Best of Leadership Summit

March 17-18 “Best of Leadership Summit” to feature 30 speakers Leadership Louisville Center’s 35th anniversary celebration event to offer leadership development, community engagement and networking galore


The Leadership Louisville Center will feature thirty speakers for the Best of Leadership Summit to be held March 17-18, 2014 at The Kentucky Center.


PNC Bank is the presenting sponsor for the Summit which will begin with an evening networking and awards event on March 17 featuring special guest speaker Michael N. Harreld, President of PNC Bank, Greater Washington Area. March 18 will include a full day of professional development with an opening session titled, “Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn,” and three breakout sessions focusing on themes of leadership, community solutions and driving change. Some of the region’s most dedicated and influential leaders will be featured as speakers for the 35th anniversary event. See full agenda and speakers at www.leadershiplouisville.org/our-events/best-of-leadership-summit/. Additional details are also below.


Designed to replicate the energy and commitment to community that happens through Leadership Louisville Center programs, the Best of Leadership Summit is a one-of-a-kind event offering professional and personal development for all who attend. Attendees at the Best of Leadership Summit will represent the top leadership in the Louisville area and surrounding region, many of whom make up the Center’s alumni base of over 6,000 graduates.


Registration is now available at www.leadershiplouisville.org or (502) 561-0458, and members of the Leadership Louisville Center receive an additional discount. Registration for the full Summit is $300 ($250 for members) and registration for Monday night only is $85 ($70 for members).


Patron sponsorships offer a special group rate and are available by contacting Jennifer Stevens at jstevens@leadershiplouisville.org or (502) 561-0458. Special thanks to our event sponsors: PNC Bank, Presenting Sponsor; EY, Gold Sponsor; and Silver Sponsors: Hardscuffle Inc. and the University of Louisville College of Business. Our media sponsors include Business First, Courier-Journal, Louisville Magazine and WLKY-32.


More about the Best of Leadership Summit:

The Summit will kick off Monday, March 17 with a celebratory evening featuring Michael N. Harreld as special guest speaker. Registration and networking begin at 4:30 p.m., program from 5:30-6:30 p.m., followed by networking and festive food and drink for St. Patrick’s Day. The inaugural Leadership Louisville Trustee of the Year Award will be presented to one of the finalists, all chosen for the dedication and resources they have given to the Ignite Louisville program which has seen tremendous growth and will launch a second class in 2014. Finalists include: Chris Brice, Chief Marketing Officer for Northwestern Mutual; Al Cornish, Vice President of Learning & Organizational Development/Chief Learning Officer for Norton Healthcare; Kirsten Hawley, Vice President, Director of HR Business Partnerships for Brown- Forman Corporation; and the dynamic duo of John Kurnick, Chief People Officer, KFC US, and Laura Melillo Barnum, Executive Director of the Yum! Brands Foundation, Inc.


The full day event on Tuesday, March 18 will be filled with workshops and storytelling presentations focused on themes of Leadership, Community and Driving Change. Registration and breakfast open at 7:30 a.m., the opening session will be from 8:30-10 a.m., breakout sessions run from 10:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. and a closing reception will conclude the day by 6 p.m. Leadership Louisville Center class reunions and a lunchtime musical performance will also be part of the day. Twenty-nine speakers are on the agenda for Tuesday, including regional thought leaders and Leadership Louisville Center alumni. The day is designed to stimulate thinking and action around leadership and community, all while reconnecting graduates from our 35-year history. The Opening Session for all attendees will feature Doug Cobb, Chrysalis Ventures, LLC; Ed Glasscock, Frost Brown Todd LLC; Alice Houston, Houston-Johnson Inc.; and Mary Moseley, The Al J. Schneider Company; on the topic, “Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn.” Mentalist Steve Haffner will offer a mental kick-start to prepare attendees for the day of learning.


The Leadership themed breakout sessions will feature workshops with Kirsten Hawley, Brown-Forman Corporation; Scott Kiefer, The Oliver Group; Joe Pusateri, Elite Homes Inc.; and Dr. Lyle Sussman, University of Louisville College of Business. Community themed breakout sessions will featured storytelling presentations on a variety of topics and the speakers include: B. Todd Bright, Kentucky Farm Bureau; Wendy Dant Chesser, One Southern Indiana; Dr. Kevin W. Cosby, St. Stephen Church; Dan Crutcher, Louisville Magazine; Cathe Dyksta, Family Scholar House; Mayor Greg Fischer; David Jones, Jr., Chrysalis Ventures, LLC; Ricky Jones, University of Louisville; Jessica Lawrence; Cairn Guidance; Ted Nixon, D.D. Williamson; Ben Reno-Weber, Kentucky YMCA; Sam Watkins, Louisville Central Community Centers; and Dr. James Calleroz White, Louisville Collegiate School.


Breakout sessions around the Driving Change theme will include workshops with Kate Bringardner, The Speaker’s Studio; Virginia Denny, University of Louisville Delphi Center; and Dr. Dwight Moody, The Academy of Preachers. A storytelling session will include Ankur Gopal, Interapt; Wes Jackson, The Courier-Journal; Cara Silletto, Crescendo Strategies; and Phoebe Wood, CompaniesWood.


For more about the Best of Leadership Summit, visit www.leadershiplouisville.org/our-events/best-of-leadership-summit/.


About the Leadership Louisville Center: Created in 1979, the Leadership Louisville Center is the region’s most valuable resource for leadership development and civic engagement. Its mission is to grow and connect a diverse network of leaders who serve as catalysts for a world- class community through dynamic programming and strong community connections. Over 6,000 community leaders have graduated from the Center’s programs that include Leadership Louisville, Focus Louisville, Ignite Louisville and Bingham Fellows. In 2011, the Leadership Louisville Center was recognized as one of the top seven community leadership programs in the U.S. in a benchmark study by the Center for Creative Leadership, the “gold standard” global provider of executive leadership education and research.