UpFront Leadership summit’s top names

Some big name leadership speakers and practitioners are heading for New Zealand in October.
A former Enron executive, the chair of the board of governors of the Leader to Leader Institute – formerly the Peter F Drucker Foundation, and top US leadership consultant, academic, author and president of the Berkana Institute are just three of the top line presenters who will speak at the NZIM/AAMO International Leadership Forum in Auckland between October 7 and 9.
Jim Collins, author of the best selling book Good to Great, co-author of the equally hot title Build to Last, and leader of an ongoing study around what he describes as “Level 5 Leadership” will also speak at the conference.
Lynn Brewer, former Enron executive responsible for, among other things, the company’s financial derivatives and the now infamous “off-the-balance-sheet” partnership, will talk about leadership ethics.
Before joining Enron, Brewer spent 18 years as legal professional in private practice. Her book House of Cards: Confessions of an Enron Executive, is gripping account of her three years with the company.
It details such shockers as how she uncovered massive bank fraud and was told to conceal it; her public confrontations with CEO Jeff Skilling over conspiracy to sell substandard gas; the nature of the partnerships formed by CFO Andy Fastow.
Francis Hasselbein, another keynote speaker, was awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honour, in recognition of her leadership as CEO of the US Girl Scouts movement and her role as founding president of the Peter F Drucker Foundation for non-profit management. She is also editor-in-chief of the quarterly journal Leader to Leader and the author of books on the future of leadership.
Margaret Wheatley, scheduled to address the conference on The Leadership Challenge, has consulted to Fortune 100 companies, the US Army, government agencies, healthcare institutions and even monasteries. This outstanding author and academic now heads The Berkana Institute, global charity dedicated to serving life-affirming leaders.
“We are delighted with the list of top line local and international speakers who have agreed to address the summit,” says NZIM national CEO David Chapman. “New Zealand has never hosted so many outstanding organisational leaders, both practitioners and thinkers, in one venue before. We are also expecting large number of international visitors from Asia and the Pacific region to attend.”
The summit is hosted by NZIM, currently the chair of the Asian Association of Management Organisations, which will hold its annual conference at the same time. Nine countries from the Asian region, including New Zealand and Australia, make up the membership of AAMO.