Women's Disrupter Series: Colleen Egan—Empowering Women and the Illinois Tech Sector

In partnership with World Business Chicago’s ThinkChicago program and Women in Bio’s 3.8 Initiative, the Women Disruptors Series at Illinois Tech’s Ed Kaplan Family Institute for Innovation and Tech Entrepreneurship celebrates women leaders in Chicago’s tech and innovation ecosystem.

The Kaplan Institute serves as the university’s hub for students to explore technology entrepreneurship and innovative ventures. Held throughout Women’s History Month 2021, the Women Disruptors Series underscores the Kaplan Institute’s commitment to elevating a diverse range of voices in the tech space.

The final speaker in the series is Colleen Egan, president and chief executive officer of the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition. Her program is titled “Empowering Women and the Illinois Tech Sector.”

Egan is the first woman chief executive officer of the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition and its institute, which support the innovation economy of Illinois through data, advocacy and policy, programming, support initiatives, and STEM education. She began her career as an oncology nurse before becoming a health care administrator and the founder of a health care startup. She was the operations leader at the public digital agency LEAP before co-founding and serving as the chief operating officer for the technology company Two Hundred Twelve Degrees | 212°. Egan was the COO and senior vice president of production for Zula USA and the executive vice president and COO of Akoo USA. She founded Tiger Puppet Studios, a consulting company focused on Chicago tech and startups, and later became a director at Clarity Partners, a management and technology consulting firm. Egan is a founding member of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Institute at DePaul University. She received her education at Little Company of Mary Hospital School of Nursing and Lewis University.

To attend the virtual Zoom event, you must register.