Challenging the Status Quo

As a collegian, Jen Bradway valued her friendships with her sisters in the Mu chapter. She learned how to be a strong leader as chapter president and was given opportunities to learn from her mistakes allowing her to be ready for an incredible future.

Jen currently serves as a senior leader in finance at a Fortune 500 company. Throughout her career, she observed that while graduation rates for accounting and finance were fairly gender-balanced, senior leadership roles were predominately held by men. As she advanced in her career, Jen found women in leadership roles to serve as role models for her career. She realized all she needed was possibility - and if she was going to go after senior roles, she would undoubtedly focus on bringing other women with her.

The knowledge Jen gained as an Alpha Chi Omega - listening to sisters, creating a compelling vision and motivating others to a common goal - is the groundwork that helps her in her role today. In addition, she learned the importance of growing from her mistakes and that conquering anything alone or by leading without buy-in truly impacts a leader's ability to achieve success.

Throughout Jen's career she has served as a change agent and has challenged the status quo. She encourages women and underrepresented groups to have high goals. She realizes that there sometimes is a barrier between the social network of senior leaders and individuals trying to "break in." As a result, she encourages her peers of senior leaders to diversify who they spend time with while offering advice to those trying to advance to the next level. Jen was the first female to hold her specific vice president role, and the first woman to hold each subsequent role she has taken on after. She sees this analogy to describe her firsts: "as being the first one to go through the forest with a machete so I can clear the path to make it just a little easier for whoever follows behind me. Where did my machete come from? I made it with my Alpha Chi sisters."

Jen resides just outside the Twin Cities in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. She acknowledges that her community and the world have been impacted by the death of George Floyd. She acknowledges that serving as a change agent and pushing the status quo translates to a moral imperative to push for change for under-represented people.

Giving back to Alpha Chi Omega is a result of Jen receiving the gifts of humbleness, vulnerability, self-awareness, resilience, and confidence as an undergraduate. The environment of support, acceptance and forgiveness that she had is what she wants for other sisters.

Jen is committed to supporting Alpha Chi Omega's efforts to develop women leaders who can positively change the world.