Building Meaningful Relationships

So often, we’re told to leave our “personal stuff” at home and make work only about… work. But work is personal, and we’re human. The more we can understand one another and our unique experiences, the more compassion and empathy we’ll bring to work, and the more we’ll feel valued as a result.

In this session, Kristen will share the secret to how she built a business with an industry-leading retention rate—despite the fact that her people spent their days cleaning toilets. It wasn’t the work that kept everyone engaged; it was the focus on relationships that led to a culture of trust and belonging.

You’ll learn how to use curiosity, vulnerability, and empathy to create a similar environment in your organization and discover the connection between deeper relationships and greater results.

Attendees will experience an immediately applicable shift in their ability to:

Deepen their relationships at work and accomplish more together
Be more authentic, vulnerable, and empathetic and inspire the same in others
Strengthen the uniquely “human” parts of their culture in the face of technology and change
Develop, maintain, and elevate trust
Explore the connection between wellness and meaningful relationships

About Kristen Hadeed

Kristen Hadeed believes that authentic, human leadership can change the world.
At 19, with hardly any leadership experience, she started a cleaning business called Student Maid. She never expected it to be her career; it was simply a way to earn money while she was in college. But before she graduated, her company received a contract to clean hundreds of apartments—and it changed her path forever. She hired a team of 60 people to help her, and within days, 75% of that team quit. That’s when her obsession with learning how to be a more human leader began.
Over the next 14 years, Kristen learned a lot by screwing up. But most importantly, she learned how to lead from her heart. Doing so helped her take Student Maid from a small cleaning company to a business known on a global scale for its culture of belonging, its focus on people, and its purpose of building leaders.
Today, she spends her time helping leaders, teams, and organizations around the world embrace their humanity. She has worked with leaders, teams, and organizations in just about every industry, in almost every U.S. state and several other countries, and in hundreds of virtual meeting rooms. Whether she is delivering a keynote talk, multi-day workshop, or facilitating an ongoing engagement, her goal is always the same: to ignite the kind of human leadership that builds trust, belonging, and wildly engaged cultures.
Her work has been featured in news outlets including PBS, FOX, Inc., NBC, TIME, and Forbes. Her book, Permission To Screw Up, has sold more than 50,000 copies worldwide. Her first TED Talk has more than three million views on YouTube.

Closing Keynote

Work-Life Integration & Setting Yourself Up for Success

Achieving success in both your professional and personal life requires a strategic approach to work-life integration. This session will explore the essential role of effective communication and boundary-setting in creating a balanced and fulfilling career. Attendees will gain practical insights on how to establish clear expectations, navigate workplace dynamics, and advocate for their needs without compromising productivity or well-being. By mastering these skills, professionals can cultivate a sustainable work environment that supports long-term success and personal fulfillment.

Attendees will takeaway:

The pillars of effective communication
Strategies for setting boundaries and communicating them
How to integrate work and life in a way that works best for you
Defining what success looks like for you

About Laura Whaley

Laura Whaley is a Canadian content creator, business owner, storyteller, and virtual work bestie. Laura began creating and sharing work related content online in 2020 and her audience has grown to over 8 million across social channels. Social Media has allowed her to explore new career opportunities, build a global network of working professionals, found her own corporation, and partner with a variety of well known brands. The online community she has built has helped to shape the way her content has evolved over time and she is here to share with us more about her journey and how she keeps her audience at the core of her success.