My Balanced Life Let’s talk
Samantha moderating a panel with three speakers

A conversation your audience can use.

I speak about leadership, culture, and how people learn. I also moderate panels and lead workshops, with questions and examples prepared for your audience.

Discuss your event

Keynotes & conference sessions

Samantha speaking to a seated group outdoors

Description

I speak about leadership, culture, workforce development, and the future of learning. I bring experience from classrooms, executive teams, and boardrooms, and connect it to the decisions facing your audience.

Who it’s for

  • Conference and association event organizers
  • Organizations hosting a leadership summit or staff event
  • Education and workforce-development audiences

What we’ll do

  • Agree on the question the session should address
  • Connect the topic to your audience’s context
  • Share examples and practical ideas people can use afterward
Discuss a keynote

Panel moderation

Samantha listening as a panelist speaks to an audience

Description

I research the topic, prepare the panelists, and guide the conversation. I make room for different perspectives, follow up on useful answers, and keep the discussion moving toward the purpose of the session.

Who it’s for

  • Event organizers bringing several speakers together
  • Associations hosting an industry discussion
  • Leaders who want an experienced moderator to guide the room

What we’ll do

  • Research and a prepared set of questions
  • A preparation conversation with each panelist
  • Live moderation, timing, and audience questions
  • A closing synthesis of the ideas raised
Discuss a panel

Facilitated conversations

A small group sitting in conversation outdoors

Description

I lead leadership circles, fireside conversations, and working sessions where people need to think together. I bring a structure for the discussion and listen closely enough to follow what emerges.

Who it’s for

  • Leadership teams working through disagreement
  • Groups facing a decision that needs several perspectives
  • Organizers planning a fireside chat or leadership circle

What we’ll do

  • Clarify the purpose and who needs to be involved
  • Prepare questions and a structure for participation
  • Guide the conversation and draw out quieter voices
  • Help the group name its conclusions and next steps
Discuss a conversation

Conference workshops & breakouts

A group working through priorities around a table

Description

I build sessions around what people should be able to do when they leave. Conversation, small-group exercises, and reflection give participants time to work with the ideas themselves.

Who it’s for

  • Conference organizers planning a participatory session
  • Managers learning a skill together
  • Teams that need practice with a specific challenge

What we’ll do

  • Agree on the learning goal
  • Use examples and exercises relevant to the group
  • Make room for individual and shared reflection
  • Connect the session to what participants will do afterward
Discuss a workshop

For workshops with your own team or an ongoing learning program, explore workshops and leadership development.

What I speak about.

My speaking draws on leading global education and workforce initiatives at CEDIA, developing leadership training for federal agencies, and teaching at Indiana University.

I’ve had to turn strategy into programs people can use and explain unfamiliar ideas to people with very different starting points. Tell me who will be in the room. I’ll help you choose a topic that connects to their responsibilities.

Explore my experience
  • Leadership people want to follow
  • Culture that survives growth
  • Workforce development and the skilled trades
  • AI and the future of learning
  • Grief, loss, and transition at work

From leading programs to teaching the room.

My speaking draws on executive responsibility and experience helping adults learn.

Leadership and workforce development

At CEDIA, I led education and workforce initiatives and built partnerships with universities, agencies, and industry leaders. A 2020 Installation interview discusses my approach to education and leadership.

Read the 2020 interview

Teaching and learning design

I taught writing and communication at Indiana University Bloomington and developed leadership training for federal agencies at HighPoint Global. I bring that attention to how people learn into my sessions.

Read my teaching background

“Professor Ventura is the most engaging teacher I have ever had. She makes you think about things in an entirely different way and completely outside the box. I loved going to her class.”

Emily HakesLearner, Organizational Ethics and Values, IU Indianapolis

“I did not expect to learn as much as I did. She is probably the most charismatic instructor I have ever had, period. She used real world examples that did not shame anybody but made us think. This was hands down a life changing class for me.”

Darryl LocknerLearner, Ethical Dilemmas in the Workplace, Indiana University

“Samantha is driven to develop people at their core, to become great people, team players, and inspiring leaders. Her candid nature is refreshing, always nudging the bar just a bit higher.”

Jamie BriesemeisterCEO and Co-Founder, Integration Controls

Planning your session.

What should I include in an inquiry?

The event date or timeframe, location, audience, format, and what you hope people will take away. It is fine if some of that is still being decided.

Can you tailor the topic?

Yes. I prepare each engagement for the audience and its questions. We will discuss how your goals connect to my experience in leadership, culture, education, and workforce development.

What if our team needs ongoing learning?

A workshop can become a learning series with practice between sessions. Explore learning and professional development.

Also considering…

Retreats

Time away for your leadership team or board.

For organizations

Support with priorities, managers, culture, and learning.

What do you want people to take away?

Tell me about the event, the audience, and the conversation you want to start.

Discuss your event