Shell Oil Co. and The Williams Co. to Host the 2012 NHCC Spring Member Meeting in Houston, TX - "Leveraging the Energy of Relationships"

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Hispanic Corporate Council, a non-profit organization, in partnership with corporate America since 1985, which provides its member companies a multi-layered approach and resources to maximize the diversity of the Hispanic market, will hold its 2012 Spring Member Meeting & Think Tank, on Wednesday, March 28th and Thursday, March 29th in Houston, TX. This two day conference will highlight "Leveraging the Energy of Relationships." Relationships are the foundation for success in our personal and professional lives. Investing energy in our relationships at work, at home and our communities influences our world view and the impact we have on those around us. The NHCC 2012 Spring Member Conference will provide you with transformational experiences that will show the energy created by strong healthy relationships through our collaborative work with others such as mentoring, customer relations and influencing the leaders of tomorrow.

"Here at the NHCC we understand the needs of Corporate America and in 2012 we will continue to provide the educational resources needed to help our membership meet the challenges in an ever changing business environment. We ask our membership to take full advantage of the resources we offer; attend transformational member conferences that have been reformatted to provide a deep dive into subject matter across key responsibility areas to help managers, directors and executives continue to be prolific in business," said Pat Martinez, President & Chief Executive Officer. "This spring we will have concurrent tracks in Mentoring and Customer Experience. We also have incorporated a Leadership Development Session customized for our membership attending the conference in conjunction with our Think Tank. We added additional value at the conference by incorporating an informal recruiting session with entry level Hispanic professionals from local universities and high schools that is sponsored by Walmart and serves to add another vital component to our goal of pipeline Hispanic talent development. We hold a unique space in leadership development and we continue to provide our membership with the resources and best practices they need to learn and drive their companies successfully."

Track 1 of our member meeting event will include a focus on mentoring "The Art of Mentoring" Presentation. Art Ruiz, Director of State Farm Insurance, will moderate this session. The panelists are: Christina Estrada, Chief Diversity Officer, ARAMARK; Ed. Quijano, Assistant Vice President, State Farm Insurance Co.; Debra Steward, Diversity/Workforce Development, Manager, Shell; and Patricia Castillo, Financial Analyst, Shell. The process of mentoring has come to be characterized by a unique relationship that provides guidance, support and fluid communication benefiting all parties involved. This session is designed to explore mentoring through the lens of our Latino culture, enabling us to gain the full value and benefits from these relationships. In addition, Greg Gordon, Vice President, Enterprise Services and Dolon Gundoju, Managing Consultant Leadership, Learning & Performance, Williams, will lead a inter-active table discussion that will promote member engagement on mentoring best practices and roadmap to mentoring success.

Track 2 will include panel expert that will share their story on successful best practices as it relates to customer experience. The objective of the Customer Experience session will be to provide the participants insight into what a successful program looks like. We will discuss best practices as they relate to defining your customer, what defines an excellent customer experience, and understanding how customer expectations and perceptions have changed. The session will also focus on the Latino consumer and consider the diversity that comes with this market segment and how to best connect with the different consumer needs. Please join us in welcoming David Gonzales, Chairman and CEO David L. Gonzales & Associates, LLC, who will be the moderator for the session. The presenter is: Robert Hieftje, Customer Experience Senior Manager, Herman Miller, Inc.

The afternoon will highlight the NHCC In-School Program, "Energizing the Future Pipeline of Latino Leaders." Richard Montanez, Vice President, PepsiCo, will be the presenter for this session and will share his story on realizing your full potential and being a young Latino leader. NHCC will also be partnering with universities, colleges and this year with two high schools in the area to connect students from the different participating institutions to network, learn from each other, get to know professional Latino leaders and their professional experience, hear testimonials and share insights. Energizing and building the future pipeline of Latino leaders is a commitment that should come from our entire society. Just because Latinos are the fastest growing minority in the United States does not mean Latinos are the only one to build that pipeline. It is the tradition and commitment of NHCC and its member organizations to join together in providing an interactive forum to inspire and encourage young Latinos to accomplish their goals.

The NHCC Think Tank, "The Latino and Energy Challenge Connection" focused on the energy challenge will be showcased on Thursday, March 29th. Presenters: Dick Williams, President, Shell WindEnergy, Shell Oil Co., Alan S. Armstrong, President and Chief Executive Officer, Williams, and Stephen L. Klineberg, Ph.D. Professor, Co-Director, Kinder Institute for Urban Research, Rice University, will lead sessions to discuss the energy challenge and engage with NHCC members to identify key intersections between the energy challenge and the Hispanic/Latino world. Not a day goes by without discussion of energy in the news or among leaders in the U.S. and the rest of the world. Energy is a fundamental building block for societies, the very lifeblood that fuels growth and prosperity. Much more than just an industry, energy is uniquely intertwined with economic competitiveness, political and corporate leadership, technology and innovation, education, environmental advocacy, social responsibility, national security, and much more.

The afternoon will highlight an Interactive Leadership Workshop by Southern Methodist University – Cox School of Business. Presenters: Professor Mickey Quinonez, O. Paul Corley Distinguished Chair in Organizational Behavior and Dr. Frank Lloyd, Associate Dean, Executive Education, will explore best practices that support transfer of learning and behavior change in executive leadership development to the workplace. The discussion will focus on multi-cultural competency—what is it; how can it be acquired; what responsibilities do companies and individuals have in fostering the development of these competencies among their high potentials, and what is at stake in terms of business and career success or derailers.

The National Hispanic Corporate Council is a non-profit organization working with corporate America since 1985 to provide its member companies a multi-layered approach and resources to effectively maximize the diversity of the Hispanic market. The NHCC offers programs such as the Corporate Executive Leadership Program, bi-annual conferences focusing on leadership, human resources, supplier diversity, marketing and community relations within the foundation of corporate social responsibility as well bringing the learning to your desktop with a series of webinars on "Leveraging Affinity Groups," "Conversations with the C-Suite" and "Lunch-n-Learns" with subject matter experts. For more information, please visit www.nhcchq.org.  

Contact Information: Zuleika Cuevas, cell 202-528-7229, email [email protected]

SOURCE National Hispanic Corporate Council