Patricia M. Annino ’78
Patricia M. Annino received a JD degree from Suffolk University School of Law and a LLM in taxation from Boston University School of Law. She currently chairs the estate planning and probate department of the Boston law firm Prince, Lobel, Glovsky & Tye LLP. Annino is the author of several books, including Women & Money: A Practical Guide to Estate Planning and Women in Family Business: What Keeps You Up At Night? She has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Dallas Morning News, Chicago Tribune, Marketwatch, Investors.com, and she has been interviewed on Bloomberg television. She has been selected by her peers as one of the “Best Lawyers in America,” a New England “Super Lawyer,” and one of the top 50 female lawyers in Massachusetts. In 2007, she was voted by her peers as “Estate Planner of the Year.”

Rochelle (Shelly) Braff Lazarus ’68

Shelly Lazarus has been working, as she would say it, “In the business I love,” for more than three decades, almost all of that time at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide. Rising through the ranks of account service, Lazarus has held positions of increasing responsibility in the management of the company, including president of O&M Direct North America, Ogilvy & Mather New York, Ogilvy North America, chief operating officer, and CEO of Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide.

She is currently chair of the worldwide company. Lazarus started at Ogilvy at a time when the agency’s legendary founder, David Ogilvy, still walked the halls and personally preached that the purpose of advertising was to build great brands. Under Lazarus’s leadership, that essential mission has remained the centerpiece of the company’s philosophy, extending across regions and marketing disciplines, and attracting some of the world’s largest and most respected brands, including American Express, BP, Coca-Cola, IBM, Motorola, and Unilever among many others.

Lazarus has been a frequent industry honoree. Advertising Women of New York selected her as its Woman of the Year in 1994. She was honored by Women in Communications with their Matrix Award in 1995, was named Business Woman of the Year by the New York City Partnership in 1996, and Woman of the Year in 2002 by the Direct Marketing Association. She has appeared in Fortune magazine’s annual ranking of America’s 50 Most Powerful Women in Business for ten years since the list’s inception in 1998. Lazarus was also the first woman to receive Columbia Business School’s Distinguished Leader in Business Award.

Lazarus serves on the boards of several corporate, philanthropic, and academic institutions: General Electric, Merck, New York Presbyterian Hospital, American Museum of Natural History, Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, World Wildlife Fund, and the Board of Overseers of Columbia Business School, where she received her MBA in 1970. She served for five years as chair of the Board of Trustees of Smith College. She is a member of Advertising Women of New York; The Committee of 200; Council on Foreign Relations; The Business Council; Women's Forum, Inc.; and Deloitte & Touche Council for the Advancement of Women. She has also served as chair of the American Association of Advertising Agencies.

Linda Smith Charles ’74

Linda Smith Charles ’74 is the deputy director and chief operations officer in the Office of Human Resources at the Ford Foundation. In this capacity, she is responsible for human resources departmental administration; management and coordination of departmental tactical needs; and the development, implementation and management of all human resources policies and technology needs. She is the principal liaison between New York and the foundation’s 12 globally deployed offices for all human resources matters. Additionally, she serves as the foundation’s chief employee relations contact and is responsible for the development and implementation of foundation-wide training and professional development, performance management, and consultant contract management. Charles joined the foundation in November 1998.

Prior to joining the Ford Foundation, she was employed with AT&T in New Jersey. During her extensive career with AT&T, Charles held various management positions in human resources, billing operations, network services, marketing, finance, and tariff and regulatory support. At the time of her departure from AT&T, she was director of human resources for corporate professional services, which consisted of four organizations, including law and government affairs, public relations, corporate strategy, and the human resources organization. In this capacity, Charles was the senior human resources strategic business partner to the executive management of the four corporate professional services organizations and led human resources support teams responsible for the development and implementation of all human resources disciplines.

Charles graduated from Smith with a degree in psychology and has pursued graduate studies at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey. She has volunteered her services on a variety of Smith alumnae committees and currently serves as a member of the college’s board of trustees as well as an advisor to the board of the Black Alumnae of Smith College (BASC) affinity group. Charles also serves as a trustee of the board of Marylawn of the Oranges Academy in South Orange, New Jersey.

Wendy Markus Webb ’80

Wendy Markus Webb is the chief communications and investor relations officer for Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc., based in West Hollywood, a leader in live entertainment. She also serves on the board of directors of Jack in the Box, Inc., located in San Diego, where she is on the finance, governance, and nominating committees. She is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) and the Los Angeles Organization of Women Executives (OWE).

Prior to her current position, Webb was executive director, The Walt Disney Company Foundation, and senior vice president, investor relations and shareholder services at The Walt Disney Company. Prior to Disney, Webb was an investment banker in New York City and London.

Webb graduated from Smith with a BA (honors) in English literature, having also spent her junior year at Harvard College and a summer at Trinity College, Oxford. Additionally, she received a master’s in business administration from Harvard University in 1984. Webb served on the Smith College Board of Trustees from 1998 through 2003, and presently is a member of Smith’s President’s Council.

Rita Foley ’75

Rita Foley, chair of the Pro Mujer Board of Directors, is a corporate director, retired Fortune 500 global president, and a committed leader in numerous organizations dedicated to improving the health and lives of women in developing countries.

Foley received the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD)’s 2007 Award for Not-for-Profit Director of the Year. She was also honored with the 2006 United Nations Populations Fund Award for lifelong work with women and their health issues. She sits on the boards of publicly-traded PetSmart and Dresser Rand. She is also a director of the HealthCare Chaplaincy and is on the advisory boards of C2Media and Nina McLemore Inc. These appointments follow a very successful business career that culminated at MeadWestvaco as global president. Foley left this role in June 2006 to devote her time to both for-profit and nonprofit organizations. Proficient in four languages, she had led global business expansions throughout South America, Europe, and China. Prior to that, she worked in various executive roles in the software and computer industry. She began her career in England, working for Polaroid.

Foley graduated from Smith with honors in psychology and received her diploma from the University of Geneva. She graduated from INSEAD’S Aims program, and is a graduate of SEP (Stanford’s Executive Program).

Abigail Slater ’80

Abigail Slater is the vice president for The Suncee Sock Company, which she manages with her husband. Prior to her current position, Slater and her sister ran Bakeworks, a bagel bakery operation that they built to 14 franchised stores and a wholesale production facility. In addition to her success in business, Slater is known for her community service. Fourteen years ago, she and her sister started a unique event for breast cancer that has become an annual event and involves 60 Canadian women chefs. She has also received numerous honors, including the Canadian Airlines Regional Award for Small Business International Expansion Program and the Tiffany & Co. Canadian Women Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Most recently, she was nominated for the Canadian Flare Magazine Volunteer Award. Slater received a master’s in business administration from the Schulich School of Business (formerly York University) in Toronto.