Part of being an effective leader — male or female — is being able to find the good in even the most trying of circumstances. That includes Zoom meetings.
During TheWrap’s Power Women Summit 2021, three female execs discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic — and the shift to video conferencing — changed the way they communicate with their staffs.
“There are definite pros and cons,” said Amy Introcaso-Davis, executive vice president of development and production and factual programming at Discovery. “[But] we saw people in their homes, which we didn’t use to see. We saw their kids, we saw their animals. We would actually do a thing with our teams where we’d have one person a week show us the inside of their house and do a tour. In a weird way, we got to know people better in a way that we wouldn’t have before. So, it’ been challenging but also rewarding on some levels.”
Introcaso-Davis was joined two other high-powered execs — AMC’s senior vice president and co-head of scripted development and programming, Emma Miller, and Participant’s executive vice president of content Liesl Copland — for a free-ranging panel discussion hosted by TheWrap’s editor in chief Sharon Waxman.
At times, the topics veered from the difficulties of working (and especially leading) from home to the advice the women wished they could have given to their younger selves. “It’s about making your impact known, making the work that you do be known, not letting others take responsibility for that work,” offered Miller.
They also discussed the growing popularity of streaming.
“I think it’s a super exciting time,” said Copland of the streaming revolution that’s unleashed a boon for content creators of virtually every sort. “It reminds me of the early days. I was in cable in the ’90s when that was exploding and it reminds me of that time where it just feels like the possibilities are endless.”
Indeed, the possibilities are so endless, Miller’s AMC has a show on their slate called “Kevin Can F— Himself.”
“It was a spec script,” Miller explained. “It came with that title… It was hard to beat.”
For more of the discussion, you can watch the full panel here.
The Power Women Summit is the largest annual gathering of the most influential women in entertainment, media and technology. The event aims to inspire and empower women across the landscape of their professional careers and personal lives. This year’s PWS provides three days of education, mentorship, workshops and networking around the globe – to promote this year’s theme, “Represent.”