AGENDA
The Second Annual Disability Connect Forum
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2015: |
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| Time | Topic | Location |
| 8:30 am - 9:00 am | Registration & Continental Breakfast | |
| 9:00 am - 9:15 am | Welcome to The Disability Connect Forum:
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| 9:15 am - 10:45 am | DISCLOSURE: Disclosure can be an issue for individuals with disabilities, veterans and those in the LGBT community. Shared experiences suggest that corporate edict rarely accelerates the rate of disclosure. Positive traction is realized through corporate culture and a fair and equitable disclosure process that minimizes risk and highlights the positive outcomes of disclosing among other things. ERGs can influence processes that guarantee privacy and promote the values of disclosing to the employee including, but not limited to issues of career development. This session will get at the heart of the issues and explore best practices for addressing this very important topic. |
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| 10:45 am - 11:00am | Break | |
| 11:00 am - 12:15 pm | BARRIERS & MYTHS: All three BRGs face a legacy of outdated thinking and misunderstanding. Examples include: leaders associating accommodations with high costs, colleagues believing that those with Post Traumatic Stress are a danger in the workplace or that LGBT is a sexual preference rather than a sexual orientation. BRGs can counter these myths through strategic activities and awareness based on fact. They can influence the need to integrate this information into core leadership training, ultimately building more inclusive leaders. This session will address the barriers and myths which hinder the integration of veterans, individuals with disabilities and LGBT and will provide scalable solutions for BRG leaders, including how best to extend the welcome mat to allies through their name, mission, messaging and inclusive culture. |
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| 12:15 pm - 12:45 pm | Keynote Presentation:
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| 12:45 pm – 1:30 pm | LUNCH | |
| 1:30 pm – 1:45 pm | Speaker:
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| 1:45 pm – 3:00 pm | ETIQUETTE: Language, whether verbal or physical, matters. Veterans, people with disabilities and those in the LGBT community have been slighted and demeaned often inadvertently, but impacted none the less. Managers and colleagues must be educated on the correct way to engage with someone in a wheelchair or speak with someone who is hearing impaired. What is the appropriate reference when asking about a life partner or how to engage with someone transgender? What questions are appropriate when welcoming a veteran back from active duty? Etiquette breaches are often a matter of lack of understanding and knowledge but at times can be pure bias (conscious and unconscious), which sometimes manifests itself as bullying – a different problem. This session will address how a BRG can influence the corporation’s commitment to competence and practice of appropriate etiquette and at the same time; ensure that within their own constituency they practice best practices |
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| 3:00 pm - 3:15 pm | Break | |
| 3:15 pm - 4:30 pm | FINANCIAL EDUCATION: Veterans, people with disabilities and LGBT share the need for specialized financial education for both short and long term needs. Veterans who are accustomed to their needs being taken care of by the military find themselves on their own for budgeting, savings and retirement planning. People with disabilities may have needs for equipment or therapies that are not covered by a health insurance plan or special needs parents may needs to address planning for the future of their loved ones with disabilities. Those in the LGBT community will be diligent about the assignment of financial decisions particularly as they relate to partners. This session will address how a BRG can be a first point of contact for a company to better understand these issues relative to its own employees and to its customers. |
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| 4:30 pm – 4:45 pm | Wrap-Up; Next Steps | |
CONTINUE TO HOTEL & GROUND TRANSPORTATION
