The 2020 ELC Mid-Level Managers Symposium was one for the record books! With more guests…more speakers…and more sessions than ever before, we more than doubled our traditional reach and amplified success for our greatest number of Black professionals yet, seeking to increase their capacity for designing meaningful careers.

Boasting more than 20 fireside chats and 10 different workshops and featuring over 80 speakers, by all accounts the two-day symposium on October 14 and 15 had a strong performance. More than 5000 guests attended the fully virtual leadership development experience.

“Thank you for entrusting us with your time and your desire to prepare for a future without limits,” said ELC Interim President & CEO Crystal E. Ashby, as she welcomed guests and kicked off the event.

MLMS HIGHLIGHTS

This year’s elevated MLMS experience accounted for the entire identity of the Black professional. Dictated by the current state of the world, between COVID-19, the fight for social justice and the economic turndown, the program addressed those issues head-on to best prepare the next generation of Black leaders. The ELC shifted to provide developmental conversations about social justice, corporate responsibility and voting rights to illustrate how these issues impact the Black professional’s identity and how they show up to work during this unprecedented time. Every panel was competency-based and corresponds to the learning model of The ELC’s Institute for Leadership Development and Research.

Check out these highlights and key quotes from 2020 MLMS:

“Perhaps you are in this moment, in this space, to open doors for those people who can’t be in that room.” – TV Host Mark Lamont Hill, Two Paths, Same Mission: Black Corporate Professionals and Social Justice Warriors panel

“We don’t need checks for forgiveness. We need checks for opportunity.” – ELC Member and Black Enterprise President & CEO Earl “Butch” Graves, Unity: Black Leaders of Black Organizations panel

“When I see what’s happening in our country, it haunts me. I want to translate that into my work. The most I hope for is a deeply-felt emotional response that haunts people.” – Author, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Renditions of Power session

You can still view the full programming agenda and speakers list here.

ELC MEMBER MLMS SPEAKERS

A very special thanks to all our ELC members who volunteered their time to impart their thought leadership on our MLMS attendees:

2020 MLMS SPONSORS

A very special thanks to our 2020 MLMS sponsors:

Lead Sponsors

• PepsiCo Foundation
• Target Corporation

Signature Sponsor

• FedEx

Live-stream Sponsor

• HSBC

Session Sponsors
Altria, Apple, AWS, Bank of America, Cadillac, Cisco, Citi, CSL, EA, Honeywell, Linde, Merck, Novartis Pharmaceutical, Pfizer, Twilio, Verizon Media and USAA

STAY CONNECTED WITH THE ELC INSTITUTE

#MLMS2020 Social Media Posts
You can read all our ELC #MLMS2020 twitter posts here.

ELC Research Journal
You can read The ELC Fall 2020 Research Journal here.

Contact The ELC Institute
For more information on MLMS and The Institute’s 2021 program line-up, please email ELC Vice President & Chief Learning Officer Chris Butts at cbutts@elcinfo.com.