School of Business and Economics to Observe Women’s Entrepreneurship Week with Presentation by Alumna Becky Blalock in Atlanta

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MACON – Mercer’s School of Business and Economics will host a fireside chat with Mercer alumna Becky Blalock, a consultant and thought leader in the IT and utility industries, Oct. 18 on the Atlanta campus in celebration of Women’s Entrepreneurship Week (WEW).

Blalock’s presentation, “Dare to Put Yourself Out There,” will take place at 6 p.m. in the Trustees Dining Room and is free and open to the public; however, registration is required at eventbrite.com. She will be interviewed by Dr. Briana Sell Stenard, assistant professor of management and entrepreneurship at Mercer.

Blalock is the founder and managing partner of Advisory Capital, a strategic consulting firm that provides expertise to companies involved in the energy, information technology and medical industries. She formerly was senior vice president and chief information officer for Southern Company.

During her 33-year career at Southern Company, Blalock directed IT strategy and operations for one of the largest utility companies in the world and rose to become CIO in a traditionally male-dominated industry.

Blalock is the recipient of numerous honors, including CIO of the Year by Energy Biz magazine, Premier IT Leader by Computerworld magazine, CIO Lifetime Achievement Award and the Legacy Award from Women in Technology, and one of Agenda Magazine’s Digital 50.

She earned her master’s degree from the Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics with honors in finance and her undergraduate degree in business administration from the University of West Georgia. She also successfully completed the Program for Management Development at Harvard University.

Blalock is the author of DARE: Straight Talk on Confidence, Courage and Career for Women in Charge, in which she offers advice with guidance and mentoring lessons from top executives from across the country.

Women’s Entrepreneurship Week, observed during the third week of October, is a nationwide initiative on college campuses to promote women’s entrepreneurship. The inaugural WEW was organized in 2014 by Montclair State University’s Feliciano School of Business in New Jersey.

Stephanie Howard, deputy director of Mercer Innovation Center, is planning a WEW event on the Macon campus, as well, with details to come.

About the School of Business and Economics

Established in 1984, Mercer University’s Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics is named for Eugene W. Stetson, a 1901 Mercer graduate and business pioneer who leveraged the first major buyout in corporate history. Over the past 80 years, Mercer has granted over 12,000 business degrees, and many of its graduates hold senior leadership positions in companies around the world. Mercer’s business school delivers career-focused business education programs and develops entrepreneurial leaders and responsible global citizens. It holds accreditation from the prestigious Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), which places it among the top five percent of all top business schools worldwide. Mercer’s business school has been recognized by the Princeton Review for “Greatest Opportunity for Minority Students” and “Greatest Opportunity for Women” as well as being one of its “Best Business Schools.” In addition, it has been recognized among the “Top 15 Schools in the Nation for Marketing and Accounting.” The School offers the following programs: Atlanta (Evening BBA, Full-Time (One-Year) MBA, Evening MBA, Executive MBA, Professional MBA, Master of Accountancy, M.S. in Business Analytics), Macon (Traditional BBA and Evening MBA), Douglas County and Henry County (Evening BBA). www.mercer.edu/business