(NEWS RELEASE) Attendees at this year's Chicago United Changing Color of Leadership Conference can anticipate gleaning leadership insights from some of Chicago's most respected chief executives as the business community gathers to discuss advancing multiracial leadership in business locally and globally on November 18, 2010 at the Hilton Chicago.
Raymond F. McCaskey, retired CEO of Health Care Service Corp., Timothy Schwertfeger, retired CEO of Nuveen Investments, and Tom Burrell, founder and retired chairman of Burrell Communications, will showcase "The CEO Forum" at the 2010 conference. With the theme of Innovation, Knowledge, Teamwork: The Power of Leadership, the conference will also feature The Leadership Forum, in which corporate senior leaders and minority entrepreneurs will probe diversity and inclusion development concepts and best practices.
"Attendees won't want to miss this year's CEO Forum," said Gloria Castillo, president of Chicago United. "It offers a unique opportunity to hear from innovators who have led some of Chicago's most successful companies."
McCaskey will deliver a presentation on the Building Blocks of Success: Leadership Development, Retention and Succession Planning, Schwertfeger will let participants know how to Accelerate Leadership in a Global Environment, and Burrell, the author of Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority, will speak about Transcending Myths to Master the Game.
The keynote speaker for the conference's diversity leadership luncheon will be Carolyn Woo, Dean of the Mendoza College of Business at the University Of Notre Dame. Dr. Woo is a noted entrepreneurial expert who has consulted for several Fortune 500 companies. She will address themes relating to the role of business in solving pressing global issues of poverty, disease and conflict.
Additionally, participants will hear from Robert Johnson, managing counsel of
McDonald's Corporation who will explore the topic, Do You Have What It Takes To
Lead? In her presentation, The Billion Dollar Roundtable: Milestones and Best
Practices in Minority Business Development, Sharon Castillo will explore best
practices, benchmarks, and challenges facing minority businesses, and answer
critical questions of supplier diversity managers.
Also, the results and implications from the soon-to-be-released 2010 Chicago United Corporate Diversity Profile will be discussed. The Corporate Diversity Profile is a bi-annual survey that measures racial diversity specifically in the leadership ranks of large corporations, on corporate boards and in executive level management. It serves as a benchmark for corporations to measure their progress in this area.
"Each year we present this conference with the end goal of giving Chicago's business community the insights and perspectives on leadership they will find useful in their day-to-day roles," Castillo said. "We want attendees to walk away with knowledge that will positively impact their business in the long run."
The Changing Color of Leadership Conference will culminate with The Bridge
Awards Dinner to salute CEOs who demonstrate an exemplary commitment to
diversity and inclusion in all facets of business. The annual Changing Color of
Leadership Conference and Bridge Awards Dinner is one of Chicago's premier
events for access and opportunity to the most diverse group of past, present and
future business leaders in Chicago. For more information about the conference or
to register, please visit
www.chicago-united.org.
About Chicago United
Chicago United is an advocacy organization made up of racially diverse CEOs and
executive level management who increase economic opportunity for all races by
promoting multiracial leadership development in corporate governance, the
leadership pipeline and business partnerships. Through a fierce brand of
constructive conversation, Chicago United fosters inclusion and provides an
opportunity for senior executives from all racial and ethnic groups to learn
from one another, confront and break down racial barriers and achieve shared
objectives. Chicago United's members range from emerging businesses to Fortune
500 corporations. These companies have a shared investment in the city and in
building sustainable diversity in the workforce and leadership.
