About the series

Rachel Krug ’04 and Juanita McGonagle ’04 founded the Leadership Lunch and Learn webinar series in 2014. Since then, the Class of 2004 has been transitioning the series to the Class of 2011. Nate Houghton ’11 and Cecily Pulver ’11 will continue to host the series for Second Decade alumni, organizing 2-3 webinars per year, featuring Cornell alumni speakers, moderators, and participants.

The series focuses on building skills and knowledge around career success, work-life balance, and leadership. Previous topics included “Igniting Your Inner Leader,” “The Killer Resume,” and “Social Styles in Leadership Communication.” Webinars follow a format of prepared remarks from the speakers, followed by a Q+A session of pre-submitted and live questions.

Want to speak and share your story and expertise? Looking to moderate? Connect with our planning team! Interest forms are listed below.

Upcoming webinar

Stay tuned for an upcoming Leadership Lunch and Learn in Fall 2025.

Start watching the latest webinars

Solving Social Problems: Tackling America’s Literacy Crisis – recording coming soon.

Featuring Louise Baigelman ’09

Moderated by Cecily Pulver ’11

Join Louise Baigelman, Founder and CEO of Storyshares (Arts & Sciences/English and Psychology ‘09), as she talks about her journey as an education entrepreneur in the social innovation space. Faced with the stark realities of America’s literacy crisis in her own middle school classroom, Louise was inspired to tackle the challenges she saw on a larger scale. During her talk, Louise will share the story of how she came to start Storyshares, a community-driven solution to empower adolescents with low literacy skills. Louise will discuss the current state of literacy in the US, and the unique approach Storyshares has taken to solving it.

Bright Nights of the Soul: My Journey from McKinsey to the Witchstone

Featuring Henry H. Neff ’95

Moderated by Cecily Pulver ’11

Join author Henry H. Neff (Arts & Sciences/History ’95) as he discusses why he left the corporate world to write and illustrate fantasy novels for children and adults. During his talk, Henry will share highlights from his journey along with touching upon more universal themes, such as defining one’s purpose and desired legacy. Finally, Henry will examine ways in which novelists must evolve in an era where attention spans are dwindling, publishers are consolidating, and AI has entered the chat.

Starting From Scratch: Building up boutique business before and after the pandemic

Featuring Annabel Fowler Gatto ’12 and Olivia Moore Nicoletti ’12

Moderated by Nate Houghton ’11

We talk with entrepreneurs Olivia Moore Nicoletti ’12 and Annabel Fowler Gatto ’12 to discuss their progression as founders and how entrepreneurship has woven its way through their lives and careers. They speak to the spark that drove them to create their businesses, their experiences confronting external threats like the pandemic, and how their lives & families (including Cornellian partners in both cases!) have been part of their entrepreneurial journeys.

Publishing Your Way as a Change Maker

Featuring L Sam Zhang ’07

Moderated by Cecily Pulver ’11

In this session, we welcomed L Sam Zhang ’07, author and illustrator of The First Chinese Festivals series of picture books. The session was moderated by Cecily Pulver ’11. Collectively, they spoke on the process of becoming a self-published author/illustrator, how Sam’s Cornell experience shaped this journey and more!

Disrupting Tradition & Forging Your Own Pathway

Featuring Jesse Baker ’09, Melissa Benhaim ’12, and Aaron Mumford ’09

Moderated by Shannon Chang ’12

In this webinar, our panel of speakers Jesse Baker ’09, Melissa Behnaim ’12, and Aaron Mumford ’09 joined by Shannon Chang ’12 in spoke about the twists and turns of their career, transitioning into a new aspect of the hospitality industry, and more!

Watch previous webinars from the series on Cornell University’s On Demand site.