Programs & Events

 

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Strength in Neurodiversity – September 17, 2025

Strength in Neurodiversity: How to Create a Workplace Where Everyone Can Belong

September 17, 2025 | 1:00pm – 2:00pm ET

Featuring Dr. Daniel Wendler, Clinical Psychologist and Founder, ImproveYourSocialSkills.com

Successful organizations owe their success to their team. When organizational leaders encourage their employees to reach their full potential, the company flourishes.

Unfortunately, many organizations squander the potential of their neurodivergent employees, such as those with autism or ADHD. Neurodivergent people might struggle to get a fair hearing for their ideas due to stigma, or might find it difficult to work at their full potential in an environment that isn’t set up to support them.

Conversely, organizations that support their neurodivergent workers have a powerful competitive advantage. And it’s not hard to do. By following a few simple principles, any organization can create an environment where a neurodiverse team can excel – and where everyone feels great about showing up each day.

Learn from autistic neurodiversity expert Dr. Daniel Wendler the best practices for creating an inclusive work environment that celebrates and empowers neurodivergent employees. You’ll gain practical tools for helping your organization become a more inclusive workplace, whether you’re a leader or team member, and whether you are neurotypical or neurodivergent yourself. Don’t miss it!

Members: Register in the Member Resource Center or by contacting Mira Harris.

This event is open to all individuals at member organizations. Can’t join us on September 17th? Register to receive a copy of the recording in your inbox the day after the program.

Not a member? Contact us for more information. 

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Leveraging Sabbaticals to Prevent Burnout and Promote Workplace Well-Being – July 24, 2025

Leveraging Sabbaticals to Prevent Burnout and Promote Workplace Well-Being

July 24, 2025 | 1:00pm – 2:00pm ET

Featuring:

  • Manar Morales, Founder & CEO, Diversity & Flexibility Alliance
  • Brittaney Schmidt, Chief Legal Talent & Inclusion Officer, Vorys
  • Keith Stemple, Chief Legal Personnel and Development & Practice Management Officer, WilmerHale
  • Phyllis Wan, Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer, Holland & Hart

Join us on Thursday, July 24, 2025, for an exclusive first look at DFA’s Sabbatical Impact Report, a deep dive into how organizations are using sabbatical programs to improve wellbeing, prevent burnout, strengthen retention, and support long-term performance.

You’ll hear fresh data, real examples of successful programs, and best practices for designing sabbaticals in your organization. Whether you’re exploring how to launch a new sabbatical program or strengthen an existing one, this session will give you the insights and tools you need to cultivate a supportive, thriving work culture.

Members: Register in the Member Resource Center or by contacting Mira Harris.

This event is open to all individuals at member organizations. Can’t join us on July 24th? Register to receive a copy of the recording in your inbox the day after the program.

Not a member? Contact us for more information. 

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From Reactivity to Resourcefulness: Cultivating Self-Leadership During Uncertainty – May 21, 2025

2025 Bonus Signature Seminar

From Reactivity to Resourcefulness: Cultivating Self-Leadership During Uncertainty

May 21, 2025 | 1:00pm – 2:00pm ET

Featuring Manar Morales, Founder & CEO, the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance

In today’s fast-moving world, effective leadership starts with how we manage ourselves. Join Manar Morales for an interactive 60-minute session exploring the critical space between external triggers and our responses—where true leadership begins.

In this session, you’ll explore how to:

  • Apply the “Pause, Notice, Choose” method to shift from reactivity to resourcefulness.
  • Understand the science of stress and tap into your best thinking under pressure.
  • Lead effectively, even when circumstances feel outside your control.
  • Build a personal toolkit to lead yourself and others through change.
  • Craft a resilience plan rooted in your unique strengths and resources.

Whether facing organizational shifts, industry disruption, or personal transitions, you’ll walk away with practical tools to navigate uncertainty with clarity, purpose, and confidence when certainty is in short supply. Through evidence-based insights and interactive exercises, this session helps you move from surviving change to discovering new possibilities within it.

Members: Register in the Member Resource Center or by contacting Mira Harris.

This event is open to all individuals at member organizations. Can’t join us live? Register to receive a copy of the recording in your inbox the day after the program.

Not a member? Contact us for more information. 

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2025 Boot Camp: Driving Change – A Deep Dive Into Change Management

Driving Change: A Bootcamp for Forward-Thinking Leaders

May 8, 2025 | Washington, DC

Change is inevitable, but how leaders approach it makes all the difference. When change aligns with culture, it fosters trust, engagement, and long-term success. When it doesn’t, resistance builds, and momentum stalls.

At the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance Driving Change Boot Camp, we help leaders shape change in a way that strengthens workplace culture, builds trust, and drives engagement. 

Whether you’re implementing new policies, launching a key initiative, bringing a team together, or seeking buy-in for a strategic shift, this hands-on session will equip you with the tools to ensure your team moves forward with clarity, collaboration, and a shared sense of purpose.

Who Should Attend?

This Boot Camp is designed for:

  • Leaders responsible for workplace culture, talent strategy, or DEIB initiatives
  • Teams rolling out new policies or launching key organizational shifts
  • Professionals seeking effective ways to gain buy-in and create lasting change
  • Anyone leading in a rapidly evolving work environment

Don’t wait—secure your spot today and transform the way you lead change!

LEARN MORE & REGISTER
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Diversity & Talent Leader Innovation Circle: Revisiting Hybrid Work Policies – April 25, 2025

Diversity & Talent Leader Innovation Circle:

Revisiting Hybrid Work Policies

April 25, 2025 | 1:00pm – 2:00pm ET

This Innovation Circle will focus specifically on Revisiting Hybrid Work Policies. Please come ready to share and participate in the facilitated conversation.

We invite individuals at member organizations who hold the following roles (or the equivalent thereof in your organization) to register:

  • Chief Diversity Officer or Director
  • Chief Talent Officer or Director
  • Chief HR Officer or Director
MEMBERS: REGISTER HERE

Not a member? Contact Angela Whitehead Quigley to learn more.

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Defining Culture in a Shifting Landscape – April 3, 2025

2025 Signature Seminar

Defining Culture in a Shifting Landscape

April 3 2025 | 1:00pm – 2:00pm ET

Featuring Manar Morales, Founder & CEO, the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance

In times of uncertainty, leaders often find themselves reacting rather than leading with intention. The way you navigate challenges leaves a lasting impression, shaping how people perceive your leadership and your organization’s identity. It takes shape through values, behaviors, and daily experiences that influence how people connect, contribute, and grow. Whether it’s managing return to office mandates or challenges to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, this program will provide you with a framework to define culture and engage in purpose driven conversations.

Members: Register in the Member Resource Center or by contacting Mira Harris.

This event is open to all individuals at member organizations. Can’t join us live? Register to receive a copy of the recording in your inbox the day after the program.

Not a member? Contact us for more information. 

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Building Self-Reliance: Lessons from 7 Rules of Self-Reliance – February 18, 2025

2025 Signature Seminar

Building Self-Reliance: Lessons from 7 Rules of Self-Reliance

February 18, 2025 | 1:00pm – 2:00pm ET

Featuring Maha Abouelenein, founder of Digital & Savvy, best-selling author of 7 Rules of Self-Reliance, and host of the Savvy Talk podcast

As the CEO of Digital & Savvy, a global communications consulting firm with offices in the United States and United Arab Emirates, Maha has been instrumental in orchestrating transformations in communication strategies for clients that include global corporate giants, high-growth startups, sports organizations, top governments, CEOs, and high-net-worth individuals. Raised and educated in the United States to Egyptian parents, Maha is at home in both Western and Arab worlds, offering a global perspective that translates into her work.

Maha’s 2/18 webinar will be based on her book, 7 Rules of Self-Reliance: How to Stay Low, Keep Moving, Invest in Yourself and Own Your Future, a USA TODAY bestseller that provides a transformative guide on mastering self-reliance. In this fascinating presentation, Maha will share her top strategies that fuel resilience, empower leaders, and inspire people to create their own opportunities.

Members: Register in the Member Resource Center.

This event is open to all individuals at member organizations. Can’t join us live? Register to receive a copy of the recording in your inbox the day after the program.

Not a member? Contact us for more information. 

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Personal Branding for Professional Success – January 22, 2025

2025 Signature Seminar

Personal Branding for Professional Success

January 22, 2025 | 1:00pm – 2:00pm EST

Featuring Mary Abbajay, author of the best-selling, award winning Managing Up: How to Move Up, Win at Work, and Succeed with Any Type of Boss

Did you know everyone has a personal brand—even if they don’t realize it? Your brand is what sets you apart. It’s the unique blend of your skills, experience, and personality that shapes how others see you.

Don’t miss this interactive, high energy virtual session that will help you:

  • Cultivate a positive professional image, brand and reputation;
  • Identify key components of your brand;
  • Identify key strategies to reinforce and magnify your brand while engaging with others;
  • Explore best practices for brand (and self) promotion.

Remember, your personal brand is the impression you both want to make and do make on others. Done well, and your personal brand can help you succeed professionally. You can either ignore your personal brand, and let it develop organically, possibly chaotically, beyond your control, or you can take active steps to create a personal brand that accurately depicts you as the person you want to be.

Members: Register in the Member Resource Center or by contacting Mira Harris.

This event is open to all individuals at member organizations. Can’t join us live? Register to receive a copy of the recording in your inbox the day after the program.

Not a member? Contact us for more information. 

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LinkedIn Live Fireside Chat: The Flexibility Paradigm – January 16, 2025

Join the Alliance for a LinkedIn Live to hear about Manar Morales’s new book:

The Flexibility Paradigm: Humanizing the Workplace for Productivity, Profitability, and Possibility

January 16, 2025 | 2:00 – 2:45 pm ET

Join us at 2:00 pm ET on Thursday, January 16, 2025 for a LinkedIn Live fireside chat with Alliance CEO Manar Morales, author of The Flexibility Paradigm: Humanizing the Workplace for Productivity, Profitability and Possibility (Georgetown University Press). Ellen McGirt, Editor-in-Chief of the Design Observer, will facilitate this in-depth conversation designed to introduce the most fascinating aspects of this new book.

We’re at a defining moment in workplace history. We’re experiencing a Flexibility Revolution that’s reshaping how work gets done. Don’t miss this opportunity to understand why “policies won’t bring people back; experiences will” and how your organization can thrive in the new world of work.

Register now to join this timely conversation about creating workplaces where both people and businesses flourish.

REGISTER HERE
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2024 Annual Conference Speaker Lineup

Don’t miss this year’s Annual Conference, Harnessing the Power of Your Organizational Culture, on October 24 at the Washington, DC offices of Akin.

Our Annual Conference provides a unique opportunity to gather with prominent leaders committed to strategically addressing the critical issues around diversity, flexibility, and wellbeing. Held in Washington, DC, our speakers and attendees come together to explore success strategies for humanizing the workplace.

Each year, our conference brings together corporate leaders, partners at professional services and law firms, general counsel, and DEIB and talent management professionals who share how they’ve implemented successful strategies in their organizations for attracting and retaining top talent in ways that empower their people, foster innovation, and humanize their workplaces.

Highlights from this year’s speaker lineup include:

2024 Midday Keynote & Luminary Award Honoree

Barri Rafferty, CEO – Americas, Sodali & Co

Learn more about Barri and the 2024 Luminary Award HERE.

2024 Closing Keynote

Vernā Myers, Founder & CEO, DEI Pioneer, The Vernā Myers Company

Special Guest Speaker & Flex Leader Award Honoree

Wendy P. Davidson, President & CEO, Hain Celestial Group

Learn more about Wendy and the 2024 Flex Leader Award HERE.

See the full lineup of speakers HERE.

 

Registration is now open through October 4. More information about the conference and ticket pricing can be found HERE.

REGISTER FOR THE 2024 ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Please contact Angela Whitehead Quigley with any questions.