Where Creative Leaders Grow.
LeadLab is an intensive leadership program designed for creatives, emphasizing a peer learning exchange across sectors. By bringing together professionals from diverse fields, the program fosters a dynamic cohort where participants learn from one another, engage with innovative frameworks, and navigate curated learning spaces. This cross-sector exchange sparks fresh perspectives, unexpected solutions, and meaningful connections that enrich leadership growth.
The LeadLab Framework:
Leverage cross-sector and Intergenerational Peer Exchange
We nurture and facilitate discussion across sectors, industries, and generations. This creates a unique space to exchange ideas, perspectives, and expand your network.
Cultivate Actionable
Solutions
You’ll address real project challenges using a robust gratitude framework. Then you’ll find practical opportunities to put it to use.
Foster Experiential
Learning
You’ll learn in a nonlinear and immersive environment. LeadLab uses inclusive program design and innovative approaches to make the experience impactful—and effective.
LeadLab 2025 Summit—
The Art + Impact of Gratitude
Workplace culture is everything. So how do you build it? This year, we focus leveraging the art and impact of gratitude to create a supportive, innovative, and rewarding work environment.
Why Gratitude?
As a creative leader and manager, the most productive and impactful feedback you can give a team member is to show genuine and specific gratitude for something they have done well. People are motivated by gratitude and they will rise again to receive that recognition.
And, the act of expressing gratitude often creates reciprocal rewards to the giver. Here gratitude becomes a conscious understanding of how outside forces and the efforts of other people contribute to a collective goodness.
Emotionally intelligent workplace cultures focus on positive experiences. Gratitude reduces conflicts. It decreases the number of employee sick days. And it leads to higher job satisfaction through more collaboration between coworkers resulting in an environment wired for innovation. It's not just about saying "thank you" - it's a mindset that shapes how we perceive and interact with the world.
How can you and your team grow through new insights and tools to create a culture of gratitude? Let’s break it down.
Builds Team
Culture
Gratitude builds social bonds by recognizing the other kinds of contributions beyond just effort. It fosters empathy, forgiveness, cooperation, and mutual respect. Which, in turn, increases inclusivity and resilience in challenging situations. Teams that practice gratitude are often stronger collaborators, and share a sense of purpose.
Did you know: In a study by the American Psychological Association, 93% of employees who reported feeling valued said that they are motivated to do their best at work.
Develops Emotional Awareness
Expressing gratitude improves emotional intelligence. It helps people understand and manage their emotions, including the impact those emotions have on others. In the end, it leads to greater self-awareness, interpersonal sensitivity, and psychological safety.
Did you know: Wharton states gratitude is linked to neural activity associated with moral cognition, perspective-taking, and fairness.
Sharpens Focus and
Broadens Perspective
Gratitude encourages reflection. It helps people appreciate the present and what they have, rather than what they lack, which helps to adopt a growth mindset. Work is then approached with motivation and clarity to move past organizational barriers.
Did you know: A study by DeVry University shows employees value a positive mindset more than experience, education level, or years at the company.
Promotes Physical
and Mental Health
Gratitude is linked to greater happiness and emotional resilience. It triggers dopamine and serotonin, which activate the brain’s reward system, reinforcing positive emotions. Over time, it rewires neural pathways to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression. So people start approaching challenges with a positive outlook.
Did you know: John Templeton Foundation found grateful people are happier, more satisfied with their lives, less materialistic, and less likely to suffer from burnout.
Keeping it Grounded.
Leveraging Gratitude to Transform the Workplace.
Too often, workplaces approach gratitude superficially. A generic gesture on recruitment brochures, or a canned sentiment in organizational culture statements. But hollow gestures like these can feel forced. For gratitude to work its magic, it has to be genuine. LeadLab offers a transformative approach, by exploring gratitude as a powerful tool for authentic, effective, and sustainable workplace integration.
LeadLab 2025 Summit—
The Art + Impact of Gratitude
Session Overview
Gratitude
Mapping
Visualize the things you’re grateful for. Connect them to opportunities they’ve created or could create in the future for your challenge. It’s not just about recognizing what you have but about unlocking its potential.
Growth
Mindset
Gratitude is a gateway to shifting your focus from limitations to possibilities. Uncover paths to advance your challenge through a growth mindset. Cultivate those around you to view challenges and setbacks as a chance to develop.
Authentic
Expression
Practice gratitude that’s true to you and aligned with your leadership style so it feels genuine and doable. Become more effective by tailoring your gratitude approach based on the circumstance to get faster results.
Emotion in the
Workplace
Expressing gratitude during adversity can feel vulnerable. Move confidently with emotional awareness to improve relationships to advance your challenge-building resilience, perseverance and trust.
Sustainable
Change
Create a practical action plan that incorporates gratitude into your team’s infrastructure and propels you to reach the outcome of your challenge. Leverage LeadLab’s follow-up connections for support, feedback, and accountability throughout the year.
Facilitators
Liz is a process investigator forever seeking aha moments in personal growth, for herself and others. She likes unpacking nonlinear gray ideas and rethinking them into workable action plans that make space for deeper learning and awareness. Considering resources, incorporating diverse perspectives, and building networks brings a thoughtful and thorough approach to her work. She's curious about experiential facilitation methods and collective learning experiences.
Before joining Goldsmith Strategies, Liz led creative sector engagement at the Arts + Business Council when it was formerly a Council of the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia. She has served on the boards of the Arts Administrators of Color Network and the Spruce Foundation. Other recent professional engagements include participating in programs by the Artist Communities Alliance and Women of Color in the Arts and facilitating board retreats and board development workshops.
Authenticity, balance, diligence, doing, and growth are the values that guide Liz personally and professionally. Originally from Washington State, Liz has spent time in the Washington, DC metropolitan area and Philadelphia. She is a dog mom, thrifter, roller coaster enthusiast, and ardent reader (currently Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie). ISTJ. Cancer/Leo rising.
Peter is a globally recognized leader with a proven track record in fostering and maintaining high-performance employee cultures that drive engagement, leadership development, and talent excellence. With expertise in talent assessment, multi-scale program deployment, and facilitating cohesive, strategically aligned teams, he creates programs that not only look exceptional but also resonate deeply and align with key business objectives. As a trusted consultant and strategic partner, Peter designs innovative solutions that tackle complex business challenges. He has shared his expertise as a four-time speaker at the United Nations, offering his insights on leadership and professional development.
Program Details
Summit
drinks will be provided at the social gathering.
Saturday, April 26, 2025 | 10-5 PM*
- Social Gathering with the Cohort and Program Stakeholders | 5-7 PM*
Sunday, April 27, 2025 | 10-3 PM*
Follow-Up Connections
Thursday, May 29, 2025 | 12-1:30 PM
Thursday, September 4, 2025 | 12-5 PM
Networking Party
Thursday, December 4, 2025 | 6-8 PM
Fees
How to Apply
Deadline for Priority Applications
All applications received by February 21, 2025 will be reviewed for program admission and financial assistance. While submitting by the priority deadline doesn’t guarantee financial aid or program acceptance, it does give you the best opportunity to have financial need evaluated alongside your application.
General Applications
Following the priority deadline (February 21, 2025), applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, including financial aid, until the program is full. Space is limited, so if you’re interested in LeadLab, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible. We do strive for diverse cohorts, so all applications, starting from the priority deadline, will be evaluated based on the makeup of confirmed participants.
We’d love to learn more about your leadership journey, and we hope to welcome you to LeadLab.
Partners & Sponsors
Founding Program Partners
Goldsmith Strategies and J2 / Exit Design bring a wealth of expertise to LeadLab. Goldsmith Strategies is known for its focus on cultural equity and innovative approaches to arts leadership. J2/Exit Design adds to this their deep experience in human-centered research and strategy-driven branding.
Together, these organizations combine a strong commitment to equity, a deep understanding of the dynamics unique to the creative sector, and the ability to empower leaders to drive lasting change within their communities.
Promotional Partners
With profound gratitude and appreciation the LeadLab team would like to thank each of our sponsors and partners. We are only able to deliver this programming due to their generous contribution.
FAQ
All applications received by February 21, 2025 will be reviewed for program admission and financial assistance. While submitting by the priority deadline doesn’t guarantee financial aid or program acceptance, it does give you the best opportunity to have financial need evaluated alongside your application.
Following the priority deadline (February 21, 2025), applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, including financial aid, until the program is full. Space is limited, so if you’re interested in LeadLab, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible. We do strive for diverse cohorts, so all applications, starting from the priority deadline, will be evaluated based on the makeup of confirmed participants.
If you work in a field that requires original thinking, innovation, and/or artistic expression, then you are absolutely a creative professional. This can include artists, designers, engineers, administrators, across sectors, and other professionals involved in the making of imaginative or culturally impactful work.
Participants must self-identify as a creative professional, and should currently manage at least one direct report (managing volunteers counts!) and work with a team of five or more people (internally, externally, or a combination of both).
Beyond career level, LeadLab makes it a priority to include a diverse mix of professionals from different careers and backgrounds into the cohort.
Yes, you should have a foundational understanding of diversity, equity, inclusion, access, and belonging (DEIAB) in the workplace.
You’ll need an awareness of how systems of power and privilege impact organizational culture and decision-making. This includes a commitment to fostering an environment where all people feel valued, respected, and empowered to contribute fully.
Lastly, you’ll need a basic knowledge of practices and strategies that promote equitable opportunities, inclusive policies, and accessible spaces for diverse communities.
In order for you to put the program’s learnings into action, you’ll be asked to analyze a situation you know intimately and directly. So your selected challenge should meet the following criteria:
• The challenge is directly related to the outcome of a project you oversee; you’re responsible for the overall success or failure of the project.
• Given the focus on gratitude in LeadLab 2025, the challenge is related to:
• Communication and / or interpersonal dynamics with your team.
• Communication and / or someone you need deliverables from.
• You can identify some potential and specific (non-)actions and / or behaviors that might be contributing to the challenge.
We’re missing important opportunities to promote the programs I oversee in company-wide outreach, because the marketing team isn’t taking initiative. They claim they’re at capacity and only do the bare minimum. How can I improve the quality and engagement of the marketing team, when I don’t directly oversee them?
• 3 days (including pre-work) in total, and not all at once.
• April 26–27 (in-person, all day): Summit sessions and social gathering
• May 29 (virtual, 12-1:30 PM): Follow-up connection
• September 4 (in-person, 12-5 PM): Follow-up connection
• You can expect to dedicate approximately 2 hours of pre-work before each in-person day.
• December 4 (in-person, attendance strongly encouraged): Networking party
If you can travel to Philadelphia for the in-person sessions, we’d love to have you!
Become a Sponsor
I love what LeadLab is doing.
How can I be a part of it?
Program Sponsor
This is an opportunity for a representative
to speak during the program.
- Logo recognition on the LeadLab page and the program’s slide deck
- Name recognition in participant outreach for the program
- Verbal recognition during the program
- Public recognition
- A dedicated post on Goldsmith Strategies and J2 / Exit Design’s social media platforms
- Name recognition on social posts related to the program
- An invitation for two representatives to attend the social gathering and meet the cohort
Scholarship Sponsor
- Name recognition on:
- The LeadLab page
- Social media posts related to the program
- The program's slide deck
- Participant outreach for the program
- An invitation for one representative to attend the social gathering and meet the cohort
Promotional Partner
- Partner with LeadLab, and we'll promote your organization to our audience, while you promote LeadLab to yours. The exchange takes place in several formats:
- In programs for our respective industry events
- In social media posts and / or newsletter
- In distributed materials and collateral
- Invitations for a representative to attend a partner's event