The January 2024 Tech Talk was presented by Alan Willett
Abstract
The past decade has been challenging for leaders everywhere. But the surge of challenges coming in 2024 may make the preceding years seem like the calm before the storm.
Looking ahead, it is easy to predict additional supply chain disruptions, increasing pressures of geopolitics, volatile economic changes, and dramatic increases in the powers of artificial intelligence. These are just some of the external forces of change that leaders will face.
We must also consider rising internal challenges, such as the need to lead a virtual/hybrid workforce, the rise of workplace toxicity, and the accelerating demand for more value, faster.
Alan Willett, an award-winning author and leadership expert, will provide insights into five keys that leaders will need in order to not just survive in 2024, but to thrive – and to hone their personal system for “perfect balance.”
About the Presenter
Alan Willett
Expert consultant, speaker, and award-winning author of Leading the Unleadable: How to Manage Cynics, Divas, and Other Difficult People and Lead With Speed, Alan Willett is co-founder of Exceptional Difference. For more than two decades, Alan has worked with clients around the world, including the UK, Turkey, South Africa, China, India, Canada, and Mexico, and throughout the United States. Alan’s passionate work has focused on leadership, with laser focus on the unique challenges of leading in the elevated pressure environments of high-technology developments.
Alan’s background in technology started with the first program he wrote at age 13, and his passion has continued to this day. Earlier in his career, Willett was a key leader at Xerox and designed high-end production systems. After leaving Xerox, Alan joined the world’s leading think tank for high-technology development, the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), located at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. At SEI, Alan joined other renowned thought leaders in developing cutting-edge methodologies adopted by corporations globally, including the Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI) and the Team Software Process (TSP).
His personal backstory enlivens his writing and his speaking. He grew up on a dairy farm that had been in the family for over 170 years, and which was honored as the dairy farm of the year for New York state for many years running. Alan encourages everyone to get out there and make a positive difference in the world.
