Leadership (Behavioral)

Laura Whitaker, M. Ed., began her relationship with Extra Special People, Inc. by working as a counselor and, subsequently, a leadership team member in 2003.  With her passion for enhancing the lives of children with developmental disabilities and her specialized education in this field, Laura was selected as the director after the founder, Martha Wyllie’s sudden passing in 2004. She has found her dream job with ESP (or as she says, her dream job found her!).  As Executive Director, Laura uses her leadership and management strengths to manage staff, oversee multiple year-round programs and raise funds to run programs. Her favorite part of the job is getting to hug the many children who walk through the ESP doors.

Scott Lesnick is a sought-after global leadership keynote speaker. He presents powerful keynotes and interactive sessions at 30+ events a year and is an author. Also, Scott earned his CSP (Certified Speaking Professional) designation from the National Speakers Association. Only 12% of speakers world-wide have this designation! Scott is also a Certified Virtual Presenter.

Scott recently presented at TEDx. And, he’s run the equivalent of 2X around the planet. That’s 50,000 miles! In addition, Scott spent 24 award-winning years leading sales teams at Shaw Industries, a Berkshire Hathaway Fortune 500 company.

Scott served as the Academy Dean for Professional Speakers and the National Speakers Association. He is a graduate of The University of Miami, Florida. His memoir, Kidjacked – A Father’s Story and his book Lifejacked: Life Lessons on Leadership were published to critical acclaim.

Kerri Nelson, Ph.D., is the Director of Mission Research at SHRM. She is responsible for leading, developing, and designing strategic, public-facing research that provides organizations, business leaders, and policymakers with evidence-based insights at the intersection of people and work. She also partners with public and private organizations to produce research related to work, worker, and workplace. Kerri has led research on a variety of topics including pay equity, skills-based hiring, untapped talent pools, workplace culture, and the global workforce. Her work has been featured in top news outlets, on podcasts and webinars, and on the Hill.

Kris Erickson currently serves as co-founder and executive consultant for Workforce Science Associates. In this role, she empowers organizations to discover the unique drivers and motivational aspects that drive performance in their workforce and use these to accelerate a high-performance culture.

Kris has over 25 years of consulting experience with Fortune 500 companies. In this capacity, Erickson worked at both the strategic and tactical levels to develop and deploy comprehensive workforce solutions.

Will Sparks is the Dennis Thompson Chair & Professor of Leadership at the McColl School of Business at Queens University of Charlotte. He is the author of “Actualized Leadership: Meeting Your Shadow & Maximizing Your Potential” (2019, SHRM Publishing), which debuted as an Amazon #1 Best Seller.

His TED Talk “The Power of Self Awareness” was released in 2018. He completed his Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Development from The George Washington University’s School of Business and Public Management, where his research focused on group dynamics, organizational culture, and leadership.

Dr. Michael Baran is the CEO of Iris Inclusion, a global diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) firm. Dr. Baran draws on his own social science research to inform his DEI speaking engagements, writings, consulting, leadership development, and eLearning. After teaching at Harvard University, he has been supporting DEI in organizations for 20 years. His work has been covered in the New York Times, BBC, Forbes, CNN, NPR, and more.

His recent book, Subtle Acts of Exclusion, was named by Forbes as one of “The 11 Books To Read To Be A More Inclusive Leader” and has won several awards.

Daryll Bryant is a transformational leader with a distinguished career in manufacturing providing outstanding results for a number of Fortune 100 companies.   He is a Keynote Speaker, Leadership Coach, Trusted Business Advisor and Author of the book entitled “Engage. Lead. Deliver.   Leadership Tenets for Tapping into the Collective Genius of Your People”, available on Amazon and Barnes & Nobles online book stores.  

Daryll’s passion is to inspire New Leaders and provide them with the confidence to begin on their leadership journey.   His desire is to coach New Leaders by helping them to identify their personal leadership signature and leverage it to unlock the collective genius of their people.  His mission is to equip New Leaders with tools which will support them in overcoming roadblocks to their growth; and provide them with skills that will enable them to lead change, create business value, and foster engaged work environments.

Leading at the intersection of diversity, inclusion, and workplace culture, in her role as Executive Advisor and Diversity Strategist of Rework Work, Stacey Gordon coaches and counsels executive leaders on DEI strategies for the business. She has worked with people managers and executive leaders from companies such as American Express, ADP, Kia Motors, Hewlett Packard, Walmart, GE and many others to deliver education, coaching and consulting sessions that support their D&I efforts.

As a globally recognized keynote speaker, leadership consultant and DEI strategist, Stacey has provided subject matter expertise to Harvard Business Review, SHRM, Fast Company, Skillsoft, Forbes, NPR Radio, BBC Radio, and the Association for Talent Development.

Stacey’s book, UNBIAS: Addressing Unconscious Bias at Work debuted at #1 on Amazon’s Hot New Release list, her unconscious bias course on the LinkedIn learning platform was the #1 most watched course of 2021 and has been translated into at least six languages. With more than 1 million unique learners across four courses, Stacey has been recognized as a passionate supporter of DEI by Forbes, Pepperdine University and LinkedIn. She earned her MBA from Pepperdine University Business School and her SHRM-SCP certification, as well as the SHRM Inclusive Workplace Culture Credential.

Global Speaker Sonia Aranza has presented on the international stage from Spain to Singapore.  She brings 27+ years of experience in Diversity, Inclusion & Global Leadership. Her clients include Boeing, CIA, McDonald’s and more. The U.S. Department of Labor describes her work as “Outstanding” and was selected to execute programs for landmark cases. SHRM featured her as a Diversity & Inclusion Expert in HR Magazine and she is a LinkedIn Top Voice in Leadership. She serves on the Faculty of Howard University’s Executive Diversity Program; named “100 Most Influential Filipina Americans in the United States” and honored “100 Most Influential Filipina Women in the World.”

Eric Ellis, President and CEO of Integrity Development Corp., is an award-winning entrepreneur, thought leader, author, and keynote speaker with over thirty years of experience in diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.  

Named one of the Top 100 DEI Experts in the World by the Society for Human Resources Management and "Cincinnati's Diversity Fixer" by The Cincinnati Enquirer, Eric is an innovative thought leader who helps transform organizational cultures into people-centered workplaces that inspire employee engagement and a sense of belonging.

Eric is a singer/songwriter, and the author of Diversity Conversations. He hosts a weekly podcast named after his book, which can be found on Apple, Spotify, Facebook and YouTube.