RALEIGH – Under the theme “Envision and Achieve,” a global expert on change management will keynote the Women’s Leadership Conference in Raleigh today.

The expert, TEDx speaker Sally Earnshaw, gave an exclusive interview to WRAL TechWire ahead of the event, sharing that her keynote will focus on tools attendees can use to create the life they want.

“If you’ve got one life, you might as well live it the way that you want to live it,” Earnshaw told TechWire. “So [the keynote] is all about simple tools for how to have great conversations, deciding what you want, and taking massive action to make the world that you want to live in.”

The sold-out conference, hosted by the Raleigh Chamber and presented this year by PNC, is an annual leadership conference for advancing women in business. Event organizers told TechWire they expect around 1,000 attendees.

This year’s agenda features breakout session speakers from around the Triangle, including many leaders from tech, real estate, and nonprofit organizations.

TradeMark Properties founder Billie Redmond, JLL Managing Director Kimarie Ankenbrand, Empower All Executive Director Valencia Hicks-Harris, City of Raleigh Chief of Police Estella Patterson, and IBM Chief Analytics Officer Tim Humphrey are a few of this year’s breakout speakers.

Earnshaw, who will speak toward the end of the day’s agenda, told me that her hope is to provide “here’s how” inspiration for attendees after the breakout sessions.

“I really hope that they hear something which inspires them to go, ‘Do you know what, I can just do that,’” said Earnshaw.

Why Women Make Great Leaders

Earnshaw has over 25 years of experience building teams and is currently Managing Director of Culture Change Practice for Gallagher.

And while Earnshaw called it “massively generalizing” to talk about women as a group, she also shared that she believes women are, generally, more open to traits and practices that are fundamental to good leadership—like a gratitude habit.

“Three acts of gratitude every day—finding, every day, three things to be grateful for, for a space of 21 days—changes the lens you look through,” said Earnshaw. “And I think that women are—massively generalizing—open to this. So is it any wonder that, when women do rise to the top, they create great organizations?”

Local leadership at this year’s Women’s Leadership Conference

Here’s a full list of speakers who will join today’s event, hosted at the Raleigh Convention Center from 8 am to 2 pm.

  • The Art of Actively Managing Your Career
    • Valerie Currin, President and Managing Director, Boon Edam Inc.
    • Jamie Schwedler, Partner, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP
  • A Courageous Mindset
    • Billie Redmond, Founder and Chair, TradeMark Properties
    • Emily Gray, Player, NC Courage
  • Curating Your Own Board of Advisors
    • Valencia Hicks-Harris, Founder and Executive Director, Empower All, Inc. (moderator)
    • Shelley McPhatter, President, Bridgepoint General Contracting
    • Estella Patterson, Chief of Police, City of Raleigh
    • Raymond Trapp, Vice President of Strategic Engagement, Research Triangle Foundation of North Carolina
  • Growing Together: Negotiating Talent Retention
    • Lisa Hammond, Chief Human Resource Officer, Veradigm
    • Cecilia Holden, Chief Executive Officer and President, myFutureNC
    • Tim Humphrey, Chief Analytics Officer, IBM Corporation
    • Ruth Johnson, PMP, Head of Coaching, Array (Greene Resources) (moderator)
  • Feedback is a G.I.F.T.
    • Kimarie Ankenbrand, Managing Director, JLL
    • Neal Eisenstein, Executive Coach & Leadership Consultant
    • Katherine Peele, Chief Practice Officer, LS3P Associates LTD. (moderator)
  • “Quiet Hiring”
    • Jeronica Goodwin, DHA, Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Chief People Officer, WakeMed Health & Hospitals
    • Nadiyra Walker, Head of Drug Product and Finished Goods Manufacturing, FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies
    • Whitney Westbrook, Global Talent Acquisition & People Operations Executive