It’s about damn time, said Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit co-chair Maryam Banikarim as she introduced the singer Lizzo for a Q&A before a live audience.
The four-time Grammy Award–winning singer-songwriter is on a break, and she broke the news to the crew of high-powered women that she had voted for Kamala Harris in the presidential election.
“There’s so many important issues on the ballot this year. And I just want to encourage everyone—I know everyone in this room is going to vote—but please, anyone who’s going to see this video or hear this, please vote.”
The singer’s lively interview with MPW co-chair Ellie Austin capped off an evening that began with a discussion between fellow co-chair Emma Hinchliffe and actress and wine purveyor Cameron Diaz. After taking time off to focus on her family, Diaz embarked on a new venture in the wine industry with friend and fellow aficionado Katherine Power.
“It felt like something I had to do to reclaim my own life,” said Diaz of the break. “It really comes to: What are you passionate about? For me, it was building my family.”
The first day of the seminal event began bright and early with a beach trip in Laguna Niguel, Calif., where friends old and new bonded over a brisk walk and morning breeze.
One of the themes that emerged from the day is the idea of grit. For many women, their grit is a source of power, and for a lot of them, they learned it playing sports as children.
Deloitte chair Lara Abrash defined grit as that hard part on your elbow that gets built up. “You can’t teach someone grit. They’re not born with grit,” she said. “So these experiences, particularly for women who are often told they can’t do something, actually teaches them they can.”
Women also shared tales of how they got into the most powerful boardrooms in the world.
Former Black Entertainment Television CEO and now corporate board member Debra Lee recalled being asked to join a board years ago after a CEO saw her at an event and told her she was attractive. The company was a beauty brand, and Lee became the third woman on the board, which was made up of mostly older white men who would pass around the lipstick trying to determine the shade.
Lee now serves on the boards of Marriott, Procter & Gamble, and Warner Bros. Discovery. She founded Leading Women Defined and cofounded the Monarchs Collective.
An always popular topic among business leaders is the burgeoning challenge of adapting to work with Gen Z. The social-media-savvy demographic is tricky, and they care more about working for a company that has a mission they agree with than getting a packed paycheck.
Similarly, business leaders want to understand how AI will shape the jobs of the future, without panicking employees into thinking they might lose their jobs if an AI-based system can do it more efficiently.
At private equity firm TPG, global head of human resources Anna Edwin poised one of the most burning questions for business leaders in thinking through their future talent strategies.
“Everybody is grappling with the same question: How do you create something that is sustainable and doesn’t freak people out that it’s going to replace their jobs?” said Edwin.
The momentum continues on Tuesday with Day 2 of the event at 7:30 a.m. PDT. The live stream will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. with MPW’s famous meet-and-greet. Stream the live event here.
