Program Welcome & General Session
9:30-10:45 AMClick Here To View More Information
9:30-10:45 AM
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The Power of Presence: Leading from the Inside Out
In this session, leadership strategist, executive coach and bestselling author L. Michelle Smith reframes what it means to lead with presence, beginning with self mastery when the stakes are high, tapping into instincts when connecting with others, and finding your voice in fast-paced, complex environments.
Drawing on emotional intelligence, relationship dynamics, and cultural fluency, participants will explore how they show up and leave with renewed intention and something they can put to work immediately.
Moderator:
L. Michelle Smith, Best-selling Leadership Author, Fortune 100 Advisor, Certified Executive & Personal Coach
Speaker:
Xavier Williams, Former CEO, Network Wireless Solutions, LLC
Break
10:45-11:00 AM
10:45-11:00 AM
Breakout Sessions 1: Choose Your Path
11:00-12:00 PMClick Here To View Breakout Sessions
11:00-12:00 PM
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The Curious Leader: The Power of Questions to Unlock Your Team’s Potential
The best leaders don’t have all the answers—they ask the questions that change everything. Join this dynamic breakout session to discover how leading with curiosity can improve communications, spark innovation, strengthen team engagement and equip you with practical tools you can use immediately
Leading Through Disruption: How Experienced Leaders Can Master and Thrive in the Age of AI
AI is reshaping every industry, and experienced leaders are uniquely positioned to lead through this disruption, not be displaced by it. Using The Mastery Map® framework, this session helps you reframe AI anxiety into strategic advantage by shifting mindset, reconnecting to your unique value, and setting milestones for building AI fluency. Leave with a personalized action plan and the confidence to position yourself as indispensable in an automated world.
Executive Presence & Authentic Communication
Communicate with clarity, confidence, and intention by managing nerves, eliminating weak language, and demonstrating adaptable presence across professional contexts. Improve your communication by building connection, generating curiosity, and turning listeners into active participants through deliberate practice and targeted feedback.
Break
12:00-2:00 PM
12:00-2:00 PM
Breakout Sessions 2: Choose Your Path
2:00-3:00 PMClick Here To View Breakout Sessions
2:00-3:00 PM
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Adaptive Leadership Amid Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity
The foundation of the workshop is based on the Adaptive Leadership model developed by Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linsky, Harvard Kennedy School. The workshop will equip you with the skills required to navigate and thrive in today’s rapidly changing professional environment. This interactive session will focus on developing the ability to anticipate and respond to challenges with flexibility, creativity, and resilience. You will explore the core principles of adaptive leadership and learn how to diagnose and respond to complex situations.
Leading Through Disruption: How Experienced Leaders Can Master and Thrive in the Age of AI
AI is reshaping every industry, and experienced leaders are uniquely positioned to lead through this disruption, not be displaced by it. Using The Mastery Map® framework, this session helps you reframe AI anxiety into strategic advantage by shifting mindset, reconnecting to your unique value, and setting milestones for building AI fluency. Leave with a personalized action plan and the confidence to position yourself as indispensable in an automated world.
The 4 Ps of Leadership Sabotage: How Performing, Pleasing, Pretending & Perfecting Hold Leaders Back
A session that helps leaders identify how these unconscious patterns show up in their leadership, understand the emotional intelligence skills that disrupt them, and learn to lead with authenticity, courage, and grounded confidence instead.
Break
3:00-3:30 PM
3:00-3:30 PM
Breakout Sessions 3: Choose Your Path
3:30-4:30 PMClick Here To View Breakout Sessions
3:30-4:30 PM
Click Here To View Breakout Sessions
The Curious Leader: The Power of Questions to Unlock Your Team’s Potential
The best leaders don’t have all the answers—they ask the questions that change everything. Join this dynamic breakout session to discover how leading with curiosity can improve communications, spark innovation, strengthen team engagement and equip you with practical tools you can use immediately
Adaptive Leadership Amid Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity
The foundation of the workshop is based on the Adaptive Leadership model developed by Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linsky, Harvard Kennedy School. The workshop will equip you with the skills required to navigate and thrive in today’s rapidly changing professional environment. This interactive session will focus on developing the ability to anticipate and respond to challenges with flexibility, creativity, and resilience. You will explore the core principles of adaptive leadership and learn how to diagnose and respond to complex situations.
Executive Presence & Authentic Communication
Communicate with clarity, confidence, and intention by managing nerves, eliminating weak language, and demonstrating adaptable presence across professional contexts. Improve your communication by building connection, generating curiosity, and turning listeners into active participants through deliberate practice and targeted feedback.
Break
4:30-5:00 PM
4:30-5:00 PM
General Session
5:00-6:30 PMClick Here To View More Information
5:00-6:30 PM
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Life Lessons Disguised as a Fireside Chat
Drawing on the humor, storytelling, and layered life lessons from his book Man of Many Fathers: Life Lessons Disguised as a Memoir, Roy Wood Jr. explores how diverse influences shape our leadership lens. Through the metaphor of “many fathers”—mentors, critics, culture, and lived experience—this session challenges MLMS leaders to expand their definition of guidance, embrace unconventional wisdom, and lead with greater empathy and accountability. You will leave with a sharper awareness of how identity, upbringing, and perspective influence decision-making—and how to intentionally curate the voices that shape your leadership journey going forward.
Speaker:
Roy Wood, Jr., Author, Comedian, & Cultural Commentator
Program Welcome & General Session
9:00-10:10 AMClick Here To View More Information
9:00-10:10 AM
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The Price of Nice
Inspired by her best-selling book The Price of Nice, Amira Barger shares the hidden trade-offs of prioritizing likability over leadership. This session explores the cultural and professional conditioning that drives “niceness,” and offers a reframed approach rooted in clarity and conviction. You’ll learn how to communicate with directness without losing trust, navigate conflict productively, and shift from being agreeable to being impactful.
Speaker:
Amira Barger, Author, The Price of Nice
Break
10:10-10:30 AM
10:10-10:30 AM
Breakout Sessions 4: Choose Your Path
10:30-11:30 AMClick Here To View Breakout Sessions
10:30-11:30 AM
Click Here To View Breakout Sessions
Navigating Organizational Change
Leaders are often the bridge between strategy and frontline execution during change. This session explores how individuals experience change and how leaders can reduce uncertainty, resistance, and disruption. You will learn practical strategies to maintain momentum, accountability, and morale.
The Leader You Are vs. The Leader They Experience
This session focuses on the gap between executive self-perception and team experience. You will examine how leadership styles, behavioral patterns, and unspoken assumptions impact how teams engage, perform, and follow. Leave with tools to close that gap and lead teams with greater awareness, alignment, and impact.
The 4 Ps of Leadership Sabotage: How Performing, Pleasing, Pretending & Perfecting Hold Leaders Back
A session that helps leaders identify how these unconscious patterns show up in their leadership, understand the emotional intelligence skills that disrupt them, and learn to lead with authenticity, courage, and grounded confidence instead.
Break
11:30-1:00 PM
11:30-1:00 PM
General Session
1:00-2:00 PMClick Here To View More Information
1:00-2:00 PM
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Betting on Yourself: Building Influence, Opportunity, and Wealth in Uncertain Times
In today’s rapidly changing workplace, career growth belongs to leaders who can recognize opportunity before others do, take calculated risks, and create value in unexpected ways. As an entrepreneur, investor, and founder of one of the nation’s leading fintech platforms, Rodney Williams has built a career by challenging conventional thinking and turning bold ideas into transformative businesses. In this candid conversation, Rodney will share lessons from his journey—from launching groundbreaking ventures to leading through disruption and scaling innovation.
Speaker:
Rodney Williams, Co-Founder, SoLo Funds
General Session & Program Close
2:30-3:50 PMClick Here To View More Information
2:30-3:50 PM
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Lessons from 40 Years: Leadership Then, Now, and Next
As we celebrate the Executive Leadership Council’s 40th anniversary, join Carla Harris for a fireside chat exploring how the workplace has evolved— and what leadership may require in the future.
Designed for mid-level managers navigating today’s rapidly changing workplace, this conversation will examine how the role of the manager has shifted, and will continue to. Carla Harris will share lessons learned from leading through change and building impact across generations.
Speaker:
Carla Harris, Senior Client Advisor, Morgan Stanley
