The 2021 International Women’s Day event is going virtual! We didn’t want to miss the opportunity to connect with all of you, so we decided to take this year’s event online. Our goal is to help everyone build relationships, embrace diversity, and support women both professionally and personally. Our amazing and talented speakers will equip attendees with tools to manage change with agility and take a stand against racism both in and out of the workplace. This year’s hosts are Amway, Inforum, Meijer and Spectrum.
Presenting Sponsors
Making it Count: Creating a space at the table for everyone
Division and polarization are growing in our society. Now more than ever women and allies need to come together and support one another to be able to amplify our voices. This includes creating a seat for everyone at the proverbial table. And if you already have a seat, how do you make it count? Not only for sustaining your seat but for driving results to the organization’s bottom line and for opening up seats for others that may be overlooked. During this session, you will learn strategies and other bold moves that highly successful leaders have used to get invited to the table and their tips for how to influence, initiate and impact culture change not only inside the workplace but in society as well.
About The Speaker: Dr. Shirley Davis is an accomplished corporate executive, global workforce management expert, a certified leadership coach, and a master of reinvention. She has over 20 years of business experience in a variety of senior and executive leadership roles with Fortune 100 companies and served as the Vice President of Global Diversity and Inclusion and Workplace Strategies for the world’s largest HR membership association, the Society for Human Resource Management. Dr. Davis’ expertise lies in providing solutions and strategies for achieving leadership excellence and in building high performing and inclusive workplace cultures where all talent can thrive.
Dr. Davis has been a featured expert on NBC’s The Today Show, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, CBS News, HR Magazine, Profiles in Diversity Journal, CNN.com, and Inclusion Magazine. She is a featured author of two popular LinkedIn Learning courses and two books: Reinvent Yourself: Strategies for Achieving Success in Every Area of Your Life and The Seat: How to Get Invited to the Table When You are Over-Performing and Undervalued.
The world is changing. Correction. The world has changed!
In this time of uncertainty, as leaders, professionals, business owners, and citizens, we need new strategies and perspectives—for ourselves and those we lead. During this workshop, we will explore reactions to change, learn “tricks” for coping during stressful times—both for personal use and sharing with others—explore the psychological nature of change, and learn to identify change issues in others.
About the speaker: Heidi Frye is the creator of UPwords Inc., an organizational development firm designed to inspire leaders to reach new heights while positively impacting the bottom-line. Prior to founding UPwords Inc., Heidi earned performance awards at Fortune 500 companies such as Xerox, Boston Scientific Corporation, and EMC. She holds a degree in Business Administration from Wayne State University. Heidi is a graduate of the Leadership University School of Developmental Coaching in the Coach2 and MLCS (Master Leadership Coaching System) programs; certified in the Integrative Enneagram and BANK assessments; and a member of the ICF(International Coaching Federation).
Is that lining really silver? It looks gray to me.
Emotional intelligence is a key part of mental and emotional health, especially in times of crisis, uncertainty, and volatility. This session will focus on the Emotional Intelligence (EI) competency of Positive Outlook, including a self-assessment to help participants personalize how they synthesize and interact with the information in the discussion. We will explore how we can enhance the brain’s ability to support us in developing our Positive Outlook competency. Participants will also learn two thought exercise techniques for dealing with: anxiety/worry and self-confidence/the inner critic.
About the speaker: Dot is an ICF-credentialed, Coactive and Goleman EI-certified professional coach and leadership development advisor and facilitator, who spent 30 years as a partner, CPA, and leader at Ernst & Young, a “Big 4” global professional services firm. Dot’s unique background supports her ability to bring a balance of strategic/analytical thinking and intuition to her work with the organizations and individuals she serves.
Crossroads: Finding Balance in Work & Womanhood
Everyone is affected by the issues of racism and discrimination, even if you’re not directly involved. During this interactive breakout session, participants will learn to identify the effects of racial trauma and gender bias. You will also learn concrete strategies and coping mechanisms for managing these stressors.
About the speaker: Latrice is a mental and emotional wellness creative, licensed professional counselor supervisor, licensed mental health counselor, and certified life-enhancement coach. She is the CEO of Sampson Therapeutic Services, LLC and the founder of TheBlackUnicornProject.com, an online community committed to the celebration of Black culture and well-being. She hosts the Unicorns Talk Podcast, a weekly girl-talk about Black women, their healing, and manifestation. Latrice earned a Master of Science in counseling psychology from Louisiana State University.
Together Toward Tomorrow: A Panel Discussion on Allyship
An ally is any person who actively promotes and aspires to advance the culture of inclusion through intentional, positive, and conscious efforts that benefit oppressed or marginalized people. Benefits of allyship include new awareness and behavioral norms, which in turn drive inclusive behaviors. A panel of employees from various leadership levels will discuss their experiences and tips around giving and receiving allyship.
About the panelist: Molly Murray currently serves as a lead employee relations specialist at Amway. In addition to delivering policies and processes in Talent Acquisition, Talent Development and Employee Relations, she has contributed to the development and evolution of Amway’s Diversity & Inclusion strategies. Molly has served as Inclusion Network Advisory Board Chair at Amway for 3 years. She was the project manager for this very event – International Women’s Day – in 2019 and 2020.
About the panelist: Lynette Ackley is Vice President Merchandising, Fresh at Meijer. Lynette has worked for Meijer for 9 years. She started as the Director, Beauty & Cosmetics within the Drug Store Division, then was Vice President Merchandising, Health, Beauty, Baby and Card & Party Division. She has been recognized among the Progressive Grocer Top Women in Grocery for Senior Level Executives in 2017, 2019 and 2020 as well as Drug Store News Top Women in Health, Wellness and Beauty in 2019.
About the panelist: Ovell Barbee is Senior Vice President, Human Resources, and Chief Diversity Officer of Spectrum Health. Since he joined Spectrum Health in 2016, he has established an outstanding reputation as a visionary human resource leader with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion. In 2020, he was honored as one of the Top 50 Human Resources Professionals in the U.S. by Oncon Icon Awards, awarded a prestigious community GIANT Award by Grand Rapids Community College and recognized by Corp! Magazine as a Diversity Business Leader.
About the moderator: Stella Michael is the Information Services Director that leads a team of engineers that build CRM applications at Spectrum Health. Stella is a recent graduate of the Spectrum Health Executive MBA program. She is an advocate for women in the workplace and in technology; and is the Chair for Asian American Community Engagement at Spectrum Health, supporting inclusion and diversity initiatives in the community. Stella’s background in various industries, multinational companies and different work cultures such as Indian, Korean, Australian and American, help her bring a unique perspective to work and life. She is a proud mom of three kids and enjoys spending time with her family.
Inforum combines strategic connections, proven professional development programs, a respected forum for new ideas, and original research to accelerate careers for women and boost talent initiatives for companies.
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