Ann Arbor SPARK Hosts Menlo Innovations’ Rich Sheridan for “Resilient Leaders” Events

Ann Arbor SPARK is hosting Rich Sheridan, CEO, chief storyteller, and tour guide, for a new, four-part virtual event series focused on organizational leadership. The “Resilient Leaders” series will kick off on Tuesday, October 27, noon to 1 p.m., with “Lead with Joy and Watch Your Team Fly”.

In his presentation, Sheridan will offer insight on how leaders can create a joyful workplace. He will to share his own journey to joy, focusing on how he had to learn to lead in a completely different way and, by doing do, created results. Sheridan will also share his experience leading Menlo Innovations through the COVID-19 crisis and how the company is adapting in order to emerge stronger.

“We need joy more than ever. Building a culture of joyful leadership is a pursuit available to everyone and it produces better business results,” Sheridan said. “In ‘Lead with Joy,’ I will share some very practical and inspiring ideas for starting your organizational journey to joy — actions you can take immediately and see results the next day. The good news: You don’t need to be the founder or CEO, and even a 180-year-old life insurance company can change quickly and get to joy.”

Sheridan’s unique business ethos is rooted in joy, a concept he detailed in his 2015 book, Joy, Inc.: How We Built a Workplace People Love. Sheridan’s core value is to not just design and build great software, but to create processes, workplace culture, ethic all aimed towards a single goal: joy.

In Sheridan’s Resilient Leaders series, attendees will experience a deep dive on creating a company culture that results in joy for employees and customers alike.

The next Resilient Leaders series event will be on December 3, with the series concluding with sessions in January and February. These events are free, however, registration is required. To register for the first Resilient Leaders series event, or for more information, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lead-with-joy-and-watch-your-team-fly-tickets-123658286263. For information on Ann Arbor SPARK’s events, visit https://annarborusa.org/events/.

Ann Arbor SPARK

Ann Arbor SPARK, a non-profit organization, is advancing the region by encouraging and supporting business attraction, retention, and acceleration. The organization identifies and meets the needs of businesses at every stage, from startups to large organizations. Ann Arbor SPARK collaborates with business, academic, government, and community investor partners. For more information, please call (734)-761-9317 or visit www.AnnArborUSA.org.