LAI Exclusive
Dethra Giles
Executive Leadership & HR Strategist, Modern Workplace Influencer, Leadership Communication Expert
- Strategic leadership communicator and workplace culture advisor trusted by organizations including the CDC, NBA, and Salvation Army
- Recognized among the “Top 100 HR Influencers” (Engagedly) and one of the “Top 22 Most Influential Figures in HR” (HR Gazette)
- Empowers professionals and organizations to lead with clarity, communicate with confidence, and cultivate energized, resilient teams
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About Dethra Giles
Download ProfileDethra Giles is the voice organizations call when communication breaks down and culture is on the line. A sought-after speaker, executive coach, and strategist, Dethra helps companies, leaders, and teams transform how they show up, speak up, and lead across lines of power, perspective, and difference.
With a background in leadership development, organizational development, and conflict navigation, she delivers more than inspiration—she delivers infrastructure for how people work together when the stakes are high. Her proprietary frameworks, including the award-winning DARE™ model, have helped thousands of professionals master difficult conversations, navigate change, and turn tension into clarity.
Known as an audacity expert, Dethra is on a mission to combat the quiet deception that tells people they don’t belong in the rooms they’ve earned. Her work helps the historically overlooked reclaim their voice, challenge inferiority narratives, and step into power with clarity, confidence, and wholesale audacity.
She has served clients across industries, including Fortune 500s, startups, academic institutions, and government agencies, earning a reputation as the person who can shift rooms, reset teams, and move missions forward. Her approach is bold, insightful, and always rooted in the belief that culture is not what you say. It’s how you communicate, lead, and live it out.
When she’s not on stage or advising the C-suite, Dethra is teaching the world how to master conflict with conversational competence in her book, That’s Not What I Said. She’s also a weekly voice on the nationally syndicated Willie Moore Jr. Show, helping professionals move from the cubicle to the corner office with strategy and audacity. Dethra is exclusively represented by Leading Authorities speakers bureau.
Video Gallery
Dethra Giles: Effective Communication and Resolving Conflicts
Dethra Giles on Effective Communication
Dethra Giles – From Cubicle to Corner Office: Reimagining Your Journey to Success
Deeper Conversations About Taboo Topics at Work | Dethra Giles | TEDxSpringHillCollege
Dethra Giles: Effective Communication and Resolving Conflicts
Dethra Giles on Effective Communication
Dethra Giles – From Cubicle to Corner Office: Reimagining Your Journey to Success
Deeper Conversations About Taboo Topics at Work | Dethra Giles | TEDxSpringHillCollege
Speech Topics
Download TopicsAI is everywhere, but courage, vision, and human audacity can’t be automated. In this keynote, Dethra U. Giles challenges audiences to embrace AI as a tool without surrendering their unique leadership edge. Through bold stories and actionable strategies, participants will learn how to leverage AI for efficiency while doubling down on the human traits that inspire, connect, and lead teams forward.
Takeaways:
- How to embrace AI without losing your voice or presence.
- Why audacity—not algorithms—is the new leadership currency.
- Practical steps to lead teams through AI incorporation with confidence.
Artificial intelligence can generate words, but it can’t generate understanding. In this session, Dethra introduces her DARE™ model (Describe, Acknowledge, Review, Engage) as the essential skill set for leaders navigating communication in the age of AI. Participants will explore how to prevent miscommunication, build trust, and maintain humanity in conversations—even when AI is in the mix.
Takeaways:
- Why AI can’t replace conversational competence.
- How to use the DARE™ model to manage workplace conflicts in tech-driven environments.
- Tools to lead productive conversations where human nuance is critical.
In today’s fast-moving workplace, leaders face growing demands to guide teams through complexity while keeping morale high and vision clear. In this energizing session, Dethra Giles reframes leadership as a communication superpower—an essential skill that enables leaders to inspire action, foster cohesion, and build momentum across their organizations.
This session highlights how effective communication serves as a key to revitalizing teams, sustaining motivation, and cultivating a positive, future-focused culture.
Attendees will explore:
- How to lead with intention, energy, and clarity—even in the face of evolving priorities
- Tools to transform uncertainty into opportunity (like leveraging AI)
- Communication techniques that unify teams, align goals, and create a sense of purpose and progress
Leaders will be ready to embrace the future while navigating the demands of today’s workplace.
This discussion focuses on empowering professionals to harness the power of their voice. Dethra introduces a proven formula that enables leaders to discover their unique voice, refine it, and transform it into a tool that is both powerful and persuasive. Participants learn how to speak less but say more, assert their presence, and create a lasting impact in any room. Tailored for underrepresented groups and leaders of all levels, the session equips attendees with the confidence and skills to effectively guide teams.
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