2022 Shelton Leadership Forum Speakers

About Our Speakers

Cordell Riley is a top business and franchising professional who has spent more than 28 years helping companies achieve outstanding success. After graduating from Mississippi State University and serving state-side during Desert Shield, Cordell began a career with Driven Brands (owner of Meineke and Maaco). Cordell spent 20 years there, with increasing levels of responsibility for operations, business system stewardship, customer relations and training. After overseeing training internally for Driven Brands, Cordell founded a full-service training and education firm in 2000. Today Cordell is COO for Biggby Coffee, is preparing to teach franchising at the University of Tennessee and spends time helping business owners by sharing success clues he has learned over the years.

Cordell is now recognized as a pioneer who was among the first to focus on the critical role that training plays in cultivating great brands.

Cordell is very active with the International Franchise Association (IFA). In addition to speaking at many IFA functions, he has served on the Educational Foundation of the IFA, the Board of Governors for Certified Franchise Executives (CFE) and the Supplier Advisory Board. Cordell is a current board member for Youth Commission International. Additional board service includes, the Education Committee of the Automotive Aftermarket Association, and as a Trustee of the Motorist Assurance Program.

Cordell is an active citizen of Charlotte, NC, where he lives with his beautiful wife Donna. He is the proud father of two amazing young adults, Jackson and Ashley.

Sam Silverstien’s mission is to empower people to live accountable lives, transform the way they do business, and to thrive at extraordinary levels. By challenging leaders to shift priorities, cultivate an organizational culture, and inspire both individuals and teams to take ownership in fresh and results-producing ways – he is helping companies dramatically increase productivity, profitability, and growth. Sam has been inducted into the CPAE Speakers Hall of Fame and Global Gurus has named Sam Silverstein as one of the World’s Top Organizational Culture Professionals. Sam is the founder of The Accountability Institute™ an organization that certifies advisors to work with leaders and organizations to build greater accountability and develop stronger leaders. He is the author of eleven books including I Am Accountable, Non-Negotiable, No More Excuses, Making Accountable Decisions, No Matter What, and The Success Model. As a former executive and owner, Sam successfully sold one of his businesses to a Fortune 500 company. Today, Sam writes, speaks, and consults with organizations around the globe to think differently, work with renewed purpose, and achieve record-breaking results. He works with entrepreneurs, multi-national companies, corporations, and government agencies to drive increased accountability, engagement, and productivity

Heather McGowan future-of-work strategist Heather E. McGowan helps leaders prepare their people and organizations for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The Third Industrial Revolution was marked by computerization and automation of physical labor, laying the foundation for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which will be notable for the rapid advancement of technology tools into the domain of human knowledge work. In this world, humans must continuously learn and adapt, and with this transition comes information overload. Heather gives lucidity to the complex topic of the future of work through her illuminating graphic frameworks and powerful metaphors, all backed by deep research. In 2017, LinkedIn ranked her as its number one global voice for education. Pulitzer Prize–winning NYT columnist Thomas Friedman frequently quotes Heather in his books and columns and describes her as “the oasis” when it comes to insights into the future of work. Heather’s sessions help employees and leaders alike prepare for and adapt to jobs that do not yet exist. McGowan is the co-author of The Adaptation Advantage (April 2020).