The Power of Maintaining a Strong Company Culture in Challenging Times

Research shows that there is a direct correlation between a strong company culture and business success. Savvy leaders harness the power of a strong culture to communicate with and engage their employees in a way that yeilds greater innovation and loyalty.

Join us for an evening with Susan Lucas-Conwell, CEO of Great Place to Work, and Chris Van Gorder, President and CEO of Scripps Health, as they discuss the role culture plays in building and maintaining a successful organization.

This event will be a unique opportunity to hear from two successful CEOs, both Wharton Alumni, as they share their insights and lessons learned from leading their organizations through uncertain times.

Audience members will learn:

• How a strong culture can translate to business results
• How these great leaders have relied upon their values to navigate business challenges
• Real life examples of how leaders can gain the trust and build credibility in the eyes of their employees, even during uncertain times.

Event Details:

Speakers:

Susan Lucas-Conwell is Chief Executive Offi­cer at Great Place to Work®

As an accomplished CEO, Entrepreneur, Business Development and Marketing/Communications Executive, Susan provides a keen perspective on how building and maintaining great workplace culture drives business success.

Prior to joining Great Place to Work, Susan had been CEO of SVForum and has held executive positions with Cartier International, Bausch & Lomb’s Ray-Ban brand in Paris and with General Mills in the US. She graduated with Honors from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, holds a Master’s Degree in Economic History from Johns Hopkins University and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from The Wharton School.

She is married, has four daughters and lives in Palo Alto. In her spare time, she is a self-diagnosed sports junkie - she watches everything from pro baseball to the Tour de France and girls’ lacrosse and gets up early to run, bike and row.

 Chris Van Gorder, President and CEO of Scripps Health

As president and CEO of Scripps Health since 2000, Chris Van Gorder has been instrumental in positioning Scripps among the nation’s foremost health care institutions. Now he is leading the restructure of the $2.3 billion, integrated health system to best prepare for the changes of health care reform.

Van Gorder received his master’s degree in public administration/health services administration at the University of Southern California, completed the Wharton System CEO Program at the University of Pennsylvania and earned his bachelor’s degree from California State University, Los Angeles. He is a past chairman (2010) of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE), an international professional society of more than 40,000 health care executives.

Van Gorder’s rise to health care executive has been unconventional. His journey began as a hospital patient, when as a police officer he was critically injured during a family dispute call. After a lengthy recovery, Van Gorder continued his education in health care management and rose to levels of increased responsibility. Today, he continues to serve the public as a reserve commander in the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department Search & Rescue Unit and as a licensed emergency medical technician (EMT).  Modern Healthcare magazine – for the fifth consecutive year – named Van Gorder one of the nation’s “100 Most Powerful in Health Care.”