About Heartland

Heartland educates and supports leaders who are committed to turning their visions into wise and wholehearted action, improving their organizations, and by extension, creating the possibility of communities and a “world that works for all.”

Heartland is a for-benefit, social enterprise corporation. Since Heartland's founding in 1995 convening principles have informed our conferences, trainings, and programs. 

We accomplish this through trainings, consulting services and peer leadership gatherings:

·  Convening processes get to the heart of the matter through essential conversation,
quickly, efficiently, and authentically.

·   Collaboration is the outcome of creating cultures of trust and respect. Convening
practices and principles are foundational for creating these cultures.

·  At Heartland, the collaborative model and principles are embedded in our daily
work together and through our various programs and client work.

Heartland Inc.: The Convening Company is a recognized leader on building systemic capacity for authentic engagement in meetings and gatherings, resulting in increased capacity to communicate effectively, create and collaborate within a shared vision, and improve organizational culture in a time of rapidly changing challenges and opportunities.

Heartland's book, The Art of Convening: Authentic Engagement in Meetings, Gatherings and Conversations, provides a roadmap for individuals and organizations to acquire and deepen the skills of listening, connection, and engagement, leading to higher productivity and commitment. The nine-step Convening Wheel defines the power of authentic engagement in business and personal encounters.

In addition to the “hard” technologies needed to create and support sustainability, the “soft” social technology of building relationships for collaboration are also required. Collaboration is the outcome of creating cultures of trust and respect. Convening practices and principles are foundational.

Heartland’s work through Organizational Convening, Transformational Leaders Collaboratory and various thought leadership programs create a unique lens on building cultures of accountability.

Core beliefs inform our work and are foundational to the values we hold and the principles by which we operate.

We believe:
* A leader is anyone whose intention is to step forward to serve in these times;

* Leadership development is rooted in personal and human development;

* Organizational transformation is rooted in individual transformation;

* Reflection is a core leadership competency, and one which is often minimized or overlooked;

* Effective leaders combine their head and heart when making business decisions;

* Humans learn best in a social context, within a community of others, and through storytelling and conversation;

* Leaders are hungering for a time out for deep, genuine, transformative conversation;

* Leadership is a shared activity;

* Essential conversation will change us and the world.