2019 Boston Future Leader’s Program Inspires 2020 Vision
January 10, 2020
Jayda Leder-Luis is a Vice President at Denterlein, a Boston-based public relations and strategic communications firm, where she works across teams to amplify traditional PR.
She is also a recent alum of our Boston’s Future Leaders Program, a yearlong professional development program that activates emerging leaders under the age of 40 to confidently lead Boston into the future. Throughout the program, participants build their socially conscious and civically engaged leadership and effective management toolkit through academic sessions at Harvard Business School and Suffolk University, exposure to established public, private, and nonprofit leadership practices, access to our region’s top leaders, experiential behind-the-scenes learning opportunities, and a cross-sector network.
This year, 65% of surveyed participants reported earning a promotion or expanding their job responsibilities during the program, and 75% reported enhancing their level of preparedness for the next phase of leadership.
At the close of the program, Jayda offered us her perspective on community within the cohort, as well as her renewed vision for our city.
Why did you decide to apply to the Boston’s Future Leaders program?
It was an honor to be nominated by my company for the Boston’s Future Leaders program. I saw this as an opportunity to learn more about my personal leadership style, expose myself to multiple strategies for being a better manager, and connect with other rising leaders across industries. My goal was twofold: build myself and build my network. You can’t do the second without a clear understanding of the first!
What have been your biggest takeaways from the BFL program?
I was inspired by our keynote speaker at Suffolk University, City Council President, Andrea Campbell. She advised us to get to know the city better by stepping outside our comfort zones, visit neighborhoods we’ve never been to, and encouraged us to read the stories of those who helped shape Boston to what it is today. With this knowledge, we can become powerful change makers.
My heart fluttered when we were introduced to the concept of logic models. I’ve never taken a business course so to see a problem approached in this way completely blew my mind. I’ve used the logic model process since our BFL courses to map out my personal and professional growth for 2020. It has also helped me understand a few of my clients better, realizing how they think about change in a high-level, strategic way to reach both short and long-term goals.
Lastly, it’s been fun making connections within my cohort. As a public relations consultant, I work in multiple industries (real estate, health care, public affairs, education, etc.), and have learned a lot about each of these fields from my fellow BFL participants.
I’ve also found friendships with people in similar marketing and communications roles and this exposure has helped me generate new ideas for my own work.
How has your vision for Boston changed or progressed since starting the Boston’s Future Leaders program?
My vision for Boston has remained the same – that the City of Boston should be a fun, accessible, and affordable place to live and visit. I believe that all 20 districts of Boston should be able to tap into funding for neighborhood improvement initiatives and promote themselves through targeted digital communications.
Through this professional development leadership program, I’ve found a renewed sense of purpose to help people better understand each other in order to create positive change within our city and region. I achieved my goal of becoming a Board member of the Boston Main Streets Foundation, and my involvement with them has been strengthened through my relationship with a fellow BFL cohort member Natalia Urtubey, who runs the City of Boston’s Small Business Office, overseeing the Boston Main Streets program. Our shared experience and understanding of leadership issues has enabled us to talk more specifically about how we can coordinate our respective organizations to achieve the same goal.
As we learned at Harvard Business School,
leadership is about helping people adapt and adjust. I look forward to continuing in my role as a communications consultant with this new eye towards leading with purpose.
If you are an emerging leader interested in leading with purpose or want to elevate an emerging leader in your organization, you only have a small window to nominate someone for our 2020 class. Learn more about the Boston’s Future Leaders Program and reach out to Alyson Weiss, Senior Leadership Initiatives Manager at aweiss@bostonchamber.com.
Jayda Leder-Luis is a Vice President at Denterlein, a Boston-based public relations and strategic communications firm, where she works across teams to amplify traditional PR.