Melissa's Signature Talks
Speak with Purpose: How Authentic Communication Builds Trust, Loyalty, and Brand Integrity
Speak with Purpose: How Authentic Communication Builds Trust, Loyalty, and Brand Integrity
Speak with Purpose: How Authentic Communication Builds Trust, Loyalty, and Brand Integrity
In today’s hyper-connected world, people don’t just engage with brands—they evaluate them. Every message, every campaign, and every silence tells a story. And in that noise, authenticity is the signal.
In this powerful and practical session, Melissa Fors Shackelford makes the case that authentic communication is not a soft skill—it’s a s
In today’s hyper-connected world, people don’t just engage with brands—they evaluate them. Every message, every campaign, and every silence tells a story. And in that noise, authenticity is the signal.
In this powerful and practical session, Melissa Fors Shackelford makes the case that authentic communication is not a soft skill—it’s a strategic advantage. Rooted in over two decades of experience leading marketing and brand strategy across healthcare, tech, and mission-driven sectors, she shares how aligned, transparent, and values-based messaging can fuel connection, rebuild trust, and sustain brand credibility through change.
Harnessing Purpose: How Marketers Can Lead with Meaning and Still Drive Results
Speak with Purpose: How Authentic Communication Builds Trust, Loyalty, and Brand Integrity
Speak with Purpose: How Authentic Communication Builds Trust, Loyalty, and Brand Integrity
In a noisy, metrics-obsessed world, it’s easy for marketers to lose sight of why the work matters. But purpose isn’t just a positioning exercise—it’s a lever for clarity, alignment, and sustained performance.
This session draws from Melissa Fors Shackelford’s book Harnessing Purpose to offer a practical guide for brand and agency markete
In a noisy, metrics-obsessed world, it’s easy for marketers to lose sight of why the work matters. But purpose isn’t just a positioning exercise—it’s a lever for clarity, alignment, and sustained performance.
This session draws from Melissa Fors Shackelford’s book Harnessing Purpose to offer a practical guide for brand and agency marketers seeking to reconnect teams, campaigns, and creative with deeper meaning. You’ll learn how to embed purpose into strategy and day-to-day work without losing sight of deadlines, deliverables, or bottom-line goals.
AI Can’t Rebuild Trust: The Human Side of Innovation in Healthcare
Speak with Purpose: How Authentic Communication Builds Trust, Loyalty, and Brand Integrity
Marketing With a Conscience: Reclaiming Integrity in a Purpose-Driven Age
As artificial intelligence continues to reshape proactive and preventive care, we’re seeing unprecedented opportunities to predict risk, streamline access, and support clinical teams. But while AI can flag patterns and guide action, it cannot rebuild trust. And without trust, care stalls, especially in areas shaped by stigma, bias, and
As artificial intelligence continues to reshape proactive and preventive care, we’re seeing unprecedented opportunities to predict risk, streamline access, and support clinical teams. But while AI can flag patterns and guide action, it cannot rebuild trust. And without trust, care stalls, especially in areas shaped by stigma, bias, and fear.
This keynote explores the gap between what technology can predict and what people experience. Drawing from years in behavioral health and health tech, Melissa will challenge healthcare leaders, marketers, and innovators to re-center the human experience in how we design and deliver care. Because even the smartest tools fail if the people they’re built for don’t feel safe using them.
Marketing With a Conscience: Reclaiming Integrity in a Purpose-Driven Age
Marketing With a Conscience: Reclaiming Integrity in a Purpose-Driven Age
In this keynote, Melissa Fors Shackelford explores the ethical crossroads marketers face today and what it means to do marketing with integrity in industries that touch human lives. Drawing from her work in healthcare, behavioral health, and mission-driven brands, Melissa challenges the belief that high performance and strong ethics are
In this keynote, Melissa Fors Shackelford explores the ethical crossroads marketers face today and what it means to do marketing with integrity in industries that touch human lives. Drawing from her work in healthcare, behavioral health, and mission-driven brands, Melissa challenges the belief that high performance and strong ethics are mutually exclusive.
She shares the inspiration behind her book Harnessing Purpose, born from conversations with marketers who felt disconnected from their values, and unpacks the deeper question many professionals carry silently: Is this what I signed up for?
With real examples, including the addiction treatment industry’s ban from Google Ads, Melissa offers a grounded, candid look at how systems can drift from ethics and how to course-correct with purpose as a guide. Audiences will walk away with both reflection points and practical tools to lead with more clarity, alignment, and courage.
Breaking Barriers: Understanding and Addressing Stigma in Healthcare Marketing
Stigma remains a significant barrier in healthcare, impacting patient access, quality of care, and health outcomes. For healthcare professionals, understanding and addressing stigma is essential to improve the well-being of those we serve and to build trust, increase engagement, and drive more effective communication strategies. In this
Stigma remains a significant barrier in healthcare, impacting patient access, quality of care, and health outcomes. For healthcare professionals, understanding and addressing stigma is essential to improve the well-being of those we serve and to build trust, increase engagement, and drive more effective communication strategies. In this session, let’s explore the concept of stigma in healthcare: what it is, why it persists, and the profound effects it has on individuals, families, and communities.
Harnessing Purpose in the Employee Experience: Building Engagement, Retention, and Trust
In a workplace defined by constant change and growing uncertainty, employees are looking for more than a paycheck—they’re searching for meaning. Organizations that connect daily work to a deeper sense of purpose see higher engagement, stronger retention, and more resilient cultures. Yet many leaders struggle to move beyond mission state
In a workplace defined by constant change and growing uncertainty, employees are looking for more than a paycheck—they’re searching for meaning. Organizations that connect daily work to a deeper sense of purpose see higher engagement, stronger retention, and more resilient cultures. Yet many leaders struggle to move beyond mission statements and turn purpose into something employees can feel and live every day.
This keynote will provide HR leaders with actionable strategies to embed purpose into the employee experience—across culture, communications, and leadership practices. Attendees will gain practical frameworks for aligning organizational values with employee expectations, and for helping leaders at every level communicate with authenticity. By weaving purpose into everything from onboarding to recognition, HR leaders can create workplaces where employees feel connected, valued, and inspired to contribute their best.