Come explore diversity with head and heart in this rich day long workshop with Susanne and Nettie. They presented at last year’s IAF workshop and have returned this year to an expanded day long setting. Participants will learn several activities to use with diverse teams that increase reflection and depth of learning for the participant. In this session participants will be engaged in the experience of the activity, debrief the activity as a participant and debrief the activity as facilitators. The workshop will also provide space for personal reflection around various topics of diversity and working effectively with teams using themes of diversity.

Susanne Baessler founded Baessler Consulting in 2006 to bring her interest in differences and her experience to serve others so they can turn their differences into assets. She combines her curiosity about how people are different, her experience in influencing leaders and leading cross-cultural teams and her studies in Applied Behavioral Science and business administration. For over 15 years she worked in the international software industry with employees from around the world, different departments and professional backgrounds. She gained experience in bringing differences together to achieve a project or strategic goal. It often required the participants to understand and share their reasoning. This enabled them to shift their minds and change their stories. Susanne helps teams and organizations achieve their goals by turning their differences into assets and alignment. Susanne uses a systemic approach that connects strategic business goals and human interactions. In her work she offers a container for different viewpoints and a process to discover the assets in the differences. Susanne is passionate about challenging, learning, achieving and living in integrity. Susanne holds a Master of Arts in Applied Behavioral Science (M.A. ABS) focusing on organizational coaching and consulting from the Leadership Institute of Seattle (LIOS) at the Bastyr University and a Master in Business Administration focusing on planning, organization and marketing from the University Wuppertal in Germany. Susanne has worked with a variety of non-profit organizations and businesses. Lately, she presented workshops on diversity and differences at several conferences such as the Washington State Non-Profit Conference in Bellevue, Washington and at the International Association for Facilitators Conference in Atlanta, Georgia in 2008.