Leadership Conference

Developing community leadership

2024 Leadership Conference

Thursday, May 2, 2024
Iron Mountain Campus

The Bay College Iron Mountain Leadership Conference is a transformative event designed to empower leaders, change-makers and any individual looking to elevate leadership capabilities and foster meaningful connections. This year’s conference theme revolves around inclusive leadership – a powerful approach that recognizes and celebrates diversity while actively promoting equity, inclusion and belonging.

Conference Agenda

Registration and Networking Coffee Social

7:30 am - 8:30 am

Welcome

8:30 am - 8:40 am

Harnessing the Power of an Inclusive Culture

8:40 am - 10:10 am

Dima Ghawi
Keynote Speaker

Creating a culture of inclusion is no longer a “nice to have.” It is essential for recruiting, engaging, and retaining top talent. It is a competitive advantage of any company. In this keynote, Dima Ghawi shares findings gathered over decades of conducting hundreds of interviews and workplace surveys on how to create a welcoming and inclusive workforce. Dima’s real-life experiences with organizations around the world, as well as her unique and fascinating upbringing in the Middle East, bring to life for audiences the critical importance of diversity and inclusion.

Through powerful storytelling and personal narratives, she deconstructs conscious and unconscious biases, guiding attendees to address common workplace resistance to DEI. She teaches leaders that increasing inclusion creates a safe and healthy culture. More than picture-perfect diversity, this presentation shows audience members how to foster a sense of inclusion within their workspace.

This year’s Conference theme is “Inclusive Leadership”, with the Keynote speaker Dima Ghawi. Dima’s real-life experiences with organizations around the world, as well as her unique and fascinating upbringing in the Middle East, bring to life for audiences the critical importance of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB).

DIMA GHAWI SIZZLE REEL

Audiences will learn:

How to create a safe and inclusive workplace culture
The meaning of unconscious bias and its effect in the workplace
What diverse employees are looking for and how to integrate these needs into management styles

Key takeaways:

The insight of a bottom-up approach, the influence of courageous office culture, and the power of affinity groups
What diverse employees are looking for and receive actionable tips to create a courageous and integrative workplace culture
How to create a more productive, engaging, and inclusive workplace for all

Break

10:10 am - 10:20 am

Break Out Sessions

10:20 am - 11:40 am

Attendees will select one of the following:

Connecting DEIS (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Sense of Belonging) to Your Organizations’ Mission: Creating a Purposeful Strategic Plan

Darnishia Morris
Instructor and Manager of Global Engagement Programs
Palvas Honors College
Michigan Technological University

It has been said that without a vision people fail. Have you considered if and how your company has integrated DEIS efforts with its core values, goals and long-term vision? Through a series of thought-provoking exercises, participants in this session will have a framework of how they can intentionally incorporate DEIS efforts into their organization's mission and strategic plan. They will obtain actionable steps to creating a more inclusive, equitable, and purpose-driven workplace that values the perspectives and potential of all employees.

Courageous Conversation around Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging

Dr. Crystal Hendricks
Instructor
Bay College

In this hands-on session, you will cover the basics of difficult conversations. In addition, you will also learn techniques to bridge differences that divide by role-playing with words, body posture, tone, and key phrases. Practice makes perfect!

Emotional Intelligence (EQ) – A “Must Have” in the Leadership Toolkit

Rick Popp
Leadership Consultant / Senior Advisor for Boyden / Retired HR Executive
Ford Motor Company

Of all the leadership skills that are useful, EQ is one of the most fundamental and necessary for the best leaders. The most inclusive leaders have high EQ. The best teammates have high EQ. The good news is that EQ can be learned and improved. In this short session, leaders will be able to learn (or refresh their memory of) the four critical EQ skills and leave with more confidence in immediately applying what is covered in the session, as well as re-energize the journey of continually enhancing their leadership by continually developing EQ.

Lunch and Networking

11:40 am - 12:20 pm

Leadership Panel

12:20 pm - 1:20 pm

Attendees will gain lessons learned from some of the area's leaders. Questions will center on each panelist’s journey and how they navigated and stepped up as a leader throughout their journey and how the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging in the workforce has impacted the way that they lead.

Mindy Meyers
Director of the Dickinson Area Economic Development Alliance (DAEDA)

Panel Line-Up:

Dr. Nerita Hughes, President Bay College
Rick Popp, Leadership Consultant / Senior Advisor for Boyden and Retired HR Executive from Ford Motor Company
Darnishia Morris, Instructor & Manager of Global Engagement Programs, Palvas Honors College Michigan Technological University

Break

1:20 pm - 1:30 pm

Break Out Sessions

1:30 pm - 2:50 pm

Attendees will select one of the following:

Implicit Bias in the Workplace

Dr. Amy Reddinger
VP Arts and Science, DEIB
Bay College

In this breakout session, you will learn some small cognitive-behavioral shifts that can help you and your team be less biased in the workplace

Banishing Chaos & Stress Management

Presenter: Dr. Nerita Hughes
President Bay College

Accessibility creates Inclusion in the Workplace and Beyond:

Jessica Manier
MPA Camp Director Bay Cliff Health Camp

In this session leaders will learn that there are many facets of accessibility other than the ramped entrance with an automatic door, and how to create an organizational culture that promotes inclusion on all levels. Accessibility is everybody's responsibility! The more accessible the company/organization is, the more included in the organizational culture everyone will feel in the workplace and beyond!

Break

2:50 pm - 3:00 pm

Closing Remarks and Evaluations

3:00 pm - 3:30 pm

Recognize 2023/2024 Leadership Academy Participants
Prize Drawing
Fill Out Evaluations