Business Leaders Attend 'Future Face of Leadership' Summit
Michigan Executives Collaborate To Halt "Brain Drain"
NORTHVILLE, Mich., Oct. 4 -- Some of the most visible business leaders in Michigan gathered in Northville Tuesday for the "Future Face of Leadership," a summit to discuss refitting the state's workforce in the face of a faltering economy. Retraining automotive workers for heath care and high tech jobs, stimulating collaboration between East and West Michigan, and creating a culture of accountability were among the solutions posed by executives, who were asked to attend with a protege to emphasize the need to mentor the next generation of leaders.
"We're extremely pleased that leaders pushed themselves and each other to come up with concrete and specific responses to Michigan's changed economy," said Janice Krupic, President and CEO of the executive coaching firm, PARAGON Leadership which organized the summit. "Equally important is that so many key players came together to begin this crucial conversation."
Panelists leading the discussion were Carl Camden, President and CEO of Kelly Services; Kurt Darrow, President and CEO of La-Z-Boy Inc.; Elliott Joseph, President and CEO of St. John Health; Walter Douglas, Chairman of Avis Ford; Mary Ann Wright, Executive Vice President, Collins & Aikman; Josh Linkner, Founder and CEO of ePrize; and David Sowerby, Economist for Loomis Sayles & Company.
"For too long Michigan businesses approached problems on an industry by industry basis," said PARAGON's Krupic. "These leaders demonstrated that many of their challenges are shared, and raised the possibility that solutions to some of those problems may be shared as well."
Following remarks by the panelists, the conference broke into round table discussions, facilitated by executives from companies including Compuware, Domino's, Kellogg's, ArvinMeritor, Wireless Toyz, and Yazaki North America. Among the solutions discussed were increased cross-industry recruiting, greater emphasis on leadership training, and drawing non-traditional businesses to Michigan. Participants vowed to continue to search for answers once back in the workplace.
Based in Novi, Michigan, PARAGON Leadership is an executive coaching and consulting firm offering a range of executive services from strategic coaching for individuals to unique and customized leadership development solutions for executive teams. For more information about PARAGON, visit http://www.paragon-lead.com/ .
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