• Members: $360
• Nonmembers: $560

Virtual Attendee Pricing

• Members: $149
• Nonmembers: $349

Note: This is a two-part preconvention program that takes place Oct. 24–25 during the Staffing World convention and expo. Preconvention programs require separate registration at an additional cost and are not included with any Staffing World registration package. A boxed lunch will be served on Tuesday, Oct. 25, only.

Ashley Andersen, owner, Truth to Purpose Leadership Coaching

Andersen’s path to coaching has been paved with an innate fascination for the nuances of human behavior, an insatiable curiosity around growth and transformation, and generous beliefs and assumptions about others. For nearly a decade she has used all of these to help leaders discover, believe in, and operate from their truest selves.

Andersen has degrees in psychology and social work and is certified by a number of entities in the field of coaching, including the International Coaching Federation, Co-Active Training Institute, Brené Brown Education and Research Group (Certified Dare to Lead Facilitator), and CRR Global (Certified Organization and Relationship Systems Coach). She uses a combination of deep inquiry, bold reflections, and compassionate accountability to help leaders work through daily challenges, show up courageously, grow with each experience, and create meaningful connections with their work and those around them.

Jess Ekstrom, founder and CEO, Headbands of Hope; bestselling author and speaker

Ekstrom is the founder and CEO of Headbands of Hope, a company that donates headbands to kids with illnesses with every headband sold. Headbands of Hope has been featured on the TODAY show, Good Morning America, QVC, and The View, and have been worn by celebrities like Kelsea Ballerini and Khloe Kardashian. More importantly, Headbands of Hope has donated over 1 million headbands, reaching every single children's hospital in America and 22 countries.

After starting her company, Ekstrom wanted to use her ups and her downs to help other women become valued as experts in their industry. In 2020, she started Prompted.io, a self-improvement platform delivering Prompt Pathways by world-renowned thought leaders. Ekstrom is also the bestselling author of Chasing the Bright Side and creator of Mic Drop Workshop, an e-learning company that helps women tell and sell their stories as thought leaders.

Natasha Hemmingway, sales coach, consultant, speaker, and creator of Heart Not Hustle

Hemmingway is an entrepreneurial-based sales coach and speaker and the creator of the Heart Not Hustle sales system, Convert Your Leads, and Hello Client, Hello Cash—a coaching firm founded with an aim to helping entrepreneurs find, and focus on, the deeper meaning behind their business motivation and sales message. She established her firm after leaving a 16-year sales career in corporate. Hemmingway helps entrepreneurs and sales professionals to master their authentic sales process, achieve success, and maximize their sales wins by bringing the heart instead of the hustle.

Janice Bryant Howroyd, founder and CEO, The ActOne Group

Businesswoman, entrepreneur, educator, ambassador, author, mentor, and presidential special appointee, Bryant Howroyd is the founder and CEO of The ActOne Group, a global leader providing customized, cutting-edge solutions in the human resources industry. The ActOne Group is a multibillion dollar, award-¬winning, international talent and talent technology enterprise with multiple divisions that each service unique areas of employment and provide talent management solutions.

Howroyd is currently #39 on the Forbes list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women. In 2014, she was recognized by Black Enterprise as the first black woman to own and operate a billion‐dollar company. She was BET’s first ever BET Honors Entrepreneur of the Year and has received Black Enterprise’s Business of the Year award. In 2013, Howroyd was appointed as USA ambassador of energy at the White House.

In May of 2016, Howroyd received a key presidential appointment by President Barack Obama as a member of the President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. In 2017, she was appointed to the Federal Communications Commission’s Advisory Committee on Diversity and Digital Empowerment.

As a DE&I expert who believes transparency encourages accountability, she continues to be an internationally sought-after advisor, speaker, and consultant. Learn more about her, and follow her on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok.

Bridget Verdun, founder, just b. and Occasionally Speaking; search consultant, Noetic

Prior to joining Noetic in 2021, Verdun spent the majority of her career in staffing, matching talent with success and connecting the right resources to bring workforce solutions to the world’s most respected organizations. She is a results-driven professional with a gift for building relationships that lead to successful partnerships. In tandem with her professional work, Verdun’s entrepreneurial endeavors include Studio b. (a brick and mortar art gallery that she owned and operated seasonally for 15 years in Three Oaks, MI) and Occasionally Speaking (a line of fine greeting cards that she designs and distributes nationally in over 200 retailers including Paper Source and Whole Foods Market stores).

Jahlisa Williams, founder and CEO, MixxieMixologist

Williams, born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, with roots now planted in Las Vegas, is the founder and CEO of MixxieMixologist. MixxieMixologist is an exclusive bartending service catering to the needs of residents of Las Vegas and visitors from all over the world. Williams’s goal is to create generational wealth for her family, but also the melanated community as well. She has more than six years of experience in the hospitality industry and experience with bartending a variety of events including weddings, bachelor/bachelorette parties, holiday events at sports and entertainment stadiums, and nightlife events across several states.