Excellence in Leadership Luncheon and Lecture a celebration of collaboration
This year’s Excellence in Leadership Luncheon and Lecture at Denver’s Brown Palace Hotel brought together over 150 alumni of CU’s Excellence in Leadership Program (ELP) to foster continued collaboration, networking and leadership development.
ELP provides opportunities for CU faculty and staff on all campuses to become more effective leaders who are prepared to successfully address the challenges of a dynamic university. Since 2000, more than 700 fellows have completed the program.
The annual luncheon, which took place April 22 and was co-sponsored by TIAA, honored Sharon Matusik, dean of the University of Colorado Boulder Leeds School of Business. The Excellence in Leadership Award is given annually by ELP.
CU President Todd Saliman, who presented the award to Matusik, noted the value she brings to the campus and how their professional relationship is rooted in collaboration, specifically in their work on the systemwide strategic plan implementation.
“Sharon has been an incredible mentor and adviser to me,” Saliman said.
Matusik’s time as dean of the Leeds School of Business has been one marked in achievement and equity. She led a partnership with CU’s College of Engineering Applied Science, a $43.5 million project largely funded by donors. Matusik’s other priorities include focusing on the core profession skills of communication, emotional intelligence and critical thinking, and emphasizing gender-parity issues in business by developing more women in business leaders.
In accepting the award, Matusik recounted her appreciation for the Excellence in Leadership Program.
“My experience gave me an appreciation for the level of excellence throughout the entire system,” Matusik said. “It paved the way for me to be a more effective leader.”
CU Anschutz Medical Campus Chancellor Don Elliman introduced this year’s leadership lecture keynote speaker, Kimberly Muller, executive director of CU Innovations at CU Anschutz.
Muller’s lecture, “Innovation and Leadership Lessons That Will Shape the Future,” emphasized the importance for leaders to think big and to think different as we move into what she called the medical revolution.
“This is the first gathering of this group since 2019 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. We live in a different world now,” said Muller, who described the need to tackle issues affecting the medical industry – including burnout, mental health, supply chain and the great resignation – with new and creative approaches.
Muller summarized that massive tech integration in the medical field is crucial to a successful medical revolution needed to resolve issues made apparent by the pandemic, including mental health, telehealth and preemptive care.