Connecting the Dots

Julie Dirksen is the author of the books Design For How People Learn and Talk to the Elephant: Design Learning for Behavior Change. She is a learning strategy consultant with a focus on incorporating behavioral science into learning interventions. Her MS degree is in Instructional Systems Technology from Indiana University. She’s been an adjunct faculty member at the Minneapolis College of Art and...

Koreen Pagano, Co-Founder of Rising Tide Cooperative, is a globally recognized executive with deep expertise in skills strategy, AI transformation, analytics, learning technology, and immersive experiences. Koreen previously founded Tandem Learning, where she pioneered immersive learning through virtual worlds, games, and simulations. She has since held product leadership roles at Lynda.com, Linke...

Recently recognized as a 2025 Top 50 Leadership and Management Expert by Inc., Bob Chapman is very intentional about building a better world. Bob Chapman is very intentional about building a better world. Chapman is Chairman of the Board and former CEO of Barry-Wehmiller. When he became chief executive in 1975, Barry-Wehmiller was a struggling $18 million business. Today, Barry-Wehmiller is a $3.6...

Jim Lancaster is the CEO and owner of Lantech, LLC. The company has sales and manufacturing headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky, along with sales and manufacturing facilities in The Netherlands, sales and service operations in Australia and China. Lantech manufactures packaging and material handling machinery, including stretch wrappers, conveyors, and case forming machinery. This machinery is so...

Bruce Schirmer, MD, has been on faculty at the University of Virginia since 1985 and serves as the Stephen H. Watts Professor of Surgery, the vice chair of the Department of Surgery, the division chief of general surgery and director of the surgery nutrition support service. Previously, he was the program director of surgery for 17 years. Schirmer has been a director of the American Board of Surge...

Dr. Anthony Howard, often referred to as the 'CEO Whisperer', is a philosopher, writer, entrepreneur, and acclaimed business mentor with twenty years of global experience. As a guide for CEOs across business, government, and civil society, he facilitates personal and organisational transformations, fostering a shift from instrumental values to virtue and transcendental values. Anthony is the CEO &...

Andrew Baughen teaches ethics at Bayes Business School and researches the intersection of faith and work with an emphasis on worldview and generative business. He leads the Soulful Enterprise project that develops fresh ways of seeing the whole value of business and runs Soul Factor talks explore the distinctive of work rooted in Christian faith. His latest book is called A Life’s Work. How to fin...

Julie Dirksen is the author of the books Design For How People Learn and Talk to the Elephant: Design Learning for Behavior Change. She is a learning strategy consultant with a focus on incorporating behavioral science into learning interventions. Her MS degree is in Instructional Systems Technology from Indiana University. She’s been an adjunct faculty member at the Minneapolis College of Art and...

Zach Mercurio, Ph. D., is a researcher, author, and speaker who specializes in purposeful leadership, mattering, meaningful work, and positive organizational psychology. He wrote "The Invisible Leader: Transform Your Life, Work, and Organization with the Power of Authentic Purpose." His forthcoming book, "The Power of Mattering: How Leaders Can Create a Culture of Significance," will be released b...

Steve Nicoll is a trusted business excellence coach who helps turn bold ideas into lasting change. With decades of cross-industry experience, he’s known for bridging strategy and action, whether in the boardroom or on the shop floor. Calm, engaging and grounded, Steve quickly builds trust and inspires teams to embrace improvement with energy and purpose. He listens deeply, empowers others, and del...

Mike Martyn is the founder of SISU Consulting Group, an internationally recognized and award-winning firm dedicated to helping organizations drive superior business results by creating continuous improvement cultures where “improving the work is the work.” Mr. Martyn is the author of Own the Gap and Management for Omotenashi, and editor of the Shingo workshop series books: Cultural Enablers and Bu...

Jane’s purpose is to create the environment and leadership that enables growth and fulfilment. She does this through listening. Listening to ignite the best thinking, ideas and solutions in others. In her executive coach and facilitator roles she supports individuals and teams develop human-centric leadership and cultures where everybody matters generating people and business growth in harmony. Sh...

Jane’s purpose is to create the environment and leadership that enables growth and fulfilment. She does this through listening. Listening to ignite the best thinking, ideas and solutions in others. In her executive coach and facilitator roles she supports individuals and teams develop human-centric leadership and cultures where everybody matters generating people and business growth in harmony. Sh...

Jane’s purpose is to create the environment and leadership that enables growth and fulfilment. She does this through listening. Listening to ignite the best thinking, ideas and solutions in others. In her executive coach and facilitator roles she supports individuals and teams develop human-centric leadership and cultures where everybody matters generating people and business growth in harmony. Sh...

Mark Rosenthal has been learning on the front lines of continuous improvement, quality improvement, and leader development in manufacturing, engineering, the service sector, and health care, for over three decades. His baseline background and training experience was with Toyota-trained teachers in the USA and Japan. Though he has worked with a wide spectrum of organizations ranging from strategic...

Chris is a certified Shingo Institute Faculty Fellow, Academy member, master trainer, and Shingo examiner. He is a co-author of four Shingo Publication award winning books - "4+1 Embedding a Culture of Continuous, " The Essence of Excellence", ”Why Bother?”, and “Why Care?”. He is also editor of the Shingo Institute book “Enterprise Alignment and Results”. His sixth co-authored book “Leading Excel...

Bree Groff is a workplace culture expert and author of Today Was Fun: A Book About Work (Seriously). She has spent her career guiding executives at companies such as Microsoft, Google, Pfizer, Calvin Klein, Point32Health, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center through periods of complex change. She is a Senior Advisor to the global consultancy SYPartners, previously served as the CEO of NOBL C...

Michael Chad Hoeppner is the Founder and CEO of GK Training, a firm dedicated to giving individuals, companies, and organizations the communication skills to reach their highest goals in work and life. Michael has worked with some of the world’s most influential companies and leaders, across a wide range of industries, universities, and professional sectors. His corporate clients include: three of...

Dr. Rob Bradsher is the Medical Director for the TeamHealth Hospitalist program at Baptist Memphis. He is from Arkansas and went to medical school at UAMS where he was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha. He has practiced in Memphis as a hospitalist since 2014 after completing his residency training in the Osler program at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He has built a distinguished career in both academic me...

Dr. Douglas Slakey is an internationally recognized transplant surgeon, author, educator, healthcare professional, and administrator. Doug is Professor and Chair of Health Systems Science at Belmont University and Leads the Belmont Collaborative for Health Systems Innovation. He founded Process Health Consulting, a healthcare consultancy focused on enhancing and optimizing operations and process f...

Tyson Heaton is Senior Director of Co-Learning and Business Strategy and a Senior Coach at the Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI), where he partners with organizations worldwide to guide enterprise transformations and develop leaders who can build learning organizations. His Lean journey began in food and manufacturing operations at JBS, Schreiber Foods, and Greencore before spending more than a deca...

Zach Mercurio, Ph. D., is a researcher, author, and speaker who specializes in purposeful leadership, mattering, meaningful work, and positive organizational psychology. He wrote "The Invisible Leader: Transform Your Life, Work, and Organization with the Power of Authentic Purpose." His forthcoming book, "The Power of Mattering: How Leaders Can Create a Culture of Significance," will be released b...

Jeff Wetzler has been on a quarter-century quest to transform learning opportunities and unlock human potential. Blending a unique set of leadership experiences in the fields of business and education, he’s pursued this quest as an international management consultant to executives in Fortune 500 corporations, as Chief Learning Officer at Teach For America, and currently, as co-CEO of Tra...

Charlie is an internationally renowned consultant, practitioner, author, speaker, and trainer, of Lean and Agile improvements spanning over 4 decades. Charlie has published 20 books to date, in healthcare, manufacturing, and a children’s book and received two Shingo Prizes. Seven of the books have been translated into other languages. There are more in the works. Charlie spent over 13 ye...

Morgan started his career as a fitter turner and raised up through the rank to officer in the Navy. Morgan has over 30 years' experience in Lean and 25 years in Six Sigma, a pragmatic and experienced improvement Leader, delivering over $2.21Bn in hard savings to organization, improving customer, staff experiences and improved Health and Safety. The legacy capabilities of Business Improvement have...