Taking place each March, Women’s History Month is an ideal time to honor and celebrate the achievements of women in the exhibitions and events industry.

In the first of a series of interviews spotlighting stellar event professionals and their insights on how their organizations support women, their advice for the next generation of female leaders and their thoughts on women to watch, ENN had the pleasure of checking in with Monique Ruff-Bell, head of events for TED Conferences. 

Ruff-Bell leads a team in managing, planning and executing TED’s flagship global conferences, TED Member events and virtual events. She oversees production elements for TED’s media platforms and serves as a member of TED’s executive leadership team. Prior to joining TED in 2022, she served as vice president of events for  Money20/20 USA, which is owned by Ascential plc.

What are you most proud of in terms of the ways your organization supports women?

Internally at TED, many of our key departments and initiatives are led by women. We are provided opportunities to have a seat at the table on the direction of our mission and our business, and we play a huge part in keeping the TED brand strong in people’s minds and hearts.

Externally, our annual TEDWomen event has given women and their powerful ideas access to one of the most influential stages in the world. Since 2010, more than 400 speakers have shared transformative ideas on everything from neuroscience to computer science, education to entertainment and leadership to entrepreneurship. 

We wanted to showcase women doing extraordinary things in the world and change the narrative that it’s hard to find women outside of traditional career roles. This conference takes place every year in October, and we recently moved it to Atlanta for the next three years.

What advice would you give to the next generation of female leaders in the industry?

One of my favorite TED Talks is "Teach Girls Bravery, Not Perfection" by Reshma Saujani. The message of not deferring your dreams due to your battle with perfectionism is a game changer. If you are looking to pursue leadership positions within this industry, it’s important to be brave and take risks. See yourself as a business leader and strategist not just an event executioner. Take on challenges that will push you. Look to see how you can play a part in helping expand your organization’s brand or increase revenue via events. And if at times you fail, it’s important to learn from those failures to help with your growth instead of trying to avoid it. 

Who are some up-and-coming female event industry professionals to watch?

Kisha Allison, former head of content for Money20/20 and currently director of communications at Prudential Financial. She is one of my mentees, and she literally is one of the best content and event professionals within fintech. She truly understands that space and what it’s evolving into. 

Jasmin Chung, director of operations for Shoptalk and Groceryshop. Her organizational and logistical acumen is unbelievable. She has an intuitiveness about events and it’s operational and production needs that are second to none. It’s like she’s carrying a crystal ball in her back pocket and can foresee oncoming challenges, and has solutions ready to disperse at the drop of a dime.