Graphic Media Alliance

09/09/2026

ENCORE Speaker Spotlight: Kasandra Murray Connects People, Culture & Growth

Two Sessions. One Powerful Idea: Better Business Starts with People.

This week, we are kicking off our ENCORE Speaker Spotlight series with Kasandra Murray, founder of Unlucky Umbrella Studio, who will take the stage for two sessions at the 2026 ENCORE Leadership Conference.

Kasandra is a marketing and operations consultant whose passion for creativity and efficiency has evolved into a career designing processes built with people in mind. What makes her perspective unique is her ability to bridge two areas businesses often approach separately: marketing and operations.

Kasandra believes the two go hand in hand. Marketing can generate leads, but operations determine how effectively sales teams close those leads and how customer service turns them into recurring business. Her work helps organizations align these functions, improve internal systems, reduce employee workload, strengthen teams, and create more seamless customer experiences. With more than a decade of experience working with employees and leadership, Kasandra has developed and implemented frameworks designed to help businesses achieve growth that can be sustained.

 Session 1: Building a Culture People Don’t Want to Leave

Kasandra will help open our leadership journey with a topic facing nearly every organization today: how do we create a workplace where great people want to stay?

This session will explore practical leadership strategies to strengthen culture, improve engagement and accountability, retain great employees, and develop the next generation of leaders.

It is a conversation for leaders at every level. Building culture is not simply an HR initiative. It is shaped every day by how we communicate, set expectations, develop people, recognize contributions, and create an environment where employees can do their best work.

 Session 4: Winning More Business in a Changing Marketplace

Later in the day, Kasandra returns to shift the conversation from employees to customers.

This session explores strategies for strengthening customer relationships, improving the customer experience, creating greater value, and identifying new opportunities for sustainable growth.

Together, Kasandra's two sessions tell an important story: strong organizations are built from the inside out. When employees have better processes, clearer expectations, and a stronger culture, they are better equipped to deliver the experiences that keep customers coming back.

 Ready to Lead Beyond Today?

Join Kasandra and our full lineup of experienced executives and subject matter experts at ENCORE 2026: Lead Beyond Today, Monday, October 5 at Quest Conference Center in Westerville. The day includes six interconnected leadership sessions, breakfast, lunch, and a cocktail reception.

Register today and be part of the conversation shaping the future of leadership in our industry.

Registration