Book Me To Speak
Experience. Inspiration. Transformation.
Education. Action. Social Change.
The soul of any movement is inspiration.
Storytelling is the most powerful way of moving ideas into the world. Not only the stories your organization tells others, but the stories it tells itself about who it is, who it will become, and what it values. As an organization evolves, its stories evolve – they become richer and deeper, more complex and more authentic. When storytelling is done right, it can be used as a powerful leadership tool.
Transformation
Big ideas matter. They feed and sustain us. They frustrate and scare us. They call us to act . They call us to question. They call us to fail.
They call us to step into greatness.
I give talks, lectures and keynotes to nonprofits, universities, and businesses, especially those with an interest in social entrepreneurship or volunteerism on the power of community. The big idea is to understand community as a body that will support us, hold us accountable, challenge us, and create a safe space for growth
When I speak or write I do it to inspire you to act, to move, to connect, to create, to transform. I offer expertise-driven content and insights with passion, power and integrity.
Inspiration
All of my presentations have a mix of thought provoking content presented with humor and wit. I weave in revealing stories about my own experience and that of others to illustrate points. When I teach I make it a point to connect with every person in the room and create a safe space for their growth. I am practical and supportive with decades of experience and bring that to bear in my presentations. I am known by staff, senior leadership, peers and partners as being great at open, honest and productive conversations. I am not afraid of addressing anything that gets in the way of a great work.
My style is positive, approachable, engaging, service oriented and audience centered.
Experience
Meet your Speaker
I am a strong, strategic business professional with the breadth and depth of having worked with organizations of all sizes in various phases of transition. I bring my clients insights and expertise from having served in senior-level roles in the nonprofit and grant management sectors for such renowned organizations as Habitat for Humanity International, where I was the Senior Director of Volunteer Mobilization, and Rotary International, where I was the director of their largest Humanitarian Grants program.
I thrive at partnering with talented leaders to successfully navigate through integrations, reorganizations, through all stages of organizational evolution. My industry expertise also includes fundraising, grant management, environmental , social justice, and faith based initiatives.
I am especially skilled at helping organizations achieve more consistent, quality program results at both the chapter, national and international levels. I have designed and/ or administered more than 150 global programs to engage 500,000 people into action directly and almost 1 million indirectly through creation of global strategy. I have crafted and administered partnerships that have secured over $10.5 million in funding from a variety of private and corporate resources.
I evaluate, assess and measure organizational strength and ensure that these organizations have the measurement systems in place in order to leverage social, human and financial capital for the greater good via capacity building, community building, asset based community development, sustainable volunteer programs and social entrepreneurship.
Professional Highlights
- Principal of a consulting practice that helps nonprofits and social entrepreneurs professionalize their organizations.
- Senior Director Global Volunteer Mobilization for Habitat for Humanity
- Major Engagements include IBM, United Airlines, Girl Scouts and Rotary International.
- I have worked and traveled to over 40 countries including India, El Salvador, Mozambique, and Tajikistan.
My years of experience can help you create workshops, lectures, or webinars that :
- Turn potential for crisis into opportunity. Support you as you embark on something new, different or difficult.
- Retain talent by helping teams see the connections among their talents, their actions and their missions
- Help your organization identify your greatest talents, and refine them.
- Identify and invest in the parts of your organization that are working-focusing on building up and building out your areas of excellence
- Preparing your people to manage difficult individuals or challenging situations.
- Prepare for future direction steadily focused on core mission with the ability to pivot and adapt as environments mandate
Bottom Line: Your audience is going to be educated and entertained- but even more than that- they will get pragmatic, useful tools, resources and information to help them be more effective in their work.
Popular Topics
The Beauty of Community-building, and Transformative change: People are changed and communities are built through the power of stories and connection. Participants engage in an exploration of how authentic storytelling and deeper connections can help their businesses grow, and their organizations have more impact in the work they do.
Power Start Your Partnerships : All of us who are committed to nonprofit work understand that funding needs to flow in order for us to be effective. A check never writes itself. Every donation is associated with a story, history, and a community. I will teach you how to join forces with other business owners, nonprofits and sponsors–for impact, for influence, for income, and to change the world. During the Haiti earthquake crisis, I helped coordinate and support partnerships with corporate and non-profit partners and hundreds of volunteers to create thousands of shelter kits in less than two weeks. I know that partnerships done right, work!
Raising Unrestricted Funds for Your Organization: It’s all about engagement done right. Bringing together that right mix of resources so you can create lasting change. I show you how to design programs and strategies that create revenue and advocates for your organization. Your organization wants to create lasting change. To do this, you know you must build your trusted network of supporters, donors and believers.
Community-building Skills for Leaders : Participants learn to define, identify, and build community. They learn about the stages of community development (pseudo-community, chaos, emptiness, true community), and they explore why its better to build community than build teams.
The Power of Deep and Soulful Listening: Effective listening is the first step to justice and transforming communities. We explore the art of the question, what it means to listen for deeper understanding, and how listening is one of the most crucial skills in leadership and community building.
Thriving in Transition: Let’s lean in and embrace the chaos. I help you make sense of your organization’s transitions so you recognize and seize new opportunities . I teach about the challenges of facing the unknown and emerging on the other side, transformed. Participants leave understand the value of the waiting spaces, the hard places, and the need for chaos in their own and their organizationʼs transition processes.
Book Me!
Are you looking to hire a speaker or have you loved what you have read so far? Want to learn more ? Set up an exploratory call using my online scheduler .
The Adaway Group
Desiree Adaway
Twitter:@desireeadaway
Email: desiree@desireeadaway.com
Phone: 229-815- 8887
Feel free to set up a call using my online scheduler
