California Staffing Conference
The Leadership Exchange: An Interactive Leadership Experience — Chris Sund led staffing and recruiting leaders through a working session on what separates people who lead from people who simply hold the title.
Where California staffing
leaders gather.
The California Staffing & Recruiting Professionals Conference brings together agency owners, recruiters, and workforce professionals from across the state for education, networking, and professional development. The organization exists to advance the staffing and recruiting profession in California by connecting members with the knowledge, tools, and relationships they need to grow their businesses and serve clients and candidates well.
Attendees come for industry insight, access to experienced speakers, peer connection across the state, and practical strategies for candidate sourcing, client development, and workforce trends. That made it a strong setting for a session built around participation rather than presentation.
The Leadership Exchange
An Interactive Leadership Experience
Unlike a traditional keynote, this session asked attendees to participate. Through guided conversation, practical exercises, and real-world examples, the room worked through what separates effective leaders from those who simply hold leadership titles.
The focus stayed on leadership as a daily practice rather than a position, and on how trust, communication, accountability, and intentional action shape team performance and culture. Leadership is not simply something you do. It is an experience others have because of you.
Influence, Not Position
Titles do not lead people. Behavior does.
Trust and Consistency
Credibility is built in repetition, not announcements.
Small Moments
The briefest interactions carry the longest memory.
Clarity and Accountability
People perform when expectations are unmistakable.
Communication
Engagement follows the leaders who explain the why.
What Attendees Took Away
Leadership strategies attendees could apply the next working day.
Tools for building stronger relationships with employees and colleagues.
Sharper awareness of how daily interactions shape workplace culture.
Ideas for developing emerging leaders inside their own organizations.
Moments from the conference
Feedback from staffing leaders.
His session was one of the highlights of the CSP Conference for me. He blends real-world experience with authentic storytelling, and I left inspired, energized, and equipped with insights I still reflect on today.
Time well spent. The content was practical, the delivery was engaging, and I walked away with ideas I could actually use. If you get the chance to attend one of his sessions, take it.
It is rare to find a speaker who brings equal parts substance and presence. Chris challenged attendees to examine their own leadership with honesty, and left people with tools they could apply the very next day.
You Are Capable of More.
Chris is the author of the bestselling You Are Capable of More. Copies can be bundled for attendees, and Chris can run a signing table in the exhibit hall — which drives traffic for your sponsors.
About the Book →On the agenda twice, and on ASA’s speaker list
California Staffing Professionals lists Chris twice on the official agenda — on an industry panel and as a featured speaker. The session was later changed to The Leadership Exchange, which is what Chris delivered — the published program still carries the original title. The American Staffing Association independently names him on its own page for the same conference, alongside ASA’s chief economist.
California Staffing Professionals.
California Staffing Professionals is the state association for staffing, recruiting and workforce solutions firms operating in California, one of the most complex regulatory environments in the country. CSP gives its members advocacy at the capitol, legal and compliance guidance, and the education owners and managers need to run firms in that market.
Its annual conference brings owners, managers, recruiters and sales consultants together each June. The program qualifies for continuing education hours toward the American Staffing Association credential.
Bring This to Your ConferenceBook Chris for your event.
Chris speaks on leadership, recruiting, career growth, and professional development for staffing and healthcare audiences. Check availability and receive a customized proposal.