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2021 Illinois Women in Leadership Symposium

2021 Illinois

WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP SYMPOSIUM

"Onward & Upward: The Era of Equity!"

2020 RECAP

August 26, 2021
9:00 AM - 1:00 PM (CT)

Offered Virtually*
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Theme
Onward & Upward: The Era of Equity!
More Information

#EraofEquity

Sponsored By

Comcast

Join us for the Sixth Annual Illinois Women in Leadership Symposium! This year’s theme “On & Upward: The Era of Equity! Acknowledges and celebrates the advances that have been made to close the gender equity gap as well as create an awareness and advocacy to abolish barriers to impartiality and justice. We will dive into solutioning of meaningful topics such as economic justice for equal pay day, workplace discrimination, intersectionality and the accompanying dimensions of diversity that bind and divide us along with setting boundaries for a boundless well-being. We are especially, excited about our keynote masterclass “Breaking the Glass Ceilings that We’ve Created Challenging Our Comfort Zones. Be prepared to stock your toolkit with quick wins of wisdom for practical, tangible and day one executional resolves. This is the Era of Equity we have the self-empowered momentum and mindset. As so eloquently said “There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.” – Michelle Obama


Keynote Speaker

Felicia
Davis
President & CEO
Chicago Foundation for Women
Felicia Davis
President & CEO
Chicago Foundation for Women

Felicia Davis is a life-long Chicagoan and self-described “girl from the South Side.” She is deeply committed to community through inclusive service to others. Davis has spent the bulk of her professional career in the public sector, with a record of accomplishments in public policy, higher education administration, and public service through various capacities. For her, the transformational idea of being a social change agent coexists with a deep awareness of the practical realities facing our society. Felicia believes profoundly in the power to transform individual lives, families, and whole communities through collective efforts and that advancing equality and equity in society are causes worth fighting for. As president and CEO of Chicago Foundation for Women, she leads their strategic efforts in investing in women and girls as catalysts, fighting for gender equity, and building stronger communities for all. Since its founding in 1985, Chicago Foundation for Women has invested more than $39M in organizations supporting women and girls across the Chicago region.


Speakers

Renita
Alexander
Founder
Leadership Unlocked
Renita Alexander
Founder
Leadership Unlocked

Renita Alexander, Servant Leader, Retired Air Force officer, Author, Mother and Founder, Leadership Unlocked. Renita Alexander is passionate about leadership! As the oldest of five children and the oldest grandchild on both sides of the family, she was often “voluntold” to take on some task and learned early on that responsibility is difficult with no authority. She has been a student of leadership since, applying what she read, witnessed and experienced as an Air Force officer and leadership coach to consistently improve her leadership. Since retiring from the Air Force after 27 years and moving to Chicago, Alexander has put her leadership knowledge to use, co-founding The Social Leadership Academy, a global education company for aspiring entrepreneurs and leaders, facilitating MoxE Women, a group of Christian leaders and entrepreneurs, and creating the Leadership Empowerment Academy for the Air Force Academy High School to help young leaders find their leadership strengths. Her company, Leadership Unlocked, is a full service, leadership development and training company focused on empowering aspiring and ambitious leaders to access their unique leadership DNA and lead with energy, authenticity and agility Alexander’s book, Just Breathe: Leading Myself One Breath at a Time, was released in 2019. She believes that being the leader you are called to be is the journey of a lifetime.

Jonica
Armstrong
Chief Do Gooder (Philanthropic Officer)
Good(Will) to Great Philanthropic Consulting
Jonica Armstrong
Chief Do Gooder (Philanthropic Officer)
Good(Will) to Great Philanthropic Consulting

Jonica is your corporate version of Robin Hood-leveraging resources to make meaningful impact in communities across the world. She is skilled in philanthropic strategy creation and execution-engaging customers and activating employees to increase brand reputation, attract and retain employees. Her success with building philanthropic programming, from the ground up, and associated leadership has earned her the opportunity to speak on several panels, earn awards and have her insights published by a top CSR publication. Her experiences in traditional fundraising and cause marketing has led to more than $17M raised for nonprofit organizations, engagement with more than 25 million customers and 35,000+ employees. She masters relationship building and management through authenticity and keen awareness of stakeholder interests. Additionally, Jonica has over 10 years of retail buying and planning experience, lending her skills in budgeting, negotiation, and analysis. Lastly, she lives and breathes philanthropy, serving as a Board Director, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Co-chair and community volunteer.

Maria
Castro
Regional External Affairs Manager
Comcast
Maria Castro
Regional External Affairs Manager
Comcast

For the past 30 years Maria has worked extensively in three sectors: retail, consumer packaged goods, and telecommunications. In 2005 Maria joined the community investment team at Comcast where she helps to implement and manage programs that deliver social and business value to their nonprofit organizations and communities. Comcast is a company known for achieving social impact through innovative employee engagement, solid community partnerships and CSR initiatives that include foundation grant giving, scholarships, volunteer opportunities and sponsorships of local community events. As the Regional External Affairs Manager, she helps to identify corporate giving opportunities for Comcast’s core focus areas of youth leadership, volunteerism, digital literacy, and work force development. Having been born and raised in Chicago’s Pilsen community, it has brought her back full circle and has allowed her to bring much needed resources to that community as well as to other incredible Chicago area nonprofits. Her favorite quote is “if you don’t have a seat at the table, bring your own chair”. She currently serves as the Chairwoman for the Hispanic Scholarship Fund’s Chicago Chapter, Telemundo Chicago’s Action Board, Women’s Business Development Center’s Advisory Council, and the DePaul Art Museum Board of Directors. She is a co-author of Today’s Inspired Latinas Volume V, Today’s Inspired Leader Volume II and Hispanic Stars Rising, A New Face of Power Inaugural Edition. Maria has served as a panelist, moderator, and MC for numerous events and as a speaker for Latina Talks (New York Times & Chicago). She has received numerous award acknowledgements; Negocios Now 2019 Who’s Who Hispanic Chicago, 2019 Aurora Regional Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’ Hispanic Catalyst Champion, YWCA Woman of Distinction Award, People with Disabilities Champion Award from Seguin Services, Corporate Visionary award from El Valor, 2020 Hispanic Style Latina of Influence, 2020 Today’s Inspired Latina’s Woman of the Year Award and Founder & CEO of Inspiration for the #LovePurse project. She also received a 2009 proclamation of Maria Castro day in the City of Aurora (second largest city in Illinois).

Mallorie
Gregory
Manager – Time & Attendance Ground Systems
United Airlines
Mallorie Gregory
Manager – Time & Attendance Ground Systems
United Airlines

Mallorie Gregory is a dynamic program manager and entrepreneur who uses her superpowers of curiosity, enthusiasm and empathy to connect people to information, opportunities and each other. She is excited to serve on the planning committee for the 6th Annual Illinois Women in Leadership Symposium and looking forward to helping to curate an impactful and fulfilling symposium. Mallorie currently works as a Program Manager at United Airlines; is a proud board member of the Christopher ‘CJ’ Morgan foundation, which honors the memory of her nephew, a joyful committee member of the Women of Willis, networking collective, and an active and participating member of the Delta Sigma Alumni Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated. She looks forward to connecting with you. Be sure to say ‘hello’ at the 6th Annual Illinois Women in Leadership Symposium or via LinkedIn.

Lily
Liu
CEO
Liu Consultants
Lily Liu
CEO
Liu Consultants

Lily Liu is a 1.5-generation immigrant family caregiver. Her family immigrated from Taiwan to the United States when she was in elementary school. Lily's professional career was spent in strategic communications and public outreach in the non-profit sector. Currently she is caring for her elderly mother. In community-education events, Lily uses storytelling to empower other family caregivers.

Kristy
Nittskoff
Founder & CEO
Talent Savvy
Kristy Nittskoff
Founder & CEO
Talent Savvy

Kristy has over 15 years of HR leadership and business transformation experience, helping companies advance and excel from a talent strategy perspective. Kristy is passionate about leading through change, building high-performing and diverse teams to deliver strong business results, and cultivating an inclusive community for all employees. As the Founder and CEO of Talent-Savvy, Kristy lends her expertise to companies experiencing a growth inflection point. She specializes in people, process, and HR technology optimization, coaching executives and HR leaders on the nuances of talent strategy to set them on a path to meet their goals and scale their business effectively through talent. Kristy has an extensive background in the technology and private equity industries. She served as the CHRO for CentralSquare Technologies, backed by Vista Equity Partners and Bain Capital. Kristy held a leadership role on the Vista Equity talent consulting team before joining CentralSquare. She also worked as the head of HR for Envoy Global and the head of candidate and employee engagement at Mintel. Kristy holds an MBA from DePaul University with a dual focus in Economics and Leadership & Change Management. She graduated from Indiana University with a BS in Finance.

Crystal Odom-McKinney
Crystal
Odom-McKinney
National Director, Senior Community Service Employment Program
Easterseals Inc.
Crystal Odom-McKinney
Crystal Odom-McKinney
National Director, Senior Community Service Employment Program
Easterseals Inc.

Crystal Odom-McKinney is an experienced certified workforce development professional who partners with local and national nonprofits, community partners and businesses to grow their businesses through the training and employment of job seekers. With over 20 years in non-profit management and expertise in working with special populations (youth, veterans, disability, older adults), Crystal knows what truly drives community collaborations. How well you connect with the heart-beating people you’re trying to help and communicate your understanding to those stakeholders is vital in making the match! Crystal serves as Vice President for Illinois Diversity Council; Member of Chicago Jobs Council; Communications Director on the Board of Directors for Building Families Together, Inc., Board Member (Region 5) for National Association of Workforce Development Professionals and is a Certified Workforce Development Professional (CWDP). She also a partner/mentor of the American Society on Aging/New Ventures in Leadership Program and Chicago Jobs Council Front Line Focus Workforce Development Professionals Mentoring Program. Crystal holds a Master of Art in Counseling Psychology, Lewis University, Romeoville, IL; and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Tennessee State University. Crystal is also a veteran of United States Army.

Cherie
Price Coleman
President
Illinois Diversity Council
Cherie Price Coleman
President
Illinois Diversity Council

Cherie Coleman is a multi-facetted professional with a 30+ year career holding leadership roles in various capacities in health care management. She currently works for one of the nation’s largest health benefit company’s focused on developing programs and policy which delivers excellence for the five dimensions of a high performance health system: quality, access, efficiency, equity and healthy lives. During this journey and more than ten years ago, she became a Diversity and Inclusion Change Agent holding Diversity Council Co-Chair and Chair seats for her organization and was a catalyst for diversity awareness. In addition to becoming proficient in the D & I discipline, she received a Master’s in Communications degree with an emphasis is Business Leadership and Change Management from Northwestern University. In 2012, she joined the Illinois Diversity Council (ILDC), a non for profit organization as the Activities and Events Chair. In the fall of 2016, Cherie became a Certified Diversity Professional (CDP) and stepped into the role of Advisory Board President. Over the last ten years she has promoted the IL Diversity Council’s mission, vision and values of transforming corporate, communities and educational institution cultures where all stakeholders experience the synergy of equity, diversity and inclusion. As an innovator and courageous disputer she leads a local team of more than 50 volunteers, creates and implements strategy with the Board of Directors, is the local liaison for the National Diversity Council and serves a following of thousands. Cherie oversees the distribution of communication cascades with meaningful content, develops and executes impactful educational programming and creates qualitative and quantifiable results that drive business goals of collaboration, innovation, sustainability and profitability for business partners. Her leadership has expanded the ILDC’s brand and their partners positioning, in the areas of leadership development, talent acquisition and recruitment, associate satisfaction, retention and corporate social responsibility imperatives. Cherie is an avid traveler, extremely family oriented, passionate about artistic creativity and has resolved a life’s’ mission of giving of herself to encourage and empower others.

Sarah
Ratcliffe
SVP Product
Passport
Sarah Ratcliffe
SVP Product
Passport

Sarah Ratcliffe (she / they) helps software companies drive innovative product strategy. Focusing on behavior and motivation, Sarah believes the tools required to understand a customer to build a great strategy can also be used to help us understand ourselves. In addition to speaking and writing on this topic, Sarah also speaks on the value of the nontraditional experience and often mentors new product leaders who have arrived in their careers through nontraditional means. Sarah holds a masters degree in Organizational Psychology, a Senior HR designation, and is a Certified Diversity Professional. In her spare time, Sarah runs a social enterprise that facilitates body positive movement classes and workshops in support of mental health.

Khalelah
Sandy
Event Planner & Project Manager
Independent Consultant
Khalelah Sandy
Event Planner & Project Manager
Independent Consultant

Khalelah Sandy is a renowned event planner and project manager. Her professional journey has been a deliberate collection of roles that have afforded her opportunities to make valuable contributions across numerous industries for over 15 years. Khalelah has managed multifaceted commercial functions for United Airlines and several large retail corporations. She is also credited with crafting extraordinary experiences for in-person, virtual and hybrid events with these organizations and as an independent entity. In addition to her professional accomplishments, Khalelah also holds a Bachelor’s degree in business from her beloved Tennessee State University, and an MBA in Leadership, Change Management and Entrepreneurship from DePaul University. She is also delighted and honored to soon be completing a Women’s Entrepreneurship program from Cornell University.

Celina
Shands
CEO/Founder
Full Capacity Marketing, Inc.
Celina Shands
CEO/Founder
Full Capacity Marketing, Inc.

"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any,” said the great American novelist, poet and social activist, Alice Walker. At Full Capacity Marketing (FCM), empowering each other and our clients is the driving force behind what we do. For nearly 20 years, FCM has helped more than 500 K-12/postsecondary education and workforce organizations build high-performing brands, earning the company nearly 70 global awards. Born and raised in North Carolina, Celina approaches business like a true southerner—relationships first, business second—and surrounds herself with a great team that is committed to growth on every level. Celina is the 2017 California State Business Awards’ Marketing CEO of the Year in the Pacific Coast USA, a former American Marketing Association’s Marketer of the Year recipient, and a two-time Women Who Mean Business Finalist. When she’s not working, you can find her on a horse, at the beach, in a far-away country, or listening to live music.

Foram
Sheth
Co-Founder & Chief Coaching Officer
Ama La Vida
Foram Sheth
Co-Founder & Chief Coaching Officer
Ama La Vida

Foram is the Co-Founder and Chief Coaching Officer at Ama La Vida, a female-owned premier coaching company based in Chicago. In her own words: I identify myself as a mother, a wife and a passionate individual who is driven to empower those around me to thrive. I realized that the best athletes, performers, and leaders all have one thing in common - they dedicate themselves to improving by partnering with a coach. My personal journey began when I moved to the United States at the age of 9 from India. My parents gave up a comfortable life to a struggling one to provide me and my brother with unlimited opportunities. I watched my parents sacrifice everything for us. This upbringing instilled the values of hard work, resiliency and tenacity. I leaned into these values during my time as a healthcare consultant. Consulting taught me the importance of establishing rapport, cultivating relationships and producing results through a data-driven process. While consulting, I pursued my Master's degree in Learning and Organizational Change at Northwestern University. During this time, I was fortunate enough to work with a leadership coach and that's when I knew I had to learn the art and skill of coaching. As I became more informed about the coaching world, I realized high quality leadership coaching is typically reserved for the top leadership team. But what about new and mid-level managers who need personalized support to cultivate high performing teams? How do we scale coaching and break down the barriers that traditionally make coaching only reserved for the senior leadership team? These are the questions we asked ourselves when we launched Ama La Vida - a leadership and career coaching firm helping people to love what they do. And I'm proud to say we have been able to disrupt the coaching industry by leveraging technology to make coaching more accessible, scalable, tangible and results-driven. Today, I'm fortunate enough to have coached globally, impact hundreds of clients, be published in numerous publications and continue to support Ama La Vida's mission to bring coaching to all so that people can thrive.

Amy
Shivvers
Regional Manager, Strategic Partnerships
Western Governors University
Amy Shivvers
Regional Manager, Strategic Partnerships
Western Governors University

Amy Shivvers is Regional Manager, Strategic Partnerships at Western Governors University. Shivvers leads a team of nine strategic partnership managers in the Midwest region. Her team is tasked with raising awareness about WGU’s programs and expanding the university’s partnerships across the Midwest region. WGU’s partnerships empower corporations, school districts, healthcare facilities, associations and state and local entities to create new educational opportunities for their employees, members and communities to pursue and are vital in supporting the development of a highly skilled workforce. Shivvers’ brings more than 30 years of management, marketing and development experience to WGU, with success in building brand awareness, identifying strategic partnerships and nurturing professional and corporate relationships. Before joining WGU, she spent the last decade serving as the managing director of executive education and events for Crain’s Chicago Business. In this role, she helped create and launch Crain’s Academy, an executive education ecosystem, which offers full-service, experiential leadership development training, as well as custom executive education, built in partnership with client organizations. Shivvers resides in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood and serves many professional organizations around the city. She is currently serving as strategic partnership board chair of the Chicago Society of Human Resource Management and is has been involved with the Executives’ Club of Chicago, the Arts & Business Council of Chicago, the National Association of Women Business Owners, the Indiana University Alumni Network, Elevate Women’s Professional Network. Shivvers’ holds a Bachelor of Science in Apparel Merchandising and Business from Indiana University.

Laura
Waller
Lifestyle & Wellness Coach
Doctor on Demand
Laura Waller
Lifestyle & Wellness Coach
Doctor on Demand

National Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach with over 20 years of experience promoting health and wellness across public and private sectors. Currently, Laura works full-time at Doctor on Demand/GrandRound Health as a virtual lifestyle and wellness coach. Laura has experience coaching alongside providers, in both virtual and onsite clinical healthcare settings. Past experiences include, creating corporate wellness initiatives, working with key company stakeholders while designing and delivering valuable wellness programs and health education to employees.


Agenda

9:00-9:15 am Welcome to the Illinois Diversity Council – Run of Show
9:15-10:00 am Session #1: Diversity of Womanhood: Showcasing The Wide Array of Experiences Among Women
10:00 -10:15 am Reaching New Heights with Western Governors University (WGU)
10:15-11:00 am Session #2: I Got Your Back: The Importance Of Sponsorship And Having More Women in Executive Leadership
11:00 – 11:15 am Intermission
11:15-11:45 am Keynote: Breaking the Glass Ceilings that We’ve Created; Challenging Our Comfort Zones
11:45 am – 12:00 pm ILDC Volunteer of the Year Awards
12:00-12:45 pm Session #3: The Power of No: Setting Boundaries in a Work from Home World
12:45-1:00 pm Reflection & Adjourn

Session

  • Session 1: Diversity of Womanhood: Showcasing The Wide Array of Experiences Among Women
  • Session 2: I Got Your Back: The Importance Of Sponsorship And Having More Women in Executive Leadership
  • Session 3: The Power of No: Setting Boundaries in a Work from Home World

Don’t miss your chance to attend, register today!
Sponsorship Information

$3 Transaction Fee Will Be Added

 
For more information, please contact Cherie Coleman at [email protected].

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