Cheerleadership: Strategies to Build and Support Human-Centric Workplaces for the Future
The future of work is changing. Leadership development must change with it.
In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, the role of the manager has become increasingly crucial. As Baby Boomers retire and Gen Z floods the employee roster, we see expectations, competencies, and communication needs shift in the wake. To keep pace with the speed of innovation, it is essential to equip our leaders with the skill sets and resources to succeed . . . but we need to move beyond why and straight to how.
To help leaders create supportive, positive workspaces where employees actually want to thrive, Stefanie Adams has created a framework that utilizes the techniques and ethos of cheerleading. Toss assumptions and antiquated notions about toxic positivity out the window, and find out how cheerleading provides highly applicable professional lessons for leaders in all industries. Readers will learn to support "squad" work styles while building trust, improving organizational culture, and driving business growth through five core themes: connect, care, challenge, celebrate, and inspire.
In CheerLEADERship, Stefanie shares personal stories and best practices from over twenty years of leadership training and coaching in education, human resources, elected office, and, of course, cheerleading. In the process, her vision for the multigenerational workforce of tomorrow emerges in the concepts and strategies that celebrate diversity, empathy, and the uniqueness of our world.
Get FIRED UP and amplify leadership impact with CheerLEADERship!
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Stefanie Adams is a leadership development coach, facilitator, keynote speaker, former elected official, adjunct university instructor, entrepreneur, wife, and mother. For those who know her best, she is "Cheerleader Stef," which personifies her personality and leadership style. She has over twenty years of experience leading and training in corporate, nonprofit, and government settings. Due to her passion for DEI, she earned an M.Ed. in Multicultural Education in 2008, and her professional affiliations include the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). She is also a certified Forté Communication Coach.
In early 2020, Stefanie launched WNY People Development. In her role as Chief Empowerment Officer, she provides leadership training, coaching, and keynote presentations to grow the next generation of leaders. Her main areas of expertise are first-time/frontline manager development, women in leadership, engaging multigenerational workforces, and building high-impact teams.
She has worked as an organizational consultant for Johns Hopkins University School of Education in Baltimore, Maryland, and as Director of Customized Training for Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington, North Carolina. Most recently, she led the corporate training function for CastleBranch, also in Wilmington.
Stefanie is highly involved in her southeastern North Carolina community. She has served on multiple nonprofit boards centering around youth services, and, in 2022, she was nominated for a YWCA Women of Achievement Award in recognition of her work as school board chair during the COVID pandemic. As part of her community outreach, she also offers free leadership development for nonprofits in and around Wilmington.
Stefanie's days are fueled by coffee, yoga, new challenges, and building relationships. Her passions are developing others, serving the community, Philly sports, travel, managing the chaos that comes with life, kitchen dancing, and bringing positive energy into every room.
"It's time to rethink all of our preconceptions about leadership--they're not helping anyone, especially our leaders and leaders-in-the-making. Stefanie Adams cuts through the bluster and shows us how much we can learn from a framework and mindset rooted in the tenets and practices of cheerleading and coaching. Authored with everyone in mind, CheerLEADERship raises the bar higher for all of us." --MARK CROWLEY, Speaker and author of Lead from the Heart: Transformational Leadership for the 21st Century
"One of the best ways to succeed as a team or ‛squad' is to have a leader that is cheering for you. This beautiful road map to being a 'CheerLEADER' is exactly what you need. Enjoy the read, and benefit from the wisdom." --CHESTER ELTON, Organizational culture, employee engagement, and leadership expert; bestselling author of The Carrot Principle and Leading with Gratitude
"CheerLEADERship is an easy read packed with sound, practical advice on how to be a motivational leader. Both new and seasoned leaders will glean nuggets of actionable tips on developing their individual team members to build a strong, cohesive, and collaborative team." --DONNA ESTEVES, (Retired) North America Regional Supply Chain Manager, Corning
‟Stefanie is an enthusiastic leader who listens and develops human capital. CheerLEADERship was such an inspiration for me as a school superintendent. It brought forth quality day-to-day coaching and leadership development that aligns with 'right-there' leadership." --DR. CHARLES FOUST, Superintendent, New Hanover County Schools
