2026 Women's Leadership Symposium |
A Free Gathering of Long Beach's Most Ambitious Women Leaders, and a 5K Pitch |
The Polk Institute Foundation trains entrepreneurs to build businesses that do right by people and the planet and still turn a profit. Most of the founders in its recent classes have been women, and its founder, Gary Polk, has written a book called "Why Women Entrepreneurs Fail (To Win)." On Wednesday, November 11, the Long Beach nonprofit is giving women in business a stage, an audience and a role model at its 2026 Women's Leadership Symposium & 5th Annual Women's Pitch Competition.
The afternoon runs from 1 to 6 in the Grand Ballroom at The Grand in Long Beach. Admission is free. All you need to do is reserve a seat.
Talks and a Pitch Competition in One Afternoon
Organizers call the event "a celebration of women leaders in business." It brings two things together: a leadership symposium and a pitch competition, where women founders present their businesses in front of the room.
The event flyer lists a $5,000 prize purse for the pitch competition. Applications to pitch closed in early October, so this year's presenters are already set. The invitation now goes out to everyone else: business owners, people thinking about starting something, and anyone who wants to cheer on women building companies in and around Long Beach.
Kat Taylor takes the keynote
The keynote speaker is Kat Taylor, whom the Polk Institute will honor as its 2026 Woman Social Entrepreneur of the Year.
Taylor is chair of the Beneficial State Bank Foundation. Beneficial State Bank is a Community Development Financial Institution and certified B Corporation. The bank's mission is to make banking more accessible to under-resourced communities in a way that is sustainable both economically and environmentally.
She doesn't own the bank. According to Beneficial State, it is wholly owned by nonprofits that are required to put excess funds back into the communities it serves. She is also a founding director of the TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation, which works toward a sustainable food system.
People, Planet and Profit
Taylor's work lines up with what the Polk Institute teaches. Gary Polk calls it social entrepreneurship, or the triple bottom line: people, planet and profit. One of the institute's stated goals is to create leaders who believe those three are not a zero-sum game, so doing good doesn't have to come at the expense of making money.
The foundation became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2021 and offers its training tuition-free. Its programs move entrepreneurs from training to launch to access to capital, with the aim of producing what Polk calls "fundable CEOs" who are ethical and have strong character.
A salute to veterans
Because the symposium falls on Veterans Day, organizers will recognize every veteran in attendance and, in their words, "honor the truth that freedom is not free."
Gary Polk, president of the Polk Institute, is on the program, and Terri Batch will serve as MC.
Event details
Pi 2026 Women's Leadership Symposium & 5th Annual Women's Pitch Competition |
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