Stewart told Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan that Apple refused to let him interview her on his podcast while he hosted his now-canceled Apple TV+ show. Khan, who has launched antitrust attacks on tech giants like Alphabet, said Apple’s decision “shows one of the dangers of what happens when you concentrate so much power and so much decision-making in a small number of companies.” CNBC

- Looking into the gap. New analysis from the St. Louis Federal Reserve found that Hispanic and Black women who have never married have the least wealth in the U.S. Never-married Black women only own about 8 cents for every $1 held by white men. Bloomberg

- No receipts. Peru President Dina Boluarte is facing a criminal investigation and a dismal approval rating of 9% as the country questions how she owns jewelry worth tens of thousands of dollars on a salary of just $4,300. The country's first woman president denies that she enriched herself illegally while in office, and the country's congress appears likely to support her to prevent “instability.” Fortune

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Cayaba Care appointed Adaeze Enekwechi as chief executive officer. Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights named Sancia Dalley and María Teresa Kumar to its board of directors. Fidelity Investments announced Jill Rathgeber as vice president, product strategy, Fidelity agency lending. 

ON MY RADAR

What if you hadn’t frozen your eggs? The Cut

MacKenzie Scott donates to group helping first-gen grads get jobs Bloomberg

More women are applying for jobs in Europe than North America. Why? BBC

PARTING WORDS

“I’ve been working since I was three. Most people who have worked this long are retired. I deserve to be picky.”

—Actor Kirsten Dunst