Achieving EXtraordinary: 36 Insights from the igniteEX 2025 Conference — May 2025

The igniteEX 2025 conference (with the theme “Achieving Extraordinary Together”) was last month.  The opening session was pretty inspirational and definitely memorable, as a few board members (of PEN & our partners) came up on stage one at a time and shared why he/she attends this conference.  The statements probably weren’t all that surprising – they involved learning, networking and relationship building, getting inspiration as leaders.  In between each board members’ comments, a jazz trio slowly revealed itself on stage, playing parts of the Beattle’s Come Together (obviously symbolic as well; if you want to see the full intro, visit here and click the “watch free episode” link just below the trio on the left).  I had the pleasure of going last, fully outfitted in a tuxedo as the band conductor, and offered the following statement:

While any good musician can make wonderful music alone, an extraordinary thing happens when those individual musicians come together. 

• Together, musicians create synergy and accomplish tasks in parallel;
• together, they combine the power of diversity and differences;
• together, they create beautiful, blended harmony.

And while the conductor is important for setting direction, maintaining a tempo and keeping things in sync, each individual contributor is vital to achieving something beautiful together – where the sum is greater than the individual parts.

 The same is true in our businesses, our schools, our hospitals, our nonprofit and governmental agencies, and in our communities: it is only together that we truly achieve extraordinary.

As the jazz trio and board members left the stage, I continued…

There is a lot going on these days.  A lot.  Businesses and organizations are facing increasing uncertainty and a growing number of complex challenges: 

• the federal budget freeze, federal workforce reductions, and federal agencies shrinking (and some even closing),
• the on again, off again but escalating tariffs, as well as
• shifting national policy in areas such as immigration and DEI, which – regardless of where you stand on the issues – impacts our workforce and those that our organizations serve. 

These changes are resulting in uncertain organizational budgets, pressure on revenues and funding sources, strain on already strained staffing levels, and increasingly anxious employees. Which pre-conference workshop sold out this morning?  Yeah, managing stress & burnout. 

But – while navigating today’s complex challenges may be the most difficult ever – leaders still have businesses and organizations to run, customers to serve, teams to manage, and goals to achieve. 

This conference provides a safe place for leaders and professionals to exchange ideas, explore proven practices, and share solutions that address today’s unique challenges.  igniteEX is also about making connections, building relationships, and getting some much-needed energy and inspiration to continue our work as professionals and as people.

And with that, the conference was off and running, featuring over 30 local, regional, and national speakers, each sharing insights, tools, best practices that lead to better leadership, better organizations, better communities.  The event itself really hit the mark: the speakers were powerful; the networking and connections were valuable; the energy was positive, the proverbial “shot-in-the-arm” we all need as leaders and professionals.  The conference had an incredible 99% satisfaction rate (58 Net Promotor Score) – solid numbers for an event of this size.

If you missed the conference, you have a second chance!  The conference is now available on-demand – either the full conference proceedings or individual sessions.  Invest in the full conference or in a few recordings ala carte: click here for igniteEX-on-Demand!

And, as has become a post-conference annual tradition, I’d like to share some highlights with all of you: after watching the entire conference a second time (admittedly on 2x speed to save a little time – funny how people sound when you crank up the pace!), I compiled 36 comments from the main ballroom keynotes – insights, nuggets, suggestions that could help us improve as leaders, teams, organizations, and communities.  In the spirit of learning, here they are.  Maybe take one a day for the next month: reflect on them; share them with your team; try to find a small, specific, meaningful action you could take to improve an outcome.

Insights from Janel Anderson, Opening Keynote:

• Excellence can only be achieved through collaboration.
• Today we’re experiencing the paradox of connection: we have so many ways to connect these days – texting, social media, direct messaging, and so forth – but we feel so disconnected.  In many ways, we have forgotten how to connect.
• Loneliness does not discriminate – it impacts every gender, every age bracket, both introverts and extroverts.  Those who are lonely at work are twice as likely to leave the organization than those who are not.
• Sometimes we feel disconnected with others simple because we forget to connect with others.
• Avoid affinity bias: if you find that you’re giving too much of yourself to those who are just like you, you may want to change how you spend your time.
• Embrace curiosity – it leads to understanding.
• Develop deeper relationships through curiosity: ask others questions (and then actually listen to their answers!).
• When we can “unforget” those things that do not serve us, we have a chance at accomplishing amazing things.

Insights from Baldrige Recipient Plenary Keynotes:

• Even when you achieve performance excellence, you still have room to improve. (Amber Wilson, Chickasaw Nation Department of Health)
• Our success is based on five pillars: Smart goals, communication, service excellence, quality, and succession planning. (Rob Kleiner, NE Delta Dental)
• An organization’s culture is grounded in its core values. (Tricia Hatley, Freese & Nichols)
• The journey to excellence never ends. (Kleiner)
• The Baldrige Framework is the foundation of everything we do at the company – it guides how we manage and improve everything. (Hatley)
• Excellence is a balance of innovation and standardization. (Wilson)
• Excellence starts with people. We have many approaches to engage our employees. (Hatley)
• Have a succession plan for every position in the company. (Kleiner)
• Strong leadership begins with having a strong leadership system and expected behaviors. (Hatley)

Insights from Antonio Neves, closing keynote:

• Teams look at their leaders’ actions and non-verbal cues to gauge the importance of something.
• Leaders: your language is critically important – choose your words carefully when conveying important messages.
• Don’t wait for an external life-altering event to live the life you are supposed to live.
• As the Spanish proverb goes: “tomorrow is often the busiest day of the week” (translation: don’t wait; don’t procrastinate).
• Don’t count on the window of opportunity always staying open – sometimes the longer you wait, the harder things get.
• Ask yourself: what window in your career – in your life – could close if you don’t take action today.
• Ask yourself:
  • Based on the last 30 days, would your boss decide to rehire you?
  • Based on the last 30 days, would your spouse/partner immediately recommit to you?
  • If you are a parent, based on the last 30 days, would your kid(s) say, yes, I want you as my mom or dad or would there be hesitation?
• In everything you do, bring your “Day 1” energy – passion, commitment, vigor.  In everything you do, always try to find the “edge” – that feeling that athletes and performers have right before the moment they begin.  Stretch yourself; step outside your comfort zone; grow.
• In your career, don’t stop playing to win.  Give it your best every day.
• Most breakthroughs come from constraints – those constraints cause creativity, innovation.
• Having a good attitude is contagious.  Doing more than what’s expected of us is contagious.  Showing up early is contagious.
• Ask yourself: what shows up when you show up – do things get better or do they get worse?
• When did it become a crime to look someone in the eyes and tell them the truth?  Be honest.
• Great leaders don’t call poor performers out; they call them up – they hold them accountable, give them honest feedback, challenge them.
• Most tough conversations last 10 minutes or less – but it takes weeks, months, or years to make them happen (or they never happen at all).
• Think about the last five people you’ve interacted with: do they make you better?  You get to choose who you spend time with; choose wisely.
• Even on the cloudiest days, the sun is still there: when you’re going through some tough times, choose to keep going. Have faith.
• No one owes you anything, but you owe yourself absolutely everything.
• If you choose the best, the best can be had. When you work and believe that the best is ahead, things begin to change for the better.

I hope there were a few nuggets in those quotes to inspire some reflection — maybe even ignite some action.  If you want to dive deeper, check out the conference on demand by clicking here!  The conference was full of insights, tips, tools, and best practices to help improve leadership & personal performance, organizational and community outcomes!  Go forth and EXplore, EXecute, and EXcel!

What other insights do you have regarding how to lead during challenging times?  Participate in a discussion on this topic: visit our LinkedIn group to post a comment (and follow me on Twitter @LassiterBrian!).

Never stop improving!

Brian S. Lassiter

President, Performance Excellence Network

www.performanceexcellencenetwork.org

A Catalyst for Success Since 1987!

Photo credits Adobe Stock, Lassiter