Annual Leadership Conference Highlights & Takeaways

Adrienne Cole, president and CEO and Kevin Howell, board chair of the Raleigh Chamber led a fantastic leadership discussion with attendees at the Annual Leadership Conference. 

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On Monday, Nov. 8, regional leaders gathered in Wilmington, NC, for our Annual Leadership Conference presented by Townebank. The annual conference is an event centered on making connections with other leaders and discussing topics important to our growth.  Attendees heard from a wide range of speakers while enjoying the comforts of the Hotel Ballast in Wilmington.

Here are a few key takeaways from the conference:

Economic Development

• Regionalism is a best practice in the world of economic development.
• Not only are we recruiting new companies, we are helping our existing companies grow and expand in the market. Recruitment AND expansion are important for growth.
  
  

Innovation and Entrepreneurship

• Access = opportunities. Opportunities lead to full participation. Jump in and participate.
• We have the ingredients in this market for our startups and entrepreneurs: connectivity and accessibility.
  
  

Talent and Workforce Development

• Have a people first mentality. Fit the job around the person through support, training, and education.
• There is no other place in the U.S. that has the depth and variety of systems to train and prepare our workforce than right here.
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Regional Transit

• The Regional Transportation Alliance has an active legacy of regional business leadership on transportation (540 Triangle Expressway, Dynamic Left Turn, RDU Capital Infrastructure, etc.)
• Number one priority for the accelerated metropolitan mobility strategy – sustainable funding for Raleigh-Durham Airport.

 
See below for a few highlights from our interactive leadership discussion:

• Employees need and want to be part of something bigger now. Employment decisions go beyond the pay scale – it is about mission, vision, and values.
• We truly need to develop meaningful relationships in underserved communities.
• The new world of hybrid work brings about challenges such as device overload, burnout, and lost connections. How can we keep people connected and creative?
• We must move transit forward – especially with new companies moving in such as Apple.
• Our community is starting to look more like the world – we have global citizens moving here and that is exciting.  
• With new demands on the workforce and workplace, Human Resources is a critical pillar in the c-suite discussion.

 
To see photos and comments from event attendees, you can search the hashtag #RaleighALC21 on Twitter.
Be sure to register for upcoming signature events – our annual Elected Officials Holiday Reception and Launch 2022.