Breakout

Leslie C. Smith

Vice President for Leadership and Education, The Association of the U.S. Army, Leadership Professor & Board Director

Lieutenant General (Ret.) Leslie C. Smith (Les) brings a distinguished career of leading through complexity as the 66^th Inspector General of the U.S. Army. Known for building trust under pressure, he now teaches leadership across sectors as Vice President for Leadership at the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA), a visiting professor at George Southern University, and corporate board director. Les offers a simple, powerful message: leadership begins with integrity, clarity, and human connection. His stories illuminate how unity across difference drives mission success.

Why attend

Sessions

Breakout session

Tuesday, April 28, 1:30PM – 2:15PM

All the Difference: Turning Difference into Trust, Performance, and Value

SHINE

Difference isn’t theoretical. It shows up when decisions stall, tension goes unspoken, and capable leaders leave meetings frustrated, wondering why alignment feels harder than it should. In today’s fast-moving, AI-accelerated environments, those moments are happening more often and costing more.

When leaders avoid difference or try to smooth it over, the impact is predictable: insight gets lost, trust erodes quietly, and execution suffers. Not because people aren’t capable but because difference isn’t being led.

Susan MacKenty Brady and Lieutenant General (ret.) Leslie C. Smith, two of the three authors of the forthcoming All the Difference (Harvard Business Review Press), join Point32Health Chief People and Culture Officer Peter Church, an executive featured in the book for a frank conversation about what it really takes to lead through difference when stakes are high.

Grounded in real leadership moments - not theory - this session offers an early look at a new leadership framework designed for pressure, complexity, and competing perspectives.

Participants will leave with:

A clear point of view: why leading through difference is now a make-or-break leadership capability
Pattern recognition: the common missteps that derail trust and execution and how to interrupt them in real time
Practical moves: six Target Actions leaders can use immediately to bridge perspectives, strengthen teams, and drive results