Lunch with Leaders

This Thursday was the first “Lunch with Leaders” event of the year and the room was buzzing! We had such an awesome line up of community leaders and executives in attendance, we filled the Arthur Davis Room.

List of Leaders

• Jamie Boersma, CEO Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa
• John Bruntz, CEO, The Wittern Group
• Jay Byers, CEO Greater DSM Partnership
• Brad Jensen, Managing Partner, New York Life Des Moines Office
• Mary Lawyer, ED Iowa's Blue Zones
• Eric Lothe, VP Operations, Iowa Health Des Moines
• President David Maxwell, Drake University
• Lynne Yontz, Assistant VP Investor Relations, United Way of Central Iowa

When I first joined the Young Professionals Connection (YPC), one of the first events that I attended was a Lunch with Leaders event. I met Sheri McMichael from Variety Iowa and was so inspired by her story. It was such a unique experience to get to know a community leader and learn about how they started. It was a reality check for me because these community leaders were once young professionals, too! They’ve also experience what we as young professionals sometimes go through — whether it’s low pay, longer work hours, tough decisions, balancing family/social with work, etc.

As a YP, sometimes I have to remind myself to take advantage of the opportunities that are in front of me and challenge myself to be a better leader. It’s all too easy to keep with the status quo. Being confident in who you are and what you do is key to achieving your goals and that has been a huge part of what these leaders have taught me.

The Professional Development Committee is considering hosting a second Lunch with Leaders in the fall so stay tuned to ypcdsm.com for information to come.

Jaimie Miller
YPC Professional Development Chair