“We couldn’t be successful if we weren’t a great workplace,” said Wegmans Food Markets President and CEO Colleen Wegman last week at the Great Place To Work For All Summit. On May 20, hear how Wegmans turns that belief into practical, everyday frontline leadership behaviors.
The theme that ran through the Great Place To Work For All Summit: hope
Leaders from many of the world's best companies gathered in Las Vegas for the Great Place To Work For All Summit and, despite uncertainty around the world, a sense of hope filled Resorts World, with about 2,000 people in attendance.
Great Place To Work CEO Michael C. Bush reminded us of the power of hope, and what it can do for people:
"Without growth, there is no hope. And without hope, there is no growth. We have to spread hope for all," he said.
What also struck us was how many leaders on stage said, without hesitation, that leading people through uncertainty isn't a burden. It's a privilege.
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian lost his mother in the early days of COVID, watched his company's revenue go to zero, and still showed up every day for 90,000 people.
"The chair I was sitting in was the most important chair anyone could sit in. It wasn't a burden placed on me. It's a privilege. It's a blessing," he said.
Marriott Hotels CEO Anthony Capuano echoed Bastian. When asked how he thinks about leading people through uncertainty, he quoted Bill Marriott: "It's the greatest business in the world is if we do our jobs well... We have the privilege of being woven into the fabric of people's lives."
And Jennifer Morgan, CEO of UKG, said what many leaders in the room were feeling: "I think right now is the most exciting time to be a leader in what you do."
Top takeaways:
1. Culture is never “done”— treat it like ongoing operations.
Hilton CEO Chris Nassetta said it plainly: "Building culture is never ending. But it is the secret sauce."
When COVID hit and Hilton went from $50 billion in revenue to zero overnight, it was a surplus of trust — built over years — that carried them through. They came out stronger.
2. People first is not a “soft” strategy. It's the only strategy.
"The only thing in an airline industry you cannot replicate are the people and the culture you create, and that’s why Delta’s No. 1," Bastian said. During COVID, Delta avoided mass layoffs — over 50,000 employees voluntarily took unpaid leave to save their colleagues' jobs. That doesn't happen without deep trust.
Now more than ever, people look to their leaders in their companies. It is an obligation of every leader today to create trust and hope:
3. Frontline workers deserve the spotlight.
One of the many heartwarming moments came when Bush brought frontline workers from Hilton — the people who kept the event running all week — onto the stage. The room stood. These are the people who keep the world running, and they deserve to be seen.
It’s why Great Place To Work will produce its first-ever Best Workplaces for Frontline Workers list in 2027.
“The reality is those of us who are white collar workers, knowledge workers, if we all took tomorrow off, the world will keep spinning. If all the frontline workers took tomorrow off, it would stop. It would absolutely stop,” Bush said.
4. High performance isn’t just what you deliver — it’s how you deliver it
Synchrony CEO Brian Doubles, whose company earned the No. 1 spot on this year's 100 Best list, was clear that performance alone isn’t enough to sustain a strong culture.
“Leadership is a lot of things, but it is not just delivering the results. That is expected, it's required. We're a high-performance culture, but it's also how you do it,” Doubles said.
You also have to move fast on low performers who aren't doing things the right way. That’s why the company moved from annual reviews to regular check‑ins, so issues show up early and don’t linger.
5. Leadership is key to AI adoption.
Accenture CEO Julie Sweet framed AI not as a technology challenge, but as a leadership one. In her conversations with CEOs around the world, she said the focus has shifted to resilience — and specifically to how leaders help employees navigate change without fear.
Helping employees “make the journey on AI,” she explained, requires leaders to focus as much on confidence and trust as on tools. As leaders rush to adopt AI, she said the real test is whether employees feel supported along the way.
“I believe that as long as CEOs of companies are asking a question, 'How do I make sure that in this world that these changes with AI — that my people are going to be okay?' and that's the conversation, I am fundamentally optimistic that we will make sure that people are okay."
Cadence CEO Anirudh Devgan reinforced the idea that AI adoption is ultimately about how employees experience change, not just how fast companies push out tools. He noted that while enthusiasm for AI is high at the leadership level, employees are often more skeptical. Closing that gap requires transparency and actively bringing people along, he said.
6. Second chances are good for business.
Larry Miller, chairman of the Jordan Brand Advisory Board and author of "Jump: My Secret Journey from the Streets to the Boardroom," shared a Harvard Business School case study that should stop every leader in their tracks: When people with criminal records earn a bachelor's degree, the recidivism rate drops from about 77% to 6% for people who earn a bachelor’s degree and to zero for those who earn a master’s degree.
Give people an opportunity, and they don't go back.
"If you've got people working for you who see it as a privilege, you're going to get the absolute best out of those people. I know personally, I would wake up every morning and say, ‘Wow, I really get to go and do this as opposed to walking a penitentiary yard.’”
7. The situation you create is everything.
Angela Duckworth, author of “Grit,” says success isn’t only about pushing harder. It also depends on being in the right setting.
"When you are in a better situation — more challenging, more supportive — that leads you to have more positive, optimistic thoughts," she said. "That brings out a level of effort you didn't think was possible. And that higher performance puts you in even better situations. It creates exponential growth."
That idea is at the center of her new book, “Situated: Find the People and Places That Bring Out Your Best,” scheduled for release Sept. 1, 2026.
She points to Wegmans Food Markets as an example of that principle in action: high standards, real support, and a culture that helps people bring their best.
8. Hope is not wishful thinking. It's a practice.
As Bush said, "Hope is faith and acceptance." It spreads intentionally. It takes work. And it starts with trust.
See you next year — May 18-20, 2027, in Atlanta!
The 2027 For All Summit is headed to Atlanta May 18–20, 2027.
Tier 1 tickets are now available. Register today with code EARLYBIRD27 for over 50% off list price: https://bit.ly/41JeppN
