NEW YORK—Several new speakers are joining the program roster at the upcoming Vision Monday Leadership Summit, "Insight, Unseen: How Leaders Uncover, Design and Scale Innovations." The live, in-person event to be held in New York on Wednesday, March 15, 2023, will feature prominent voices and key opinion leaders in communications, business consulting, human resources, retailing and vision care. Their ideas will inform a daylong program designed for senior decision makers and influencers from throughout the optical industry and eyecare professions.

The VM Summit will be held at The Times Center. Registration details and full speaker bios are posted here.

Several speakers will be a part of special sessions throughout the day exploring ways that showcase how some are forging new "identity" for businesses in today's competitive environment and others who will illuminate new ways of communicating about vision products and services and elevate the opportunity for eyecare.

(L to R) Anika Goodwin, MD, Dwight Akerman, OD, Jennifer Sagalyn and John Whyte, MD.

Anika S. Goodwin, MD, FACS, is co-founder and CEO, EYEmergencyMD, Inc., a board certified ophthalmologist with subspecialty training in oculofacial plastic surgery. EYEmergencyMD is the first and only acute care ocular telemedicine company. She's also the founder of OpulenceMD Beauty, a luxury eye-specific beauty brand. At the Summit, she'll discuss how consumers are using new technologies to measure and monitor their vision, and how eye doctors can use self-generated patient data to enhance communication and care.

Addressing new ways that messaging and social awareness can combine with the latest clinical research and expertise to help patients, parents,and doctors think of the management of myopia in new ways will be Dwight Akerman, OD, MBA, FAAO, FBCLA. Dr. Akerman is chief medical editor of Review of Myopia Management at Jobson, and is international Myopia Institute global ambassador. He is an internationally recognized senior health care leader with extensive experience in myopia management strategy, peer education and communications, as well as M&A business development and licensing. Dr. Akerman was the vice president and global head of professional affairs and business development for Alcon before retiring from this role in 2019.

Addressing the issue of accessibility and inclusion for those people with low vision and blindness—as both employees and as customers—Jennifer Sagalyn, director of strategic partnerships of Perkins Access, joins the VM Summit. With more than 25 years experience, Sagalyn's deep understanding of accessibility solutions allows her to guide clients to practical strategies.

She was previously director of marketing and strategic partnerships at the WGBH Educational Foundation, spearheading accessibility consulting and digital media services for clients such as Apple, the National Cancer Institute, and more. Perkins Access partners with organizations of all kinds to help create digital products, services and experiences to engage with all people, regardless of their abilities. The group is affiliated with the world-famous Perkins School for the Blind.

Also joining the VM Summit program is John Whyte, MD, WebMD's chief medical officer, who will share insights about the metaverse's potential impact in the health care field and bring a perspective to the Summit reflecting senior U.S. health care topics and issues. Dr. Whyte is a leading voice in addressing the COVID pandemic, and has been named as one of the top 20 health influencers in the world, based on his work in communicating about a range of issues with renowned health care executives and medical leaders.

Dr. Whyte frequently speaks on evaluating digital tools and technologies, assessing their roles in the evolving health ecosystem.

(L to R) Jennifer Hauser, Stela Lupushor, Dr. Solange Charas, Reade Fahs and Jacqueline Grove.

They will join other just-announced speakers at the VM Summit who will explore the importance of both business and health care leaders in reestablishing and how leaders of companies and brands are reasserting their identity and values to consumers. Those speakers include:

Jennifer Hauser, managing director, Edelman Health and founder and director, Wellness 360, will analyze exclusive new data from Edelman’s 2023 Trust Barometer, the well-known annual trust and credibility survey. With more than 25 years in marketing and communications, Hauser has advised a range of leading global and U.S. clients who are making transformational advancements in health and wellness.

The Summit program will also explore how companies are aligning purpose, people and products to transform workplace culture. Dr. Solange Charas and Stela Lupushor, the co-authors of "Humanizing Human Capital: Invest in Your People for Optimal Business Returns,” will offer practical advice on how to accomplish this by hiring the right people, managing a workforce effectively and optimizing productivity.

Dr. Charas is the founder and CEO of HCMoneyball, an adjunct professor, and a governance researcher and thought leader. Lupushor is a thought leader, speaker, educator and futurist on a mission to humanize the workplace through the use of design thinking, technology, analytics and future thinking to create inclusive workplaces. She is also the co-author of "Humans At Work: The Art and Practice of Creating the Hybrid Workplace."

Addressing new ways to elevate the eyecare market while doing good and engaging directly with customers, National Vision's Reade Fahs president and CEO, along with Jacqueline Grove, NVI's SVP, talent and development; diversity, equity and inclusion; culture and philanthropy will join the VM Summit speaker roster. They will share for the first time some exclusive data and tactics they've adopted—which others in the Summit audience can use, too—in a special presentation that will illuminate the impact eyewear consumers can make to expand access to good vision.

"With dramatic change coming from all directions, some tactics for propelling business and health care forward are obvious," said Marge Axelrad, SVP/editorial director of Vision Monday. "But not everything meets the eye. Uncovering hidden resources can be the difference maker for professionals and business leaders alike.

"It’s more urgent than ever to cultivate talent, respect individuals and engage teams to power innovation. Leaders who unlock this hidden strength can combine it with digital savvy to design and scale innovations, forming stronger connections with customers and patients, unlocking creativity and elevating their business."

For the 2023 VM Leadership Summit, Platinum Sponsors include VSP Premier Program. Gold sponsors include The Vision Council.