This past week, April 19th to 23rd, I had the privilege of attending the DECA International Career Development Conference for the Leadership Development Academy. The week started with the opening ceremonies, where they presented various awards to different chapters. The keynote speaker for the night was Marcus Lemonis, CEO of Camping World and star of CNBC’s The Profit. He spoke about various topics including advice for building a personal brand, the importance of diversity, and how to be successful in business. The night ended with a performance from Svet Radoslavof, an internationally recognized electro violinist. The opening ceremonies were very informative as well as entertaining.

For the rest of the week, I attended the Leadership Development Academy. It was focused on four main themes: Aspire, Elevate, Ignite and Thrive. The Aspire section was about learning the value of mentoring and coaching skills in the corporate environment and the importance of a mentor. The Elevate section was about DECA and how it can help our futures. The third section, Ignite, was about learning the latest trends and guidelines for professional behaviour, interactions and appearance. The final section was Thrive. This section’s main focus was on ethical leadership. We learned about principles such as integrity, trust and transparency that help in making wise choices and ethical decisions. The lessons learned in these sessions were highly informative, and I am so grateful for this opportunity.

Thank you so much to Mr. Peter Mao for leading the TCS DECA Chapter through the whole competition schedule this year.

- By Bolu Abiola, Grade 11 student