From Super Bowl champ to chief culture officer, keynote speaker at Sioux Falls workforce conference previews message

Among the many lessons Ben Utecht took away from his NFL career, this one has formed his future:

“If you build better men, you get better football players.”

Utecht learned and lived that mantra thanks to his Indianapolis Colts Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy, “the first to win a Super Bowl based on servant leadership,” he said.

“He was probably the most authentic and consistent leader I’ve ever been around. What you see is what you get. People want to be led by him because they can trust that his moral and ethical and corporate self is consistent and scalable.”

Utecht now leverages those and other life experiences in his role as chief culture officer at True North Equity Partners, based in his home state of Minnesota but with multiple business interests in the Sioux Falls area. Its portfolio spans 28 companies across five industries and includes ownership of the Sioux Falls Canaries.

“I always joke in keynotes that in my last career, my job was to hit people first, and now my job is to care about people first,” he said.

“In a company as leaders, you realize you have the opportunity to transform every single person that walks through the door in a way such that they go home a better person. How inspiring is that? If we put the time and intentionality into our culture, not only can we increase revenue but we can improve our people, and they might become better partners and parents and friends because of their work experience.”

He’ll share that message with attendees at the seventh annual WIN in Workforce Summit, presented by the Sioux Falls Development Foundation. The popular event will be from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Sept. 24 at the Sioux Falls Convention Center. Click here to learn more and register.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Ben Utecht as this year’s keynote speaker,” said Denise Guzzetta, vice president of talent and workforce development. “His message empowers organizations to design, deploy and direct culture strategies that not only boost the bottom line but also inspire and uplift employees.”

WIN in Workforce itself is an all-day opportunity “to share best practices in talent and workforce development, network with experts and gain valuable insights that will help you and your business excel,” she added.

Breakout sessions will be structured around talent attraction, retention and current issues contributing to the workforce development field:

• Engage and hear from leaders transforming our region and workforce landscapes.
• Find out how technology is transforming the way and how people work.
• Learn the new playbook for employee retention in the global and diverse workplace.
• Hear from CEOs and seasoned business leaders about where and how they are investing in the workforce to develop and strengthen their organizations.

Beyond the business world, Utecht’s philanthropic focus lies in concussion awareness — a cause close to his heart because of a career-ending brain injury. His journey, chronicled in his book, “Counting the Days While My Mind Slips Away,” sheds light on memory, relevance and resilience.

As an award-nominated singer, his talents extend beyond business — performing for presidents to serenading Muhammad Ali.

At WIN in Workforce, he describes his message as “The Champion’s Creed,” a creed being a set of beliefs that guide behaviors and actions.

“The mission is how to build high-performing, championship culture within your organization built on the practice of an objective value and belief system,” he explained. “My goal is not just to be an inspirational speaker but to help businesses understand culture more objectively and, more importantly, how to practice culture and develop their people to help achieve their business goals.”

Attendees will leave with practical, actionable advice for incorporating culture into hiring, onboarding, training, talent development and employee engagement, he said.

“How are you hiring toward your culture and then developing team members toward the beliefs of the organization and holding them accountable?” he said. “And then as leaders, you also want to be listening and learning from employees because they are going to be honest and tell you what your culture needs are.”

Utecht also will be sharing insight with high school students attending the event as part of the Sioux Falls Development Foundation’s Career Connections program.

“Where I think this is great for high school listeners is that it should inspire emotional intelligence development,” Utecht said. “We’re talking about things in an inspirational way that provides clarity for them to begin thinking about their strategic plan for life. Decisions about college or what to study are connected to their belief system, so my hope is that there’s crossover in how you create culture and strategy in business and how you can apply that individually in your life.”

Note: Sessions at the WIN in Workforce Summit are eligible for nine SHRM and HRCI recertification credits. The Sioux Falls Development Foundation is recognized by SHRM to offer professional development credits for SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification activities.

If you have questions, email deniseg@siouxfalls.com. Click here to learn more and register.

Here’s a look at the full agenda: