Building Influence with Grace and Professionalism

2025 Women in Leadership Series

What if you could subtly teach your peers and those above you to value your ideas and treat you with respect – without losing yourself or being seen as the assertive you-know-what?

Fear of conflict, people-pleasing and perfectionism hold smart, successful professionals back from speaking up at work, even when they know they should. Discover how to get your voice heard and communicate with more personal power and presence. Gain skills to improve your confidence and comfort level in challenging workplace scenarios.

Gain skills to improve your confidence and comfort level in challenging workplace scenarios.

FEATURED SPEAKERS

Melody Wilding, LMSW

Executive Coach, Human Behavior Professor, Author, Managing Up and Trust Yourself

Recently named one of Business Insider’s “Most Innovative Coaches,” Melody’s client list includes hundreds of CEOs, executives, and top-performers at the world’s most successful companies, including Google, Facebook, IBM, Netflix, and more. Blending stories, research, strategy and inspiration, this session will arm you with practical skills to lead confidently, leverage your strengths and thrive in today’s world of work.

Stacey Ryan-Cornelius

Global Chief Financial Officer, Ogilvy

Over three decades, Stacey Ryan-Cornelius has built a remarkable career in regional and global financial leadership, driving transformation, managing risk, and uniting teams around shared goals. Known for her empowering leadership style, she fosters innovation and experimentation without sacrificing thoughtful, accountable decision-making. Stacey leads by example, creating a culture where people feel safe to speak up and empowered to do their best work while staying focused on what matters most for the business. In this session, Stacey will share how she has galvanized champions in the C-Suite and found her own voice—while helping others find theirs.

AGENDA

11:00 am – Noon

Speak Up and Stand Your Ground

Featuring Melody Wilding

We all navigate high-stakes conversations daily. Whether you’re the only woman sitting around the executive table, leading crucial discussions with peers in other functional areas, or steering challenging meetings with clients, you’re constantly balancing a complex equation: projecting confidence that commands respect while building trust that drives results.

Bestselling author and professor of human behavior, Melody Wilding will share science-backed strategies you can use to influence without authority in any meeting. Drawing from her new book, Managing Up, and 15 years of experience coaching leaders at Google, IBM, JP Morgan, and more, she’ll reveal how to build buy-in, push back and get your voice heard – without compromising your values.

Noon – 12:50 pm

Create Champions and Lead With Confidence

Featuring Stacey Ryan-Cornelius

To achieve our career goals, building strong, trusted alliances is essential—but too often, imposter syndrome holds us back from speaking up when it matters most. Instead of letting self-doubt take over, we need to project confidence and composure, especially in high-pressure moments.

Stacey will share how she has galvanized champions in the C-Suite, fostered respect and found her own voice—while helping others find theirs. She’ll introduce you to her “clear the mechanism” strategy, a technique for staying calm, focused and present under pressure, and demonstrate how it has enabled her to communicate with power and presence when it matters most. You’ll leave inspired to amplify your voice, overcome challenges and lead with confidence.

12:50 – 1:30 pm

Concurrent Peer-to-Peer Roundtables

We’ll break into small groups in Zoom meeting rooms for facilitated discussions on the key takeaways from the sessions, share challenges with one another, and help each other create an action plan that benefits from one another’s experiences and lessons.

Join the discussion

$ 995 Per Year

$ 295 Per Session

Single Event Session
Membership not included

Individual event sessions are eligible for 2 CPE credits in Business Management.

Event Series + Membership

Single Session Ticket