What Women Leaders Need the Next Generation to Know

At a Suffolk University leadership luncheon hosted by the Sawyer Business School’s Department of Public Service & Healthcare Administration, five influential women from across education, advocacy, nonprofit leadership, housing policy, and philanthropy shared deeply personal stories about leadership, bias, resilience, and belonging.

Organized by Professor Sonia Alleyne, MPA ’01, and moderated by the City of Boston’s Director of Cultural Affairs Alexandria Valdez, MPA ’20, the panel featured:

• Carole Charnow, president and CEO of the Boston Children’s Museum
• Sasha Goodfriend, executive director of Mass. National Organization for Women (Mass NOW)
• Vivian Pham, assistant secretary of housing stabilization for the Commonwealth
• Dr. Kandice Sumner, president & CEO METCO, Inc.
• Sandra Edgerley, founder of Hexagon Properties and co-founder of The ’Quin

Across generations and industries, their stories revealed a common message: Leadership is rarely linear, often uncomfortable, and always rooted in community.

Leadership often begins before you realize it

One of the strongest themes of the day was that leadership rarely starts with a title. None of the panelists described a perfectly mapped-out career path. Instead, leadership developed through responsibility, necessity, and saying “yes” before feeling fully ready.

Carole Charnow reflected on unexpectedly being asked to run an arts program in London early in her career. Despite feeling unprepared, she learned one of the defining lessons of leadership: Opportunities often arrive before confidence does.

“I think that this idea that you have this plan, that it’s all mapped out, it sort of isn’t how life works out,” Charnow reflected. “I think that you miss opportunities if you don’t say yes.”

The message to aspiring leaders was clear: Don’t wait until you feel completely qualified to step forward.

Mentorship and community matter more than individual achievement

Every speaker emphasized the importance of mentors, allies, and community support, with several panelists highlighting the responsibility leaders have to create opportunities for others.

“We fail as global citizens if we’re not bringing people along with us,” Pham said, encouraging attendees to actively open doors for the next generation.

The discussion repeatedly returned to the idea of “bridge building”—creating spaces where people feel seen, supported, and included. The panelists stressed that success is not simply about personal advancement, but about widening access for others.

Bias still exists—but preparation and confidence are powerful tools

Sandra Edgerley shared a story from early in her consulting career when a roomful of men challenged her work, only to realize she was the most knowledgeable person there.

“They may not look at me initially as if I know what I’m doing or am worthy of being in the room,” Edgerley said. “But if I’m smart, doing my homework, being prepared, then when the time comes, I can show them why I’m in the room.”

Dr. Kandice Sumner captured the emotional complexity of leadership as a Black woman, mother, and educator, describing the constant awareness many women carry about how they are perceived. Her advice resonated throughout the room: Women must learn to see themselves as “somebody, not somebody’s.”

Belonging requires intentional inclusion

As the conversation shifted toward the future of Boston and Massachusetts, panelists focused on what it means to create communities where people truly belong. The speakers argued that inclusion is not passive...it requires deliberate effort, storytelling, and coalition-building.

Sasha Goodfriend connected belonging to a very practical issue: period equity. Through her work at Mass NOW, she has advocated for increased access to menstrual products across Massachusetts, arguing that something as simple as having period products available in public spaces signals that people are meant to be there.

“We have so much work to do to unpack this because we should not be embarrassed about something that is essential, something that happens to over half the population every single month,” Goodfriend said.

Authenticity is a leadership skill

By the end of the event, one idea unified nearly every answer: Authentic leadership matters. The panelists encouraged attendees to trust their instincts, protect their energy, and stop apologizing for taking up space.

When one audience member asked how to overcome intimidation in rooms filled with powerful people, Sumner offered advice that quickly became one of the most memorable moments of the afternoon. Recalling guidance she once received herself, she joked about channeling the confidence of “a mediocre white man named John”—someone who never questions whether he belongs in the room.

The audience laughed, but the underlying point landed: Confidence is often socially conditioned, and women frequently underestimate their own expertise. Sumner’s advice? “Steal John when you need him.”

The panel closed with a reminder from moderator Alexandria Valdez that every leader starts somewhere. Leadership is not reserved for a select few—it grows through action, vulnerability, mentorship, and persistence.

“Sometimes we don’t think that we are leaders,” Valdez said, “but being in these spaces just shows how much we care, how much we appreciate, and how much we want to help and support one another.”