Sally Helgesen Speaker Biography
Expert on Women’s Leadership & Bestselling Author of How Women Rise
Sally Helgesen, cited in Forbes as the world’s premier expert on women’s leadership, is an internationally best-selling author, speaker and leadership coach. She has been inducted into the Thinkers 50 Hall of Fame, which honors those whose ideas have shaped the field of leadership worldwide. She is ranked Number One in the leadership field by Global Gurus.
Rising Together
Helgesen’s latest book, Rising Together: How We Can Bridge Divides and Create a More Inclusive Workplace, offers practical ways to build more effective relationships with people we may perceive as different from ourselves.
How Women Rise
Rising Together builds on Helgesen’s remarkable success with How Women Rise, co-authored with legendary executive coach Marshall Goldsmith, which examines the behaviors most likely to get in the way of successful women as they move forward in their careers. Rights have been sold in 24 languages.
Other Books
Other books include The Female Advantage: Women’s Ways of Leadership, hailed as the classic in its field and continuously in print since 1990, and The Female Vision, Women’s Real Power at Work, which explores how women’s strategic insights can strengthen their careers. The Web of Inclusion: A New Architecture for Building Great Organizations, cited in The Wall Street Journal as one of the best books on leadership of all time, is credited with bringing the language of inclusion into business.
For 35 years, Helgesen has delivered seminars, keynotes and master classes for companies, partnership firms and associations around the world, working in 37 countries. She is a contributing editor for Strategy + Business magazine and a member of the 100 Coaches Network and the New York and International Women’s Forums. She lives in Chatham, NY.
Sally Helgesen Speaking Topics
Leading from the Center of the Web - A Program for Senior Leaders
In this seminar, which can be delivered as a keynote or expanded into a workshop, Sally demonstrates why today’s VUCA environment– volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous– requires leaders who can leverage the power of inclusive webs. Drawing on her influential research for The Web of Inclusion and Thriving in 24/7, as well as work in sectors ranging from security to energy, technology, financial services, health care and the law, Sally shows how three key trends are transforming organizations in the global marketplace, identifies the four essential skills that leaders must cultivate in order to fully engage talent in the new environment and shares actionable practices for developing these skills.
Visionary, Connected, Intentional & Present: A Workshop for Women Leaders
In this seminar or workshop, Sally offers concrete, actionable practices for women seeking to position themselves for the next level of leadership, strengthen their professional reputation, showcase their talents, increase their capacity to contribute to their organizations and diminish stress. Sally’s work with women leaders around the world has demonstrated that women who sustain power and influence share four characteristics. They are visionary, connected, intentional and present.
How Women Rise: Keynote and Workshop
Women’s distinctive strengths and behaviors provide them with many advantages. Yet the very habits that help them early in their careers can hold them back as they seek to rise. In this program, Sally draws on her work with #1 ranked executive coach and New York Times best selling author Marshall Goldsmith to help women identify and address the habits most likely to get in their way as they seek to move to a higher level. These habits include: Reluctance to Claim Your Achievements, Expecting Others to Spontaneously Notice and Reward Your Hard Work, Overvaluing Expertise, Building Rather than Leveraging Relationships, Failing to Enlist Allies from Day One, Putting Your Job Before Your Career, The Disease to Please, The Quest to be Perfect, Speaking While Emotional, Minimizing, Ruminating, and Letting Your Radar Distract You. “How Women Rise” can be delivered in formats ranging from a 45 minute keynote to a half or full day seminar. The habits also provide rich material for breakouts or workshops that follow on from a keynote. This program can be adapted for women at every level: entry, mid-career and senior/executive.
From Diversity to Inclusion
Diversity defines the talent base in organizations today—both demographic diversity and diversity of values. Yet organizations still struggle to engage the best talents of diverse employees in meeting core strategic and business needs. As a result, diversity efforts remain silo’d, internally focused and underleveraged. In this keynote, Sally draws on 17 years of work with diverse teams around the globe to show how organizations can engage the full talents of all employees in meeting marketplace demands by creating the conditions in which inclusive leadership can thrive. Recognizing that inclusion is not an ideal but a practice, she demonstrates how to define, encourage, model, mentor, measure and reward inclusive behaviors. This program is best suited for diversity, inclusion and innovation conferences and employee resource group events.
Leading in 24/7
The forces driving today’s volatile, complex, and highly pressured 24/7 global marketplace are upending what is required of leaders. changing the requirements of leadership. She presents a comprehensive picture of the forces driving this change and offers actionable ways that participants can use to position their organizations for expanded influence and market success. In this seminar, Sally shows how Drawing on work in sectors ranging from military security to energy innovation, and on case studies for The Web of Inclusion and Thriving in 24/7, Sally shows how five intersecting trends are transforming organizations and helps leaders understand how to act on these insights. Sally outlines the big 24/7 challenges leaders will face in the years ahead. Leading in 24/7 can be delivered as a keynote, workshop or half-day seminar. It can be customized to suit a variety of audiences: corporate, association, educational and non-profit.
Tapping the Power of The Female Vision
Women’s distinctive vision— the power of what they notice, what they value, how they connect the dots– offers a strong competitive advantage in today’s global marketplace. Yet because women’s ways of seeing have not been recognized or understood, women’s potential to make strategic contributions is rarely fully engaged. In this keynote, Sally draws on insights from two decades of groundbreaking research to help women activate their greatest leadership strength—the power of their vision. And she shows how organizations can use women’s capacity for broad-spectrum notice to gain more information and make more balanced decisions. Using vivid examples, Sally provides a step-by-step blueprint for women seeking to increase their influence and capacity to contribute. Tapping the Power of The Female Vision can be delivered in formats ranging from 45 minute keynote to a half day seminar. The major practices Sally outlines also provide rich material for breakouts or workshops that follow on from a keynote.
Sally Helgesen Books
How Women Rise: Break the 12 Habits Holding You Back from Your Next Raise, Promotion, or Job
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Rising Together: How We Can Bridge Divides and Create a More Inclusive Workplace
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Sally Helgesen Speaker Testimonials
Sally’s presentations have huge impact because her insights both resonate and can be put to immediate use. Her engaging, authentic style builds participant trust, which allows for open exploration of difficult topics. I highly recommend her for any audience on a wide array of leadership and career development topics.
- Matt McHatten, CEO, MMG Insurance |
With pragmatic optimism and drive, Sally shows us how to lead with fortitude and grace: for ourselves, our teams, and together.
- Stephanie Kramer, CHRO, L’Oréal USA |
We have engaged Sally on several programs for clients, both in-person and virtual. She always receives exceptionally high praise for her engaging, thoughtful and actionable content. To quote one of our clients, ‘Sally’s presentations are powerful, thought-provoking and relevant- the most worthwhile sessions I have attended in a long time.
- Alison Jeffrey, Senior Advisor, Client Development, Blakes, Cassels & Graydon |
I’ve invited Sally to deliver programs at a number of organizations over the years, and witnessed her inspiring and life-changing results. I still hear from attendees eager to talk about the difference she has made in their careers and their lives. Sally’s programs are essential for any leadership strategy that seeks to move the dial.
- Claire Camara, Global Chief People Officer, Essence Mediacom |
