Speakers

Amanda Rae Hall, Account Manager, Smith Moore and Associates, Inc

Leading Remarkable Associations – Insights from CalSAE Association Leadership Academy

Amanda has experience in most association positions  and has gained knowledge in all areas of association management.  Aside from SMA she has also worked for the California State Parent Teachers Association.  Amanda's current position focuses on the tech that our association members touch and interact with. Amanda has a passion for teaching which makes her ability to train on tools and resources unmatched.

Ashley Virtue, Director of External Relations, National Conflict Resolution Center

The Artful Conversation

Ashley has been instrumental in the development and promotion of multiple mainstay programs at NCRC, and has focused much of her career expanding NCRC’s work nationally and internationally. She has worked diligently to position NCRC as a global thought-leader in the field of conflict resolution. Since then, NCRC has appeared on hundreds of local, regional, and national media outlets, oftentimes with Ashley as the spokesperson. She has been featured in media outlets such as Forbes, The Washington Post, C-SPAN, NPR, PopSugar, and many others.

While greatly invested in NCRC’s growth around the world, Ashley also recognizes the importance of having deep roots in San Diego, where NCRC is headquartered. Because of that, she is extremely committed to NCRC’s involvement in multiple legal, corporate, community and education institutions throughout the County. Ashley has received several awards recognizing her commitment to the community, including being a finalist for San Diego Magazine’s Woman of the Year and being honored as a “KNX Hero” by Los Angeles’ KNX 1070 News Radio station.

Candice Gottlieb-Clark, MS, BCE, Founder and CEO, Dynamic Team Solutions

The Changing Landscape: Leadership Strategies That Build Commitment & Cohesion

Candice Gottlieb-Clark is a renowned business advisor, leadership coach, conflict management specialist, and the founder of Dynamic Team Solutions. Her passion and expertise for helping businesses raise the level of their functionality, teamwork, productivity, and performance are boundless. As a sought-after speaker and thought-leader, Candice has delivered programs and keynotes to both local and national audiences, and she has been published in numerous business and professional journals, including Business Insider and Forbes. A native of Los Angeles, California, Candice and her family now enjoy the wider expanses and outdoor activities of living in Broomfield, Colorado. In her free time, Candice enjoys cooking, hiking, snowshoeing, and taking long walks with her husband.

Beth Z, CSP, Your Nerdy Best Friend

AI-Powered Engagement: Personalizing Member Outreach with Artificial Intelligence

Since her first Motorola RAZR flip phone, Beth has made a verb out of the word "nerd." She's here to help you filter through thousands of apps, gadgets, widgets and doodads to find the perfect free and bargain technology tools for work and home. Although the only real trophy she ever won was for making perfect French fries at McDonald's in high school, Beth Z has been featured on Best Speaker lists by several organizations who write best speaker lists. She has written a whole shelf of books on apps and has spoken to more than 100 thousand audience members just like you. And if you're puzzling over why she goes by "Beth Z"... it's because she only finds about three people a year who can pronounce her last name.

Jeffrey Wilcox, CFRE, President & Chief Mission Advancement Officer, Third Sector Company

Leading Remarkable Associations – Insights from CalSAE Association Leadership Academy

Jeffrey a nationally-recognized pioneer in the field of nonprofit executive development, retention and transition. Founder of Third Sector Company and its Interim Executives Academy and Board Chairs Academy, Jeffrey is an author, columnist and popular speaker on succession planning, board and staff talent development and retention, and strategic interim leadership solutions for nonprofit charitable organizations, trade and professional associations, and congregations. Since its founding in 2002, Third Sector Company has provided services to over 700 nonprofit organizations in Southern and Northern California, Arizona, the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada.

Jon Yamashiroya, Regional Director of Revenue Management, Omni La Costa Resort & Spa / Omni San Diego CA

Jon is a 20+ year hotelier with a passion for Revenue Management. Currently overseeing both the 611 room Omni La Costa Resort & Spa and 511 room Omni San Diego Hotel. Throughout his career, Jon has led every hotel to peak performance, including resort, business and big box properties. Jon has been mentored by many industry leaders who have helped him develop a diverse knowledge of the industry.

Marina Servantez, Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Social Impact Initiatives, LeadingAge California

Leading Remarkable Associations – Insights from CalSAE Association Leadership Academy

Marina (she/her) is the Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Social Impact Initiatives at LeadingAge California. In this capacity, she organizes the associations efforts around key equity issues and advances efforts to ensure all Californians are empowered to age with dignity and a high quality of life. She has been working with associations in Sacramento for nearly 7 years. In her spare time, she volunteers as Treasurer of the Board for the Latino Center of Art & Culture.

Megan Villapudua, Chief Operating Officer, California State Railroad Museum Foundation

Leading Remarkable Associations – Insights from CalSAE Association Leadership Academy

 Megan (she/her) is the Chief Operating Officer at the California State Railroad Museum Foundation. In her role she helps oversee daily operations with membership, marketing, events, finance, retail, and railroad operations. She works closely with California State Parks in the successful partnership between the Foundation and both the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento and Railtown 1897 State Historic Parks in Jamestown. Among other membership and community building endeavors, she oversees the POLAR EXPRESS Train Ride event at both locations, which is the biggest annual fundraiser for the Foundation. She has been with the Foundation for 4 years, and before that worked with the US Navy for 10 years. In her free time, she is highly involved with the running community, specifically the Fleet Feet Racing Team, in Sacramento.

Stephanie Goldman, Associate Director, Student Senate for California Community Colleges

Leading Remarkable Associations – Insights from CalSAE Association Leadership Academy

Stephanie Goldman (She/Her/Hers) is the Associate Director at the Student Senate for California Community Colleges. Prior to joining the Student Senate, Stephanie was a registered lobbyist and the Associate Director for the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Cal Poly Humboldt and earned her Juris Doctor from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law.

Tariq A. Bruno, Membership Engagement Manager, California Peace Officers’ Association

Leading Remarkable Associations – Insights from CalSAE Association Leadership Academy

Representing over 27,000 law enforcement officers statewide, The Membership Engagement Department is responsible for supporting several of CPOA’s member facing programs – Membership Retention, Training & Courses, Regional Committees, and CPOA’s Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 100 – of which Tariq helped charter and is the current the lodge 100 secretary. Tariq has worked in the union/association space for the last decade. Prior to taking on his current role, Tariq was the Area Director for SEIU in the Corrections/State Hospital sector. It is in this area where he learned a unique approach to member engagement based on the unique barriers inherent to working, and communicating, with various employees who were union members.

Valerie Grubb, CSP, Keynote Speaker, Author, Executive Coach, Val Grubb and Associates

Mastering the Art of Negotiation

Val helps companies grow their bottom line by elevating employees from tactical thinkers to strategic leaders. With extensive corporate experience including founding the Oxygen channel for Oprah Winfrey and InterActiveCorp for Barry Diller (parent company to Expedia, Home Shopping Network and TicketMaster), and senior leadership roles in NBC Universal and Rolls-Royce, she can translate complex skills such as leadership, inspiring accountability and motivating others into actionable steps that resonate with new managers to senior executives. Valerie is a certified Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Executive Coach, and an Everything Disc® and Patrick Lencioni 5 Behaviors of a Cohesive Team authorized partner and facilitator. Valerie obtained her mechanical engineering degree from Kettering University and her MBA from Indiana University. Val’s book, Clash of the Generations: Managing \the New Workplace Reality (Wiley), helps leaders manage multiple generations in the office.

Will Curran, Head of Klik, Bizzabo

Unlocking the Future of Association Events

Will Curran is at the vanguard of wearable event technology innovation. He's the visionary founder of Endless Events, the creative force behind the #EventProfs Community, and the charismatic host of industry-renowned podcasts: #EventIcons, Event Brew, and Event Tech Podcast. Celebrated as one of the most influential figures in the meetings & events sector, Will's accolades include being recognized as one of the 40 under 40 event industry leaders, 35 entrepreneurs under 35, and achieving the highest customer satisfaction of any event company in the industry.

Will's journey into the world of events began in high school, where he produced in-person, virtual, and hybrid events. Since then, he's collaborated with industry titans like Amazon, Google, Anheuser-Busch, Warner Brothers, Louis Vuitton, and Uber, consistently delivering innovative event solutions. His team's mission? To create the first event experience OS. With a rich formula of experiences spanning event management, business development, and cutting-edge technologies, Will Curran is the go-to expert for elevating events and businesses to unparalleled heights.