Stay Illuminated
The National Best and Brightest Illuminate Summit 2021 is a gathering of premier companies across the nation collaborating to build their employee enrichment and enhance their culture. Illuminate 2021 will explore leadership, creativity and innovation to encourage: Better Business. Richer Lives and Stronger Communities. Therefore creating a community of places people want to work.
Featured Keynote Speaker
Meet our most valued speakers
Patrick Lencioni
Featured Illuminate 2019 Keynote Speaker
A Message from Our Illuminate 2019 Keynote Speaker
Featured Speakers
Meet a few of our session speakers
Tom Coffey
Radiate Track Speaker
Dr. Gustavo Grodnitzky
Ignite Keynote Speaker
Summit Attendees Registration and Welcome Packet Pick-up
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom Lobby
Opening Night Illuminate Social
Location: 2nd Floor Explore
Just as you celebrate your Best and Brightest Employees, we want to celebrate you – rub elbows, relax, enjoy food and drinks and let us entertain.
Wellness Morning Activity – Yoga
Location: 3rd Floor Looking Glass Ballroom
Summit Attendees Registration and Welcome Packet Pick-up
Location: 2nd Floor, Top of the Escalator
For those attendees that weren’t able to pick up their packets on Sunday.
Illuminate 2019 Kickoff Celebration
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
Be prepared to be invigorated and engaged to take on the day and get the most out of the Illuminate 2019 experience!
Breakfast and Presentation
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
A Deep Dive into the Best Practices of the Best and Brightest Companies To Work For
This distinguished national panel of multi-year winners from across the country will share their best practices and strategies for continued success. The Best and Brightest program will share areas of concern and focus for the coming year and interesting facts and data that can help provide insight on your Human Resource strategic planning.
Ignite Keynote Speaker
Dr. Gustavo Grodnitzky – Culture Trumps Everything
Networking Break
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
Chicago’s Best and Brightest Companies To Work For Awards Gala
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
Illuminate Session 1 • Radiate Track
Location: 3rd Floor Cloud Gate Ballroom
How to Drive Culture and Organizational Buy-In Through C-Suite Collaboration
Cheryl Johnson – Chief HR Officer, Paylocity
Ted Gaty – Senior VP of Product & Technology, Paylocity
Collaboration between Leadership and Human Resources is essential to an organizations growth in helping to build and maintain a company’s culture of engaged employees. When HR has a seat at the table, it ensures they have a full understanding of leadership vision. This session will include insight into the successful workings of the CEO and lead HR executive and how they’ve built a relationship of trust and respect when handling their greatest asset…their people.
Illuminate Session 1 • Ignite Track
Location: 3rd Floor Looking Glass Ballroom
Creating and Leading Accountable Teams
Eric Coryell – Core Connections
Eric will command the discussion around his non-traditional approach to leading teams. Building a team of trust and accountability creates a healthy team that feels confident to make statements and speak on their own behalf. When they do that, real data
is brought to the table, real issues are addressed, and most importantly, judgment is eliminated.
Snack Break
Illuminate Session 2 • Radiate Track
Location: 3rd Floor Cloud Gate Ballroom
War for Talent – Overcoming the Talent Shortage and Tapping the Untapped
Tom Coffey – Managing Director, Total Rewards & People Analytics, Vista Consulting Group
Across the nation we are seeing the talent gap continue to increase to widespread proportions in some regions, the low supply in skilled trades climbing and tech firms continuing to struggle to fill vacancies. Tom will address the current skill gap and share new ways to address this gap such as engaging untapped talent and helping leadership manage talent with mismatched skill sets.
Illuminate Session 2 • Ignite Track
Location: 3rd Floor Looking Glass Ballroom
A Guided Conversation with the C-Suite Mike Novakoski – Chief Executive Officer at Elzinga & Volkers Construction
No two companies operate the same way and neither should their styles of leadership. Unfortunately, many corporations use the same leadership methodologies and are afraid of deviating from the status quo. Mike will examine how business leaders can tap into their “right-brained leadership” to foster a creative and employee-centric culture.
Edlong’s Secrets to Success
Laurette Rondenet – President & CEO at Edlong
Edlong sets itself apart as a century old family owned flavor company. Laurette began her journey in the family business in 1993, through a customer service and sales positions followed by leadership roles that expanded her experience across the multiple functions within the company until she became CEO in 2008. Under Laurette’s leadership, Edlong has experienced unprecedented growth in the highly competitive flavors category. She leads the organization with a commitment to nurturing long-term, integrated relationships with both customers and employees, and in bringing value to the customer with innovative products and attentive service that truly differentiates Edlong.
Lunch Served
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
Illuminate Session 3 • Radiate Track
Location: 3rd Floor Cloud Gate Ballroom
Diversity + Inclusion = Engaged, Productive Workplace
Denise Barreto – Managing Partner at Relationships Matter Now
The Best and Brightest workplaces often have two important elements, a diverse workforce, and an inclusive work environment. Easy to say, but tough to build and maintain both a diverse workforce and an inclusive work environment. This session will give you practical advice and actions to support your company wherever you are in your journey to a more diverse talent pool and greater inclusive work ambient.
Illuminate Session 3 • Ignite Track
Location: 3rd Floor Looking Glass Ballroom
A Guided Conversation with the C-Suite
Joe Slawek – Chairman and CEO at FONA International
Denise Navarro – President and CEO at Logical Innovations, Inc
Networking Break
Illuminate Session 4 • Radiate Track
Location: 3rd Floor Cloud Gate Ballroom
Leading Through Disruption: Anxiety to Adaptability
Dorie Ellzey Blesoff – Chief People Officer at Relativity
No matter the industry or sector, organizations face challenges of constant transformation, disruption from all angles, and different expectations from four different generations in the workforce, to name a few. Dorie will discuss how to identify what can be done to increase organizational agility and the role of HR in helping to do so in addition to identifying what are the tools form making institutional and individual change happen.
Illuminate Session 4 • Ignite Track
Location: 3rd Floor Looking Glass Ballroom
Building a Great Culture “On Purpose”, While maintaining your Roots
Amy Bastuga – Chief People Officer of Radio Flyer
Amy joined Radio Flyer, home of the iconic little red wagon, tricycles and other ride-on toys, in 2007. As Chief People Officer, she brings her HR expertise to a growing organization whose vision is to create an innovative environment where every employee says “I love my job.” She’ll share practical “how to’s” on building and sustaining a high-performance culture and company.
Break Prior to Evening Activities
Illuminate Evening Activities
Activity to be selected by attendees from the below options. Options will be distributed post-registration.
- Craft Brews & City Views
- Experience Chicago Food Like a Local
- Architectural River Cruise
- Chicago Art and Architectural Walking Adventure
*Dinner on your own
Wellness Morning Activity – Zumba
Location: 3rd Floor Looking Glass Ballroom
Registration for Day 3 Only Attendees
Coffee Illumination Networking Hour
Location: 2nd Floor Explore
Breakfast Served
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
Radiate Keynote Speaker
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
John O’Leary – National #1 bestselling author and speaker
Expected to die. Now teaching others how to truly live. National #1 bestselling author and speaker, John takes his experience from a childhood injury and miraculous recovery to teach others to Ignite a Radically Inspired Life.
Networking Break
Featured Illuminate 2019 Keynote Speaker
Patrick Lencioni
The author of eleven best-selling books with over five million copies sold. After sixteen years in print, his classic book, “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team“, remains a weekly fixture on national best-seller lists.
Networking Break
Lunch Served
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
Workplace Mental Health
Paula Allen – Vice President of Research, Analytics and Innovation, Morneau Shepell
Paula will discuss how health and well-being is at the core of business success and share insight on decreasing stigma around mental health in the workplace while stress in general is on the rise.
National Best and Brightest Companies To Work For Celebration
Location: 2nd Floor Grand Ballroom
Exclusive celebration for our National Winners during the inaugural Best and Brightest National Summit. We will announce the 13 Elite National Winners including the “Best of the Best.”
Summit Conclusion
Location:
Location and Accommodations
The Westin Galleria Dallas
Book your group rate for Best and Brightest Illuminate Summit