Deanna Singh

Deanna Singh Speaking Topics

• More than Merit: Thriving as a Groundbreaker in the Workplace

  In a world where the myth of meritocracy persists, professionals from nontraditional backgrounds often face unique challenges navigating spaces not built with them in mind. Drawing from her upcoming book "More Than Merit," Deanna Singh shares insights and strategies to help "groundbreakers"—the firsts, the few, and the onlys—claim their seats at the table and thrive in their careers.

  Through a mix of personal anecdotes, research, and actionable advice, she illuminates the unwritten rules and systemic barriers that disproportionately impact diverse talent. Attendees are equipped with tools to take control of their advancement, raise their profile, build strategic relationships, leverage their unique strengths, and accelerate their learning.

  Attendees will gain:

  • Techniques for decoding workplace norms and expectations
  • Strategies for proactively shaping their professional narrative
  • Insights on cultivating mentorship and sponsorship as a groundbreaker
  • Frameworks for articulating their distinctive value and impact
  • Roadmaps to convert hiring gains into leadership ascension

  Whether you're a groundbreaking professional seeking to excel or a people leader committed to nurturing diverse talent, this session provides the "missing manual" for achieving authentic, equitable success in an uneven playing field. It's time to move beyond merely debunking the meritocracy myth – join us to access the tools to enact real change.

• Hustle with Purpose

  Can you imagine what the world would be like if we all lived in our unique purpose? If that were the case, we would be able to solve the majority of the challenges that we are facing today. Even though our desire to live in our purpose is so strong, many people choose not to. Why? Because they are afraid of living in their purpose. They are unsure about how to do it, and they don’t feel like they have the right tools. If you are sick of watching your dreams drift further and further away, then this session is for you. Using a story grounded in diversity, equity, and inclusion, it will help you connect your purpose to your hustle so that you can live a more fulfilling and impactful life.

  This program is perfect for individuals who want to make a positive impact in the world and who want to infuse their life’s work with meaning and direction. It is also great for groups that are interested in incorporating a conversation about diversity, equity, and inclusion because Deanna will illustrate her points through that lens.

  Key Takeaways:

  • Identify how to use your skills, talents, and passions to make a difference in the world ? Discover how to step outside of your comfort zone
  • Construct your purpose statement
  • Gain tools to overcome common setbacks like not having enough time, money, or resources.
  • Name your true fears and construct a plan to tackle them
  • Build resiliency techniques to sustain you through moments of failure

Actions Speak Louder

Drawing upon her two leadership books, Actions Speak Louder and Purposeful Hustle, Deanna Singh, will lead audience members through a process to move past the status quo and help lead the charge. Through the power of storytelling, sharing practical tips, and individual reflection, audience members will be able to identify the unique way to view their leadership, positively impact the future of their organizations and elevate their unique skills.

Key Takeaways

• Confidence in how to navigate the changing world
• How to define purpose and why that is important
• Understanding of how to create more inclusive environments
• Tools on how to use your purpose in your leadership at the personal, team, and community level

The Power of Inclusion

This session will explore the power of inclusion. It acknowledges the virtues of issuing public statements, modifying behavior, and changing policies to achieve greater inclusivity, but it pushes organizations to go further. Those who achieve the greatest success are those that go beyond creating inclusive declarations, actions, or environments to fundamentally change the way they make decisions. This session explores how to modify organizational processes to encourage buy-in, share authority, and foster belonging in order to achieve the full benefits of inclusive workplace culture.

Key Takeaways

• Define inclusion
• Examine how inclusivity benefits organizations
• Explore strategies for creating a more inclusive culture.

Talking Across Differences

Before striving for greater belonging, people must first be able to talk about identity differences. In this session, participants learn strategies for discussing this topic constructively. For people to flourish in their organizations, they need to feel included. Unfortunately, too often, leaders believe that to foster inclusion, they must avoid conversations about things like race, gender, and sexual orientation. However, ignoring these difficult discussions can breed distrust, exacerbate alienation, and feed biases. “Talking Across Differences” provides strategies for acknowledging, celebrating, and conversing about differences in ways that improve workplace environments.

Key Takeaways

• Define “talking across differences”
• Explore examples of productive conversations
• Consider why leaders often ignore differences
• Look at the benefits of talking across differences
• Survey best practices for structuring these discussions
• Learn techniques for turning derailed discussions into productive conversations
• Brainstorm methods particular to your organization

Managing Bias

In a changing world, the organizations that thrive are those that know how to identify their assumptions and evolve. When it comes to connecting with different communities, it becomes fundamental to identify the thinking patterns that undermine deeper partnerships. One of the behaviors that pose the deepest problems is bias. In its quest to understand the world more quickly, the human brain creates all kinds of shortcuts that prevent it from understanding others more fully. By recognizing how pervasive these biases are and by learning how to manage them, we can improve connections with customers, coworkers, and communities.

Key Takeaways

• Identify characteristics of bias
• Recognize common examples
• Survey best practices for managing them
• Brainstorm new strategies