We Talk: A Michigan Leadership Journey
Join Western Michigan University's We Talk series for a featured fireside chat with The Honorable Carlos Gutierrez, former CEO of the Kellogg Company and U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
A leader who never finished college. A childhood that began with fleeing Cuba with nothing. A career that reached the highest levels of American business and government. This is a story about what leadership actually looks like when the path isn't handed to you.
About Carlos Gutierrez: Former Kellogg CEO and U.S. Commerce Secretary
The Honorable Carlos Gutierrez's story begins far from any boardroom. At six years old, he fled Cuba with his family in the wake of the revolution, arriving in Miami with almost nothing before settling in Mexico — a young boy who spoke no English at all. That experience of starting over would come to define the way he approached every challenge that followed.
He began his career selling Kellogg's cereal out of a van. Over the next three decades, he rose to become the youngest CEO in the company's hundred-year history — without ever finishing college. He went on to serve as U.S. Secretary of Commerce under President George W. Bush, and later held executive roles at nearly a dozen major companies, all while quietly managing undiagnosed ADHD until he was 65.
His new book, Sheer Will: Learning to Lead When There Is No Path (St. Martin's Press, on sale October 6, 2026), chronicles that improbable path and his conviction that every obstacle is an opportunity in disguise.
For a community shaped by its own manufacturing roots, immigrant families, and first-generation strivers, his message lands close to home: talent shows up in unconventional forms, and setbacks — a language barrier, a missed degree, an undiagnosed disorder — don't have to be disqualifying. For WMU students, first-generation professionals, and local entrepreneurs alike, Gutierrez offers a directly usable model for building an uncommon path forward.
What to expect from the fireside chat
We Talk is WMU's award-winning civic engagement series, built to bring courageous, boundary-crossing conversations to our campus and community. This is the third We Talk event of the fall, extending the series' throughline of courage—into leadership, economic opportunity, and civic and business engagement.
Joining Gutierrez at the event are longtime business leader Bill Parfet, WMU President Russ Kavalhuna, Southwest Michigan First CEO Jennifer Owens and former Kellogg executive George Franklin.
The group will explore leadership pathways, resilience and how diverse life experiences shape the way people lead. It's a conversation about courage translated into action—the kind of leadership story that resonates with anyone building a career, a company or a community from the ground up.
This event connects three audiences that rarely share a table: business leaders making decisions about where to invest and hire, WMU's academic and civic leadership, and the students and first-generation professionals who will shape the region's future.
Why attend or sponsor: Connect with 300+ Southwest Michigan leaders
This is more than a luncheon—it's an opportunity to:
- Stand alongside a premier regional leadership event, reaching 300+ business, civic, academic, and community leaders from across Southwest Michigan.
- Hear a nationally recognized leadership perspective from a former Fortune 500 CEO and U.S. Cabinet secretary, brought directly to West Michigan.
- Connect with decision-makers — corporate executives, elected officials, university leadership, and community partners — in a focused, high-value setting.
- Invest in the region's future leaders by helping extend access to students, nonprofit partners, and community members who might not otherwise attend.
- Align your organization with a celebration of leadership, resilience, and economic opportunity through WMU's We Talk series.
- Help build a lasting tradition — this event is establishing itself as an annual signature gathering for Southwest Michigan's business and civic community.
Every level of participation includes a Community-Impact Table, providing free seats for WMU students, faculty, staff, community nonprofits, or Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) members, so your investment extends opportunity well beyond the room.
Request sponsorship levels and benefits at the link below.
Get involved with We Talk
Interested in sponsoring, attending, or partnering with We Talk?
Whether you're exploring a sponsorship, want to reserve seats at the luncheon, or are curious how your organization can get involved with We Talk's broader mission, our team is ready to talk.
Contact: Lisa Garcia, associate vice president for external partnerships
Explore We Talk
What is We Talk?
With a focus on navigating difficult conversations, We Talk expands your toolkit to take on critical issues at home, work and in your community.
What is Heterodox Academy?
As a Heterodox Academy campus community member, our programming fosters open inquiry, viewpoint diversity and constructive disagreement.
Meet the team
The We Talk team fosters respectful civic and political engagement and promotes tools to engage across different perspectives "so that all may learn."