Haig Barrett 10th Year Symposium: The Heart and Soul of Leadership
Ten years of success was celebrated at Haig Barrett’s 10-year Symposium, but it was the future that was in sharp focus. The “Heart and Soul of Leadership” was the core theme and the speakers captured the essence during this full day event.
Haig Armaghanian, CEO for Haig Barrett Inc., spoke of where the firm was headed and where it was going, saying, “It’s our belief that all great organizations must be led by both heart and soul to succeed and prosper in the decade ahead.”
Haig Barrett senior leaders were featured speakers at the symposium as well as several outside keynoters.
Armin Pajan, Director of the Learning and Leadership group at Haig Barrett, presented “The Future of Leadership: Leadership 3.0.” Armin asked the over 100 attendees at the conference, “What will business leadership look like in the years ahead?” Armin’s presentation answered this question and many others while leading the audience through four emerging leadership themes that can be leveraged for business success.
Kaliym Islam, Vice President of Wall Street’s The Depository Trust & Clearing Corp., and well-known speaker and author, gave the keynote presentation, “Transformational Leadership.” In a dynamic presentation right out of Hollywood, Kaliym introduced the practices of a transitional leader versus traditional leaders. He also offered leadership approaches that can be implemented immediately.
Bob Chew, Partner at Haig Barrett Inc., led a panel discussion probing “The New Future of Information Design & Delivery.” The panel examined the new cutting edge tools for product information delivery that the world’s largest companies are adopting today, including smart phones, iPads, and the new “salesperson.”
Lloyd Sargeant, inspirational speaker, former mortgage banker, and Harvard graduate, presented “The Power of Appreciation,” leading the audience on a journey of discovery to help tap into natural sources of personal power and creativity. Lloyd shared powerful stories as well as information learned over a lifetime of study and practice.
Bob Chew, Partner, Haig Barrett Inc., moderated “Global at a Glance: From Red Hot to Ice Cold,” an international panel of global experts steeped in the current state of international economies and business cycles. The topic: Where are today’s red-hot economies and where are the long-term plays?
Panel members were Michael Boehm, Chief Operating Officer, Haig Barrett Inc., and China expert, Brian Chatfield, entrepreuner from the United Kingdom, and Wolfram Doelker, President of WDE Consulting, consultants to German companies.
Michael Boehm, Chief Operating Officer, Haig Barrett Inc., and Anita Katzenbach, Senior Program Manager, Haig Barrett Inc. gave a two-part presentation on “Sustainability and Innovation in the Workplace,” including panelists Zanku Armenian, Senior Media Executive for Southern California Edison, Seth Seaberg, President, Trexa Motors, and Josh Dunn, Director of Sustainability, Specialty Group, Avery Dennison.
In part two, Haig Barrett’s own “Sustainovation” experts led the session with a panel of sustainability professionals from such industries as energy, electric vehicles, infrastructure, and government.
The day-long symposium morphed into evening with dinner and dancing, a fun-filled Armenian-themed dinner and Armenian music from the Los Angeles-based Hosharian Brothers Band. The crowd danced the night away as 10 years ended and 10 began.
The Full Report: Insights into the Sessions
Leadership 3.0: What Does It Look Like?
Armin Pajand, Director, Haig Barrett, Leadership and Learning Group
Armin Pajand, Haig Barrett’s Director of Leadership and Learning, kicked off the Symposium with a stirring look at what the larger meaning of leadership is, what it looks like today, and what the important needs of leadership will look like tomorrow, something called Leadership 3.0. From Gandhi to Martin Luther King Jr. to Nelson Mandela, what is it that makes a leader an inspiration and what new qualities will a leader need possess to change an company, an organization, or the world.
Transformational Leadership
Keynote Speaker: Kaliym Islam, Vice President of DTCC Learning
Can it get anymore intense than nuclear submarine captain getting slammed in the brig by the second in command? This is perhaps the ultimate definition of transformational leadership. When the second in command is played by actor Denzel Washington and the arrogant captain is played by Gene Hackman the drama of what true leadership is cannot be demonstrated any louder.
Kaliym Islam, one of the more dynamic speakers in business today, used a build of clips from the movie “Crimson Tide” to entertainingly show attendees at the Haig Barrett 10th Anniversary Symposium just want transformation looks like in action. As Kaliym walked us through the process he engaged us in how transformational leaders communicate a shared vision and motivate followers to engage in behavior that helps an organization reach its vision. Transformational leaders engage, provide intellectual stimulation, and create individualized support.
This interactive presentation introduced attendees to the practices of a transitional leader, compare and contrast leadership styles, and offer leadership approaches that can be implemented immediately.
New Technologies in Learning – Panel Discussion
Internet, TV, satellite, smart phone. Where do you get your information? Customers in the market for major retail purchases are working the entire learning network, from viral marketing to web 2.0. But the problem is the people selling the products are often way behind the learning curve. So what’s the answer for companies who want to align their sales staff with well-educated and well-connected consumers?
We look at several major manufacturers and their efforts to bring staff up to speed and into the 21st Century. And we raise the question… is technology the answer?
Featured Presentation: “The Power of Appreciation”
Lloyd Sargeant, Author and Speaker
Breathing. It’s a simple act but few take time to breathe, or think about breathing. The simple act of breathing can be a life changer. According to Lloyd Sargeant, inspirational speaker, former mortgage banker, and Harvard graduate, we take for granted most everything in our frenetic lives. We rush to work, meet customers, fight traffic, fly off, race to movies, without even thinking about the miracle of life, of putting our feet on the ground each morning, and appreciating what we have, which is great abundance.
“The Power of Appreciation” is an eye-opening look at how we can transform our lives through simple acts. Lloyd lead the audience on a journey of discovery to help tap into natural sources of personal power and creativity. Lloyd shared powerful stories as well as information learned over a lifetime of study and practice.
International Panel
The International Panel with the theme “What’s Hot and What’s Ice Cold?” was moderated by Bob Chew and introduced the audience to a quick overview of which economies in the world are growing and which appear stagnant.
The panel then discussed in more detail the latest economic and political developments in China, the UK and Germany. Differences were discussed in how each country has responded in a unique way to the challenges of financial crises and what can potentially be learned from that.
Sustainability Panel
One of today’s hottest buzzwords is “sustainability,” but what does it mean?
A panel of industry experts, including those from a major utility, electric vehicle maker, and industrial adhesives company, explored some of the ways that sustainability can be interpreted, applied, and measured in very different business contexts.
The questions posed by the Haig Barrett/Sustain moderator, Michael Boehm, provided further insights by revealing how each company, while pursuing very different business models, still leveraged core sustainability platforms to drive innovation now and into the future.
For a goods manufacturer such as Avery Dennison, sustainability touches several parts of the business cycle, according to its Specialty Group’s Director of Sustainability, Josh Dunn. Examples include manufacturing with recycled materials, minimizing energy usage at company facilities and reducing unnecessary packaging.
For electric vehicle start-up Trexa, President Seth Seaberg, said sustainability is at the heart of the enterprise. The company’s modular, scalable electric vehicle platform provides a practical way for other industry players to build electric vehicles without redundant R&D. And, end-users get a vehicle that could approach pollution-free operation, depending on the source of electricity. For Southern California Edison, Senior Media Executive Zanku Armenian said sustainability is about creating electricity using renewable sources such as hydro, solar and wind.
The panel noted that by measuring the outcomes, the nexus of sustainability and profitability becomes clearer. While sustainability can be justified as good stewardship, it also can increase a company’s profitability through increased efficiency, reduced waste and added marketing advantage.
When businesses and organizations looked at things from these angles, the company wins, the market wins, and the environment wins. That’s what sustainability means.
Sustainovation Workshop
A hands-on experience at the recent Haig Barrett 10th Anniversary Celebration was the “Sustainovation Workshop.”
Led by Anita Katzenbach and Michael Boehm, the workshop gathered a cross section of participants for an exercise designed to help illustrate how sustainment (reducing energy use and pollution) might be applied to a consumer products company.
Anita and Michael laid out some of the key challenges and opportunities that businesses face. Then participants split into teams to brainstorm about ways a hypothetical beverage company could make a large reduction in its environmental impact over the course of a fixed timeframe.
The teams looked for ways to systematically cut waste throughout the operation of their companies, examining how they do business, appeal to consumers and ultimately deliver their products. The teams then presented their plans to the group for discussion. The key takeaway: Building sustainability into a business provides an opportunity to build a more efficient and competitive organization.