by Latricia Good

Leadership guru and author, Sally Helgesen will be a featured keynote speaker at the Congress of Cities and Exposition in Reno, Nev., Dec. 5-9.

Building on NLC President and Clarksburg, W.Va., Councilmember James Hunt?s efforts to promote inclusive governing and build a nation of inclusive communities, Helgesen is expected to discuss inclusive leadership and how changes in technology, demographics and the economy have intersected to create unprecedented opportunities for individuals as well as how these opportunities are reshaping organizations, institutions and society as a whole.

Helgesen is recognized as one of the world?s leading authorities on how to build sustainable leadership and on the role of work and leadership in the knowledge economy, and is especially well-known for her work regarding women as leaders. Her pioneering studies of inclusive leadership and the increasing power of individuals to shape their own work have influenced hundreds of organizations.

As a leadership development consultant and coach, Helgesen has worked with clients around the globe and written several books surrounding leadership. One of her books, ?The Web of Inclusion: A New Architecture for Building Great Organizations,? was cited in The Wall Street Journal as one of the best books on leadership of all time.

In 2001, she published ?Thriving in 24/7: Six Strategies for Taming the New World of Work,? which shows how people at every level can achieve satisfaction and balance in today?s intense and demanding workplace. She has also authored several other books, including the bestselling ?The Female Advantage,? which has been widely hailed as ?the classic work? on women?s management styles.

Aside from her literary achievements, Helgesen has consulted extensively for the United Nations and taught at several major universities including the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Smith College, Northwestern University and the Culinary Institute of America. She has been nominated as one of the ?Ten Top Thinkers of the World,? and to the advisory board of the Best Practices Institute, founded by Louis Carter. Articles about her work have been featured in magazines such as Fortune, Business Week and Fast Company, and she has appeared on hundreds of radio and television programs.

Helgesen will address delegates at the Friday, Dec. 8, morning general session. The conference will get under way on Tuesday, Dec. 5, with the Leadership Training Institute seminars and host city mobile workshops. 

In addition to Helgesen, conference keynoters include former secretaries of Housing and Urban Development, Henry Cisneros and Jack Kemp. Both will headline the opening general session on Thursday, Dec. 7. The conference will feature four general sessions and more than 35 comprehensive workshops, focusing on a variety of critical challenges facing local officials.

Details: For more information about the 2006 Congress of Cities and to register online, visit www.nlc.org.