Mastering the Unwritten
Rules of Leadership Success

A keynote/training by Joy Chen for ERGs and all rising leaders

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"Mastering the Unwritten Rules of Leadership Success" with Joy Chen

Joy Chen offers this topic as a dynamic keynote, an engaging half-day workshop, or a comprehensive training program, backed by her skilled team at the Multicultural Leadership Institute. All programs available both in-person and online.

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Keynote Overview:

Leadership success isn’t just about what you know—it’s about understanding the unwritten rules that shape power, influence, and decision-making. Joy Chen brings an insider’s perspective to these often-hidden dynamics, helping leaders decode and leverage them to fast-track their careers and achieve high-level impact.

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Drawing on her own journey from a quiet child of immigrants to becoming Deputy Mayor of Los Angeles at age 31, Joy Chen offers practical strategies rooted in real-world experience. After her time in public service, she transitioned to executive search, recruiting CEOs and Board members for Fortune 500 companies. Her training has empowered leaders across Asia and the Americas and been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, CNN, and Vogue China.

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What You'll Take Away:

Decode Leadership Norms: Understand how business culture shapes decision-making, leadership styles, and power dynamics—and discover how to navigate these environments for success.
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Stay Grounded in Your Unique Identity: Learn how to lead with both effectiveness and authenticity in high-stakes meetings and everyday interactions, while building a leadership presence that reflects your true self.
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‍Build Your Strategic Network: Get actionable insights on forming meaningful connections that foster strategic alliances and open doors to key opportunities.

This keynote offers a rare opportunity to learn from one of the world’s top leadership experts. Joy’s journey from outsider to global leader provides essential lessons on accelerating your career while staying true to yourself.

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Interested in bringing this keynote to your organization?

Complete the form below, and we'll be in touch to discuss details and organize an exclusive preview of the full video for you.

Case Study

At the annual leadership summit of a leading global technology firm, executives participated in a half-day keynote training session led by Joy Chen. The session focused on enhancing leaders’ cultural agility, equipping them to navigate the rapidly changing demands of global markets with greater effectiveness.

One executive noted that in decades of attending leadership training, he'd never attended one that so broadened his perspectives or that was so practical in enabling him to immediately improve his leadership abilities

Following the keynote address that Joy Chen gave for a multicultural audience at a global financial institution, company leaders in the audience were so inspired by Joy’s keynote that they later sought Joy’s permission and then disseminated a video of Joy’s keynote to all 200,000+ employees of the company globally as training on how to leverage cultural differences for career and business success. This initiative resulted in increased awareness and leveraging of cultural dynamics among employees, leading to improved team engagement and innovation.

At a global asset management firm, Joy’s fireside chat with a firm leader inspired the audience to adopt a global mindset and highlighted strategies for bridging cultural gaps. Joy and the firm leader engaged in a fun, thought-provoking, and deeply insightful conversation on how to bridge cultures, and the rewards for personal and career growth.

The session inspired the audience to adopt a global mindset and highlighted practical strategies for bridging cultural gaps.

At a global technology company, Joy led a series of interactive workshops for multicultural leaders and the firm's top global leaders. In these workshops, participants activated the learnings from Joy's keynotes in diverse breakout groups.

Through these workshops, leaders gained a deeper understanding of one other. They learned to bridge cultural differences, saw one another as opportunities for growth, and created an atmosphere of mutual learning and trust across cultures.

The outcome was the creation of new bonds, and the development of cultural knowledge and skills to successfully bridge cultures.100% of survey respondents found the workshop series to be highly valuable to their work

At a global financial institution, Joy Chen’s keynote for Asian professionals resonated so strongly that company leaders later shared the video with over 200,000 employees worldwide as a key resource for navigating cultural differences.

The session sparked fresh conversations on how to leverage diverse perspectives to drive both individual growth and business innovation.

About your speaker

Joy Chen 陈愉

‍A Trailblazer in Bridging Cultures and Building Leaders

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Joy Chen equips audiences to bridge cultures and elevate their impact. As a keynote speaker and CEO of the Multicultural Leadership Institute, she rose from a shy child of immigrants to become Deputy Mayor of Los Angeles and a Fortune 500 CEO headhunter. Her groundbreaking work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, The Financial Times, CNN, and Vogue China.

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Joy regularly speaks at leading companies like Citi, Dow, Genentech, GM, and LinkedIn. Drawing on real-life stories, cutting-edge science, and actionable strategies, she helps audiences bridge cultural divides to lead with confidence and influence. She has also served as a brand ambassador for Olay, SK-II, Pro-X, and Mercedes.
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Her journey is one of serendipity and transformation. As the daughter of Chinese immigrants, Joy struggled to decode the unwritten rules of American success. By learning to fluidly bridge cultures, she rose to the top of three industries across three continents.

As Deputy Mayor of Los Angeles, Joy led economic and workforce development for one of the world’s most diverse cities, where more than 90 languages are spoken. Later, at the global executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles, she recruited Fortune 500 CEOs across North America, Europe, and Asia. In a moment of unexpected serendipity, her leadership blog went viral in China, launching her as a bestselling author and founder of a training organization that has empowered millions across Asia and the Americas.

Now back in the United States, Joy leads the Multicultural Leadership Institute, where she and her team develop the next generation of global leaders at some of the world’s most influential organizations.

See Joy's full bio, backstory and media features

Trusted by:

Watch Joy in Action

Voices of Success

"Joy is captivating! She brings a unique blend of cutting-edge research, real-life stories and practical insights. I’d recommend her as a leadership speaker for any convention."

—Ngan Nguyen

Senior Vice President,
Citi

"This course made a huge difference in how I approach work. I’ve been sharing the techniques and lessons with coworkers who would find them useful."

—Hedi Cho

Supervisor,
Dominion Energy

"The program contains practical advice and tools we can use to succeed in corporate America. All are specific to the AAPI community and backed by research and data. It is really great!"

—Helen Ahn

Associate Director,
Merck

"The program provided me knowledge of roadblocks that I didn’t know existed, and that I can now overcome by being purposeful with my actions."

—Heather Hansen

Global Consultant,
Allstate

"Joy's program helps us to unlock the competencies we need to advance our careers, and to connect with other rising Asian leaders, so that we can uplift one another and others alongside us."

—Brian Pang

Development Director,
Electronic Arts

"I’ve done a ton of leadership training, seen many courses that rehash the same ideas, or are less actionable, or really long. Joy’s lessons are novel, and they cut to the chase, giving us only what we need to know. I’m super grateful for that."

—Lian Huang

Senior Counsel,
Genentech

"Before this course, I never really knew where to start unraveling my own invisible barriers to advancement. Through this course, I’ve found my roadmap. Now, I can confidently take back control and drive my career."

—Peter Yo

Vice President,
Robert Half

"Joy connects deeply with the hearts and minds of every audience member, inspiring and equipping us all to stronger leadership."

—Mia Newell

Director,
Pfizer

"Joy Chen is a strong and clear voice onstage. Her thought leadership is grounded in research and lived experience that makes for a compelling (and often, humorous!) listen. Her tailored content has propelled thousands of learners. The Multicultural Institute is a must-have resource for those committed to the development of leaders."

—Angela Cheng-Cimini

Chief Human Resources Officer,
Harvard Business Publishing

Keen to bring Joy Chen to your organization?

We'll be glad to discuss details and organize an exclusive preview of the full video of this keynote for you.

To get started, connect with Joy here.