Leadership Matters

Is the door to the C-Suite still locked for women and people of color? Research conducted by Alison Cook and Christy Glass of Utah State University indicate that over a 15 year period 551 CEO appointments within Fortune 500 Companies were given to white males, while just 57 were given to a woman or a person of color. Please join host Gerald McFadden, President & CEO of Volunteers of America Southwest, Ms. Karen Dale, Market President, AmeriHealth District of Columbia; Ms. Tonya Smallwood, President and CEO Family Matters, and Ms. Jacqueline Woods, Former Executive Director of the American Association of University Women, and currently a Senior Consultant for Academic Search, Inc. as they discuss: The Affect of Women and People of Color in the C-Suite and more specifically: Getting to the C-Suite, Having Influence in the C-Suite; and Staying in the C-Suite.

What role does exposure to childhood trauma, adverse experiences, and childhood toxic stress play not only on the lives of a person as a child, but also on their life as an adult. How can we as leaders use the power of our own experiences to become more effective transformational leaders? How can we as leaders stir up hope, courage, and resiliency to bring out the best in ourselves and others? What does it mean and what would it look-like for leaders or service providers to use a trauma informed approach? Host Dr. Sheryl White, Vice President of Training and Organization Development with the Neighborhood House Association in San Diego, CA and special guests Dr. Robert K. Ross, President and CEO of the California Endowment; Nora Vargas, Vice President of Community Engagement at Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest; and Cindy Jones, Mental Health Coordinator at the Neighborhood House Association will explore answers to these questions and more!

Partnering with and impacting community is at the center of President and CEO Chanda Smith Baker’s work at Pillsbury United Communities. This is evident in Pillsbury United Communities’ strategic framework, One Pillsbury, United, which focuses on two specific strategies, impact and capacity. Impact is defined as an “interconnected approach to address multi-dimensional barriers, socio-economic issues and opportunities required to generate long-term individual, family and community success,” while capacity refers to an “organizational-wide focus that effectively links operational excellence to achieving its mission and vision.” Join us for this interview with Chanda Smith Baker for more on Pillsbury United Communities “gap closing” strategic framework, and learn how leaders and organizations can further help strengthen communities while working alongside them.

This enlightening and energizing episode is a conversation with several young adults who each volunteer their time with non-profit organizations. Their volunteerism spans from animal care to teen adoptions. This fascinating group of guests will share their stories of where and why they began volunteering as well as what motivates them to remain engaged. This important discussion will help us (non-profit leaders and managers) better understand how to use social media to recruit volunteers, how to provide interesting projects and supervisorial oversight, how to leverage the strengths they bring and many other tid-bits of valuable insight.

In recent months, challenges regarding domestic violence and organizations’ responsibility to expect and support ethical behavior of their employees has made its way into the media and policy platforms. Additionally, the potential danger associated with escalated spousal/family disputes that can find themselves spilling over into incidents of violence in the workplace has made it clear that turning a blind eye to this concern can lead to unexpected volatile and hazardous situations. What is a leader’s role and what are their responsibilities related to the issue of domestic violence? What is the point of difference that employers can and increasingly are being expected to play in this field that historically has been largely viewed as a social taboo limited to one’s personal life and not the business of employers?

Join Tom Woll and the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities as they sit down with three leaders who recently attended the 2015 Alliance Executive Leadership Institute to discuss lessons learned on change leadership and how they are applying these lessons to their everyday work. This interview will feature George Winn, Chief Operations Officer at The Children’s Center; Mer Otis, Chief Compliance Officer at Easter Seals Blake Foundation; and Melissa Ludington, Vice President of Family Centered Services at Children's Home + Aid.

Successful executives of both for-profit and not-for-profit corporations are today in constant pursuit of effective strategies that will distinguish their company and its products in the marketplace and provide them with a competitive edge for growing their enterprise. Growing the value and financial bottom line of a business can be directly linked to how effective companies are at developing trusting relationships with their target audience through effective marketing and brand management strategies. Please join host Gerald McFadden, President & CEO of Volunteers of America of Southwest, Mr. Scott Ensign, Senior Director of Business Development with the LPGA, and Mr. Mike King, National President of Volunteers of America, Inc. as they discuss how to Energize Your Brand and Grow Your Business.

Current research informs us that young adults, especially those at risk, need continued support to bridge the gap between the ages of 16-24. Non-profits, educational systems and workforce partnerships are developing new and renewed programs specifically targeted for this population. Today’s discussion will provide an overview of the current situation facing 16-24 year olds and several solutions being implemented by our guests. These programs range from mentorships for High School students, school and corporate partnerships, scholarships and other creative solutions. Join us for this important discussion.

Join co-host Dr. Sheryl White, Vice President of Training and Organization Development/InnoVisions at the Neighborhood House Association in San Diego, CA; co-host Undraye Howard, Vice President of the Center on Leadership with the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities headquartered in Washington, DC and special guests Troy Bell, Regional Vice President, FL with Lighthouse Academies, Inc. and Valerie Wright, CEO of Wright Ideas, Inc. based in West Palm Beach, FL to discuss leadership, equity, peace, and the African America community. How do leaders across the nation help ensure hot beds of violence are not brewing? What are the necessary changes and how does one go about influencing bringing them to fruition to advance inclusion, equity, and peace for that betterment of all humanity? Don’t miss this special edition of Leadership Matters focusing on bringing hope, healing, and help to our communities!

Join Dr. White and guests to discuss leadership, equity, peace, and the African America community. How do leaders across the nation help ensure hot beds of violence are not brewing? What are the necessary changes and how does one go about influencing bringing them to fruition to advance inclusion, equity, and peace for that betterment of all humanity? Don’t miss this special edition of Leadership Matters focusing on bringing hope, healing, and help to our communities!

Tune in to this interview to hear Ken Berrick, CEO of Seneca Family of Agencies, discuss several change leadership initiatives at his agency, including being one of the first organizations to bring wraparound programs to California, implementation of the Unconditional Education Model, and a partnership with the National Institute of Family Connectedness to execute a Family Finding program that allows Seneca to transition kids, with wraparound, into a broader array of family settings. All of these initiatives were informed by Seneca’s evolving values and clinical approach.

Often overlooked in the area of nonprofit leadership are faith-based leaders in the hundreds of thousands of churches across our nation. Often leaders of moderate to large congregational churches are required to perform both the role of Head Pastor and Chief Business Officer of the enterprise. The demands of guiding the business life and spiritual life of a dynamic and growing church would appear to be challenging enough however when combined with the changing demographics of members and social needs of surrounding communities the leadership requirements would appear to require a set of exceptional leadership skills. Please join host Gerald McFadden, President & CEO of Volunteers of America Southwest and Senior Pastor Terry W. Brooks of Bayview Baptist Church in San Diego, CA as they discuss the biggest issue “Change” facing the church today and the leadership role of the church in the mist of social, political and religious chaos.

Often leaders get tossed into the maze of trying to please multiple stakeholders. Spinning in this challenge they can loses sight of what is most essential. The week to week challenge becomes responding to what seems most urgent, visible, and critical versus that which aligns with what is most important and lasting. Join co-hosts Dr. Sheryl White, VP of Training and Organization Development with the Neighborhood House Association; Gerald McFadden, President and CEO of Volunteers of America Southwest; and Linda Shoob, Principle and Founder of Organization Effectiveness Consultants to discuss legacy leadership. What is it? How can it drive impact and provide clarity, inspiration, and lasting change?

Let’s face it – failure is terrifying. There is nothing attractive or noble about it. Not surprisingly, if you’re an organizational leader, there’s an unstated expectation that you just don’t fail. Unfortunately, our views on failure, making mistakes and falling short are inhibiting our ability to innovate, learn and adapt. In fact, it’s arguable that if you don’t have a basic comfort with failing, your future may be in peril. Put simply – always succeeding can be silent killer for organizational change. In this interview, you’ll hear how one epic fail opened a new horizon of opportunities for one CEO of a large social service organization. You’ll hear the challenges of exporting his learning about the importance of failure to an organization accustomed to success, and how he is intentionally cultivating a culture that embraces risk, learns from failure and capitalizes on unexpected successes.

As the saying goes, “Culture eats strategy for lunch every time.” Regardless of how visionary and strategic your leadership may be, if the culture does not support the vision, bringing the vision to fruition can be an uphill and no win battle. Tune in to Leadership Matters with co-hosts Dr. Sheryl White and Linda Shoob as they discuss cultivating a “can do” culture with special guest Tony Moore, Chief Human Resources Officer of Eckerd based in Clearwater Beach, FL. Strategies that can be used to transform a stagnant company into an institution of excellence will be discussed, along with ways to improve outcomes through the art of influencing employees to go after what they want, while achieving performance goals that have been established for the organization.

In San Diego California, Father Joe’s Villages is well known as a multidisciplinary support agency caring for the poor and the homeless. The Toussaint Academy is critical partner that provides support and opportunities to at-risk youth who have faced unimaginable challenges. The mission of the Toussaint academy is to assist homeless youth (age 14-18) to reach self-sufficiency by providing a safe and stable living environment and a continuum of education and supportive services. Using an innovative “continuum of care” model and multidisciplinary programs, the Academy provides the basic life skills necessary to succeed as adults. Furthermore, the Academy addresses the dilemma of those who age out of the system by providing “aftercare services” to alumni, ages 18-24.

Succession planning can provide a great process for identifying and developing staff with the potential to fill key leadership positions and roles within an organization. It can also help ensure program continuity and development. Join co-host Dr. Sheryl White, Vice President of Training and Organization Development with the Neighborhood House Association, co-host Undraye Howard, Vice President of the Center on Leadership with Alliance for Strong Families and Communities; and special guest Jenni Frumer, CEO of Alpert Jewish Family and Children Services this week to discuss pipeline and succession plan development as a means to managing talent, understanding future talent needs, and helping to ensure leadership and program continuity.

In the workplace, leadership means not only having people follow you. Leadership is about you – how you conduct yourself, how you view yourself, how others perceive you, and the value you deliver to the organization. There are many ways to lead. There is not one path to leadership, but it’s a choice you make as an employee – to be a leader, or be content following – and both options may work, depending upon who you are and where you are, in your career. Join host Jenni Frumer, co-host Linda Shoob and guests William Gillers, Leadership Consultant and Larry Borodkin, Vice President of PRADCO for an exciting discussion about organizational culture, teamwork and the role of leadership.