When Hattie Hill was named President and Chief Executive Officer of the Women’s Foodservice Forum (WFF) in 2014, she had already been on its Board of Director’s for 10 years. That experience coupled with more than 20 years of work in the foodservice business made Ms. Hill the right woman for the job. She and the organization are laser-focused on advancing women leaders in the foodservice industry, something that attracted her to WFF in the first place and continues to be the “primary goal for the organization today.” “I have a passion for women’s leadership and want to leave a lasting impact on the industry,” Ms. Hill said, while speaking about WFF. The organization will host its Annual Executive Summit in Dallas, Texas, taking place July 25-27. This event targets Vice President level and above executives, and is expected to attract more than 300 attendees.
Last year, the Women’s Food Service Forum met in Chicago for its Annual Executive Summit, and featured Ann Compton, former news reporter and the first female White House correspondent, as its keynote speaker. Delivering powerful and educational speakers to their members is critical to WFF, something evident in the lineup for this year’s Annual Executive Summit. Headlining the event is Harvard Professor and Senior Associate Dean Frances Frei, who will speak on a dynamic range of development skills that Ms. Hill said would “pack a Harvard MBA into a two day event.” Other speakers will include Wendy Lewis, Senior Vice President of Diversity, Inclusion & Strategic Alliance at Major League Baseball and Top-ranked Executive Coach, John Mattone.
A myriad of other speakers and events will take place over the three-day event which Ms. Hill said is guaranteed to “inspire our attendees and help them to broaden their leadership skills.” Ms. Hill is “excited to have an industry that people do not know about and offer women resources they may have never thought of through the organization.” WFF is unquestionably an industry leader in the services they provide and Ms. Hill shows no signs of slowing down in her attempts to “close the gap” as is made clear by the work put into the organization’s upcoming Annual Executive Summit.
The Women’s Foodservice Forum aims to close the gap between women and men in the foodservice industry at a much faster rate than experts predict for other industries. Ms. Hill said, “Experts say that it will take a hundred years for women to close the gap in business and we are aiming to help close it much quicker than that.” WFF is a revered organization that provides its members with industry specific, research-based content that no one else can offer their members, which includes 1-hour sessions customized to any business or situation on subjects such as financial acumen. WFF also has a large network of strategic connections including links to organizations such as the National Restaurant Association and Food Machinery of America. “We have everything under one umbrella, something no other organization can offer as a benefit to members,” said Ms. Hill. “As an organization, WFF is focused on the entire foodservice ecosystem which includes every aspect of the industry.”
Ms. Hill shared that the goals of the organization have not changed since its inception more than 26 years ago. However, the way WFF is meeting its goals is evolving by establishing mutually beneficial relationships with partner companies such as Sysco, Brinker International, and other leading global operations, manufacturing, distribution, publishing organizations within the foodservice ecosystem.
For more information on attending this year’s summit or becoming a member of the Women’s Foodservice Forum, go to their website at WFF.org.
