Aneesa Muthana

Technology alone won’t get it done. Learn how and where to plant the seeds of partnership and about practical methods of keeping your team happy and productive with only minimal use of donuts. Other topics include when to fire a customer and the part outreach plays in safeguarding your business’s future.

Diversity and inclusion fail when they become less about company culture and more about “checking boxes.” Done right, diversity drives innovation and taps a larger pool of employees, but only if companies take the time to define the term. Yes, it begins with gender, race, and beliefs, but also can include socio-economic and educational background (just for starters!). If diversity means hiring from wide-ranging backgrounds, then inclusion means making everyone feel like they belong. This session explains the benefits of achieving both and highlights the significance of company culture in the effort.

Strong leaders don’t go it alone—they surround themselves with the right people. A personal board of directors (PBOD) is an inner circle of people you admire, whether friends, family, or business associates. Usually informal, these boards provide boundless opportunities for learning, venting steam, or something in between. Learn what “roles” I look to fill on my PBOD, where to find these wonderful people, and how to approach them about it.