Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit | Nashville 2027
About this Event
THIS IS THE ROOM WHERE THE BEST WORKPLACE LEADERS SHOW HOW IT’S DONE.
Welcome to the Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit — a national leadership experience bringing together 3,000+ CEOs, CHROs, business owners, HR professionals and people leaders at Nashville’s Music City Center.
The leaders taking the stage haven’t simply studied great workplace cultures — they’ve built them.
One powerful day of proven strategies, candid conversations and practical leadership lessons you can take back to your organization Monday morning.
Not theory. Proven, teachable leadership that drives workplace performance.
EARN 8 RECERTIFICATION CREDITS:
✅ 8 HRCI Recertification Credits *
✅ 8 SHRM PDCs*
*Credits avaialbleto eligible attendees completing the required approved sessions. Final credit detailswill be provided to registered attendees.
YOUR GENERAL ADMIISSION TICKET INCLUDES:
Full-day Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit at Nashville’s Music City Center — September 9, 2027• Access to the main-stage keynote experiences and executive conversations• Access to 12 rotating power sessions featuring practical, proven leadership strategies• Executive networking with leaders from across industries• Eligibility to earn up to 8 HRCI Recertification Credits and 8 SHRM PDCs by completing required approved sessions• Summit attendee experience and event materials
THE FOUNDING VIP EXPERIENCE — LIMITED TO 500
VIP begins before Summit Day.
On Wednesday, September 8, Founding VIP guests receive an exclusive Grand Ole Opry experience, including a private early-afternoon tour and the opportunity to take a commemorative photo on the legendary Opry stage with your Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit swag.
On Summit Day, Founding VIP guests receive:
• Priority VIP check-in
• Reserved premier seating
• Upgraded VIP breakfast experience
• Exclusive VIP swag
• Elevated executive networking opportunities
Only 500 Founding VIP tickets will be available-designed to create an intenionally limited, elevated experience for our inaugural Summit!
MAIN STAGE
Julie Gilbert — Opening Keynote | Former Best Buy EVP
Deanna Fry — Storytelling Keynote | CNN
Johnny C. Taylor, Jr. — President & CEO | SHRM
Sharon Orlopp — Author & Former Walmart Chief Diversity Officer
Dr. Mayerland Harris — CHRO | H-E-B
Tracey D. Brown — Former President | Walgreens Retail
Shaun Mayo — CHRO | Arizona Cardinals
Plus 12 rotating power sessions and a headline closing keynote.
ONE DAY. THOUSANDS OF LEADERS. IDEAS YOU CAN USE MONDAY MORNING.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND:
• Anyone Who Leads People
• C-Suite Executives
• HR VPs, Directors & Business Partners
• Retail Leaders
• People & Culture Leaders
• HRCI & SHRM Certified Professionals
WITH GRATITUDE
The inaugural Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit is made possible in part through the early belief and support of organizations committed to great workplaces, exceptional leadership and the development of people.
Summit Day
🕑: 07:00 AM - 08:15 AM
Founding VIP Executive Breakfast Experience
Info: Exclusive to Founding VIP guest. Begin Summit Day with an elevated breakfast experience featuring a s[pecial executive keynote, high-level networking, and premier access before the main stage program begins. Following breakfast, Founding VIP guest will transition to reserved premier VIP seating in the Music City Center for the opening of the main - stage experience.
🕑: 08:30 AM - 08:45 AM
Welcome to The Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit
Info: Welcome to the Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit. We'll officially open the day, set the energy for what's ahead, and prepare leaders for an extraordinary day of learning, connection, and practical leadership insights designed to help build best- in class workplaces.
🕑: 08:45 AM - 09:15 AM
Opening Spotlight: The Power of Storytelling in Leadership
Host: Deanna Fry
Info: An energizing opening spotlight exploring how powerful storytelling shapes culture, builds trust, and moves people to action. Drawing from the world of high-stakes media and executive leadership, this session will challenge leaders to think differently about how they communicate, connect, and influence.
🕑: 09:15 AM - 10:00 AM
Brilliant By Design: The Behaviors That Build Remarkable People Leaders
Host: Julie Gilbert
Info: What separates good people leaders from remarkable ones? In this featured keynote, Julie Gilbert explores the behaviors, decisions, and disciplines that transform leadership potential into measurable impact. Drawing from her experience as a global CEO, entrepreneur, board member, and Fortune 500 executive, Julie will challenge leaders to think bigger, lead intentionally, and master the fundamentals that build exceptional teams, cultures, and organizations.
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:20 AM
Connect, Recharge & Explore
Info: Take a moment to recharge, connect with fellow leaders, visit Summit partners and exhibitors, and continue the conversations sparked by the morning sessions. Build your network, exchange ideas, and get ready for the next Be Brilliant experience.
🕑: 10:20 AM - 11:05 AM
Leadership In Action: A Curated Learning Experience Designed for You
Info: Your leadership journey is unique. Your learning experience should be too. Choose from six carefully curated, high-impact sessions designed around the real challenges leaders face in today’s workplace. Select the experience most relevant to you and leave with practical strategies, fresh perspectives and actionable ideas you can put to work immediately.
🕑: 11:05 AM - 11:20 AM
Reconnect, Refresh & Return to the Main Stage
Info: Reconnect, refresh and make your way back to the main stage as we prepare for one of the Summit’s signature executive conversations.
🕑: 11:20 AM - 12:10 PM
Inside With the Best: Building Workplaces That Excite People About Monday
Host: Sharon Orlopp I Executive Conversation Facilitator
Info: What if Sunday night felt different because people were genuinely looking forward to Monday morning?
Go inside the leadership rooms where workplace culture becomes more than words on a wall. This rare executive conversation brings together accomplished leaders with experience shaping people, culture and performance across Walgreens, H-E-B, the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals and Bumpus Harley-Davidson.
Facilitated by Sharon Orlopp, former Global Chief Diversity Officer at Walmart, the conversation features Tracey D. Brown, former President of Walgreens; Dr. Mayerland Harris, Chief Human Resources Officer of H-E-B; Shaun Mayo, Chief Human Resources Officer of the Arizona Cardinals; and Ryan Tarply, General Manager of Bumpus Harley-Davidson.
Hear the real decisions, hard-earned lessons and leadership behaviors behind cultures where people want to stay, grow and perform. This is the conversation leaders rarely get access to and one you don’t want to miss.
🕑: 12:10 PM - 01:15 PM
Connect Over Lunch: Conversations, Community, & New Connections
Info: Great ideas often continue long after the session ends. Enjoy lunch while connecting with fellow leaders, exchanging perspectives and expanding your network. Use this time to continue the morning’s conversations, visit Summit partners and build relationships with leaders from across industries before we return to the main stage for a powerful afternoon experience.
🕑: 01:15 PM - 01:35 PM
Inaugural Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Awards 2027
Info: Two leaders. One inaugural Summit. A distinction that can only be received for the first time once.
The inaugural Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Awards will recognize two extraordinary leaders whose careers reflect sustained excellence, courageous leadership, meaningful business impact, and an unwavering commitment to people. Their influence extends beyond titles and organizations, they have opened doors, developed others, shaped workplace cultures, strengthened organizations, and demonstrated what it means to lead with both purpose and performance.
In one of the day’s signature main-stage moments, we will honor these two exceptional leaders as the first recipients in Summit history, forever becoming the inaugural names associated with what we believe will become an enduring Be Brilliant In The Basics tradition.
Two leaders. Two remarkable journeys. One historic distinction.
🕑: 01:35 PM - 02:05 PM
Investment in Your People: Why Professional Certifications Pay Rich Dividends
Host: Johnny C. Taylor, Jr. I President & CEO, SHRM
Info: What happens when professional certification is viewed not as an expense—but as an investment in people, performance and organizational capability? Hear directly from Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., President & CEO of SHRM, as he brings a national perspective to one of today’s most important talent conversations: the value of investing in the professionals who build, lead and shape our workplaces. For executives deciding where to invest in their people—and professionals deciding where to invest in themselves—this is a conversation you’ll want to be in the room for.
🕑: 02:05 PM - 02:45 PM
Beyond the Letters: How Certifications Change Careers & Business Results
Host: Milton "Dr. P" Perkins, PhD, SHRM -SCP, SPHR, CF APMP
Info:
The letters after your name may be only the beginning. What happens when professional certification moves beyond the résumé and becomes a catalyst for opportunity, credibility and business impact? Hear from Dr. Milton “Dr. P” Perkins, accomplished HR executive, educator and certified HR professional, and Callie Miller, President of High Profile, as they bring real-world perspective to what professional credentials can unlock. From career mobility and greater influence to stronger leadership and business results, discover how continuous learning can create value far beyond the credential itself. If you’ve earned the letters, or you’re wondering whether they’re worth pursuing—this is a conversation you’ll want to hear.
🕑: 02:45 PM - 03:35 PM
Leadership in Action: Rotational Learning Experience II
Info: The afternoon shifts from inspiration to application. Choose from a curated collection of high-impact learning experiences designed to tackle the challenges leaders are navigating right now. Explore Leadership That Scales, The Employee Experience, and Measuring What Matters through practical insights you can take back to your organization and put to work. Different rooms. Different conversations. One goal: leave with an idea, strategy or leadership behavior that could help you curate a business roadmap that advances your organization’s strategic goals, strengthens workplace culture, elevates employee engagement and delivers measurable bottom-line impact.
🕑: 03:35 PM - 03:50 PM
Reset. Recharge. Reconnect.
Info: Fifteen minutes. Make them count. Recharge, connect with someone new, visit Summit partners, exchange the idea that just changed your thinking, and prepare for a powerful final stretch of the day. The Summit isn’t slowing down—it’s shifting gears
🕑: 03:50 PM - 04:25 PM
All IN: When Commitment Becomes Your Competitive Advantage
Host: Gian Paul Gonzalez
Info: What happens when “ALL IN” becomes more than a phrase—and becomes the way you lead? Gian Paul Gonzalez brings his nationally recognized ALL IN message to the Be Brilliant In The Basics stage for a powerful conversation about commitment, accountability, resilience and the choices leaders make when no one is watching. This is about more than motivation. It’s about turning intention into action and understanding that extraordinary cultures are built when people decide their role matters. You won’t simply hear ALL IN—you’ll be challenged to decide what you’re ALL IN for. These two words have the potential to change your entire personal and professional life for good!
🕑: 04:25 PM - 04:55 PM
From Campus to Career: Preparing the Nest Generation to Lead
Info: In 2022, more than 50 million Americans quit their jobs. Research from MIT Sloan has also identified disrespect and noninclusive workplace cultures among the critical characteristics of toxic cultures that drive people away.
Now another generation is preparing to enter the workplace.
Will your organization be ready for them?
This forward-looking conversation explores what emerging professionals expect from today’s workplace—and what leaders must understand to attract, engage and retain them. Discover how respect, inclusion, leadership behaviors and workplace culture can influence whether the next generation simply accepts your offer—or chooses to build a career with you.
Because recruiting the next generation is only the beginning. Creating a workplace where they want to stay and thrive is the competitive advantage.
🕑: 04:55 PM - 05:30 PM
The Finale: Be Brilliant In The Basics
Info: Great summits give you something to remember. Transformational ones give you something to do.
After a day of powerful voices, bold ideas and conversations designed to challenge how we lead, the Be Brilliant In The Basics Leadership Summit culminates with one final question: What will you do differently because you were in this room?
This closing experience brings the day full circle—from inspiration to application, from intention to action, and from knowing what great leadership looks like to practicing the behaviors that make it visible every day.
Because brilliance isn’t built in a moment. It’s built in the basics—one decision, one behavior and one person at a time.
The Summit concludes at 5:30. The impact is just beginning.
VIP Experience I Sept. 8
Founding VIP Experience I September 8th
Iconic Grand Ole Opry VIP Experience & Stage Photo
Info: Founding VIP guests begin their Summit experience one day early with an exclusive, curated Grand Ole Opry experience in Nashville. The experience is planned to include a private tour, an opportunity for a commemorative photo on the iconic Opry stage, Summit swag and a memorable opportunity to connect with fellow VIP attendees before Summit Day. Final timing, arrival instructions and experience details will be communicated directly to registered Founding VIP guests.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 437.90 to USD 767.15
