Opening Keynote | 10 AM–11 AM
Challenges and Opportunities in 2022
Julie Coffmann (Chief Diversity Officer at Bain & Company)
Join Julie Coffman as she discusses the challenges she sees companies struggling with today across a wide spectrum of industries and contexts, where progress is being made, and where there is opportunity to apply cutting-edge solutions to forward real change.
Educate | 11:15 AM–12 PM
Panel: Future Leaders: What Students Need to Know about DEI
John Dionne (Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School / Former Senior Managing Director at Blackstone)
Damon Phillips (Professor of Management at Wharton School of Management)
Join professors from top business schools in discussing how academic institutions should be preparing leaders to drive Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion within their organizations regardless of their functions, and how students can learn these vital skills.
Fireside chat: Smart DEI: Using Analytics to Measure and Ensure Progress
Microsoft Team
The team at Microsoft has been incredible in transforming workforce data into actionable insights. Through this session, we intend to prepare future managers to start using data and analytics to see the impact of improving productivity through a diverse organization.
Workshop: Breaking the Bias in Negotiations
Kym Lew Nelson (Professor of Negotiations at Harvard Business School / CEO & Founder of The KLEW Company)
This session will focus on how attendees can break the bias in their own negotiations, using personal context to negotiate from a place of strength. Kym will draw on her own personal experience as the former Director of Global Purchasing at P&G (where she was the first African American woman to be promoted to Director/VP in the Procurement organization), as well as her expertise as founder of a company.
Ally | 1:00 PM–1:45 PM
Panel: Connection & Coalitions: What it Takes to Support Diverse Communities
Ro Kalonaros (Global Director of Content & Culture at Omnicom)
Christina Mallon (Director of Inclusive Design at Microsoft)
Deborah Renteria (Executive Director of Inclusive Creative + Marketing Strategy at Lionsgate / Co-founder of La Nueva Link)
Graham Nolan (Reputation Management Consultant / Do the WeRQ Co-Chair)
Explore allyship through the lens of building 360° coalitions that bridge the gap between different identities! Leading experts will help understand tangibly the macro- and micro-level investment it takes to surround diverse communities and individuals with a fulfilling support system that encourages connection and education.
Workshop: Empowering Your Team
Frances Frei (Professor of Service Management at Harvard Business School / Bestselling Author)
Join Frances Frei, HBS Professor and the author of “Unleashed: The Unapologetic Guide to Empowering Everyone You,” to learn how you can be a leader who values and leverages differences, closing the gap between DEI rhetoric and reality.
Act | 2:00 PM–2:45 PM
Panel: Making Change through Entrepreneurship
Ashley McCray (CEO & Founder at Chooz)
Wadood Daoud (CEO & Co-Founder at Candoor)
Erica Payne (CEO & Founder at Pareto Placements)
Three entrepreneurs discuss how they recognized and pursued opportunities to make positive change through founding their own companies. The conversation will tackle how they saw the opportunities and their personal motivations for pursuing them, as well as some of the challenges and learnings they faced along the way.
Panel: Taking Action within Your Organization
Gina Klein (CEO & Founder at SmartJobs)
Curtis Johnson (Director, Creative Council Integration at Walt Disney Company)
Farah Hussain (Director of Product Marketing at Paypal / Certified Leadership Coach)
Natalie Edwards (Chief Diversity Officer at National Grid)
This session will explore the different initiatives various organizations are taking today and a step-by-step approach to first understanding the gap, the root causes and then setting goals towards having a diverse organization. The next important discussion would be how managers realize the impact of DEI on productivity metrics of companies.
Closing Keynote | 3:00 PM–3:45 PM
Pushing the Needle Forward
Grady Tripp (Chief Diversity Officer at TEGNA)
The Chief Diversity Officer for Tegna will discuss the opportunities leaders within businesses have to push the needle forward, drawing from his own experience within TEGNA and other organizations, as well as from conversations with DEI leaders around the country.
