NextGen Summit: Lunch Keynotes

Own Your Journey: No One Is Going to Plan Your Career for You
-Jessica Palatka, Director of Human Resource Management and Chief Human Capital Officer, Department of Commerce

The only people who might care more about your career than you do are your loved ones. That might sound harsh, but it’s true. Your manager, as good as they might be, is more likely to focus on your performance than on your professional development. You must do it yourself. In this keynote, you will hear how to own your career journey and learn what steps you can take to map it out.

Inclusion in Action
-Treva D. Smith, Deputy Director, National Geospatial-Intelligence College

Inclusion isn’t numbers on a page, inclusion is about the way in which you make your team, colleagues and managers feel part of the organization. Inclusion means all voices are heard, considered and valued. Inclusion isn’t easy. But in this keynote, you will learn how inclusion is more than just necessary, it’s imperative.

Nothing Stays the Same: How to Embrace, Not Fight, Change
-John Verrico, Chief of Media and Community Relations, Science & Technology Directorate. Department of Homeland Security

Change. Blurg. Gulp. Ew. Listen, we all like to pay lip service to change around the New Year or when we feel stuck. But change is hard. Like really hard. And it’s even harder when you aren’t in control of the change itself. New manager? New priorities? Another round of COVID? In this keynote, you will hear strategies for dealing with change when it happens, preparing to better embrace change and finding ways to thrive through transitions.