The Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry recently highlighted and celebrated the achievements of businesswomen in Chester County at its annual Women Influencing Business Dinner at the Waynesborough Country Club.

This marked the first year of the Emerging Leader of the Year Award, an honor presented to Andrea Jones, Marketing Manager at CTDI. Jones’s role at CTDI includes executing strategic global marketing plans, overseeing a team responsible for communication across all levels of the business, and implementing marketing communication strategies.

In addition to her leadership role at CTDI, Jones is a leader in the community. She currently serves as the Vice President of West Chester University’s Alumni Association of Chester County and is a member of CCCBI’s Women Influencing Business Committee.

“I’m incredibly grateful to be standing here this evening,” said Jones. “And I am grateful to be born and raised in a county like Chester County.”

Shari Kruzinski was named 2018 Female Business Leader of the Year. Kruzinski currently serves as the Senior Vice President and Director of Retail Business Initiatives at WSFS Bank. She leads overall market strategy, client development, and sales management for WSFS.

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Kruzinski shared her story of the challenges she faced being a young mother starting a professional career. She left members and guests of the CCCBI with words of inspiration.

“There will always be barriers, glass ceilings waiting to be broken. Let this be your inspiration,” said Kruzinski. “Let these be your reasons for never giving up on yourself, even when others have.”

The evening concluded with a powerful speech from keynote speaker Audrey Brady, Vice President of Sikorsky Commercial Systems and Services, a division of Lockheed Martin’s Rotary and Mission Systems business.

Brady offered her philosophy on leadership, as she described what has been instrumental throughout her career: taking the hard jobs, relationships matter, and giving back though mentorship and community outreach.

Her storytelling intrigued the audience and left them empowered, inspired, and hopeful for the future of women in business.

“It is empowering to be in this room with all of you and to know that we finally have a voice,” Brady said. “A voice that resonates and pushes all of us forward in this time of change.

“I’m proud to be a woman at this moment in history. We’re honoring the legacy of those who worked so hard to break barriers and continue to break the boundary of what is possible.”

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