Hardin-Simmons Hosts Virtual Emerging Leadership Conference

(ABILENE, Texas)– Hardin-Simmons University’s department of Student Life hosted its annual Emerging Leaders Conference on Monday, March 30. Because of the recent transition to online learning, this year’s conference was transformed from an in-person, two-day event to five one hour long video conferences.

Student Life hosts the Emerging Leaders Conference through the online video conferencing app, Zoom.

Held online through the Zoom online conferencing app, Student Life services hosted the conference with lead speaker Dr. Jessica Rimmer along with several faculty and staff members such as Dr. Travis Craver, Vice President for Student Life Stacy Martin, and President Eric Bruntmyer who spoke during breakout sessions in the days between Rimmer’s lessons. Over 50 students, faculty, and staff members attended each day.

Rimmer has 15 years of experience in leadership development. She began her career as an executive leader in Higher Education, leading initiatives that would help define and distinguish organizational culture. This was accomplished by focusing on team performance, leadership development, and customer experience.

Rimmer is now a Senior Consultant at a global content and leadership company called GiANT Worldwide. GiANT works with global companies in a variety of industries such as Google, BMW, Leidos, and the US military. With the mission statement, “We help people become leaders worth following, build leaders worth following, and lead organizations everyone wants to work for,” GiANT’s main goal is to teach other organizations what it means to be a leader worth following.

During the conference, Rimmer gave insight regarding some leadership tools consultants at GiANT use such as the “Sherpa Mindset.” The Sherpa Mindset is a tool that refers to Sherpa mountain guides living in the areas of Nepal and the Himalayas. Sherpas are most known for their elite skills in mountaineering and leading groups up Mount Everest. GiANT has adopted the phrase Sherpa Mindset due to the leadership skills a Sherpa must have while guiding a group up the 29,029 foot mountaintop.

Consultants at GiANT aim to have the same mindset as Sherpas because they want to share the victory rather than take the credit.

Jessica Rimmer, Executive Consultant for GiANT Worldwide

“The Sherpa does not define his leadership success like the typical American climber,” Rimmer said on the first day of the conference. “He doesn’t consider his trip to the top to be the picture of success, he considers your trip to the top to be the picture of success.”

Much like the Sherpa, consultants at GiANT measure their level of success based on their customer’s success. Consultants only feel as if they are successful if they have truly helped their organization achieve its set goals.

Rimmer explained that most people think of a person who has successfully climbed to the top of Mount Everest, they typically imagine someone standing with their arms wide open, cheering for their hard work. However, behind that image is the Sherpa who has lead them the entire way up the mountain. Much like the Sherpa who stays behind the scenes and allows the climber to have all of the glory, consultants at GiANT aim for the same motive. GiANT Worldwide believes humble leaders are a key aspect in allowing organizations to become a more productive and healthier environment for everyone.

For more information regarding GiANT Worldwide, visit their website.

To follow along with more HSU events, join us on social media at @hsutx and @hsulife.