NEW Readies for Leadership Summit 2012 in Dallas

The Network of Executive Women will explore the connection between women's leadership and retail success at the 11th annual NEW Leadership Summit, Oct. 22-23 at the Omni Dallas Hotel. One thousand industry leaders, most of them women, will attend the conference, which features keynotes, workshops, an awards gala and an executive discussion on the influence of women in the retail industry.

The senior executive roundtable will be held Tuesday, Oct. 23 at 2:30 p.m. and feature Irene Chang Britt, president of Pepperidge Farm; Tom Falk, president of Kimberly-Clark; Susan Chambers, chief people officer for Walmart; and Bhavdeep Singh, EVP, operations for Ahold USA. The far-reaching discussion will be moderated by Alison Kenney Paul, vice chair and U.S. retail leader for Deloitte.

Executives from nearly 200 consumer products and retail companies will attend, including delegations from: 7-Eleven Inc.; Ahold USA; Brookshire Grocery Co.; Clorox; Coca-Cola; ConAgra Foods; CVS Caremark; Frito-Lay; GlaxoSmithKline; Hershey; Hess; Hillshire Brands; Hormel Foods; JCPenney; Kellogg; Kimberly-Clark; Kraft; Michaels Stores; Mondelez International; Nestle; PepsiCo; Procter & Gamble; Safeway; SC Johnson; Target and Walmart.

Attendees will come from nearly every U.S. state and eight foreign countries. More than 100 attendees are expected from the Network's North Central Texas regional group, this year's NEW Leadership Summit host committee.

The two-day event will feature keynote addresses by former Best Buy executive Julie Gilbert Newrai, empowerment expert Dr. Bertice Berry, and high-performance motivator Yvonne Camus. Six workshops tailored for emerging leaders, mid-level leaders and senior executives, will feature Becky Shambaugh, president and CEO of Shambaugh Leadership; CNN correspondent Nadia Bilchik; Simon T. Bailey, founder of Brilliance Institute; talent expert Cy Wakeman, president of Cy Wakeman Inc.; economist Sylvia Ann Hewlett, president of the Center for Talent Innovation; and Madelyn Yucht, VP, performance excellence, for Linkage.

The NEW Leadership Summit 2012 will kick off Monday, Oct. 22, with a two-part Leadership Academy supersession, "Facilitating Challenging Conversations." The session will be moderated by leadership coach Kim Zilliox and include a panel discussion with Melissa Donaldson, director of diversity networks and communication for Walgreen Co.; Cathy Horgan, VP, specialty retail and acquisitions, for Coca-Cola Refresh-ments; and Krystin Mitchell, senior VP, human resources for 7-Eleven Inc.

The Summit’s Regional Awards Gala will feature the annual NEW Silent Auction, which benefits the Network’s scholarship fund; an opening reception sponsored by PepsiCo; a regional awards banquet honoring the Network’s regional leaders; and an after party celebration.

For more information visit www.newonline.org/summit.