Connect on Tour - Portland 2026

The Day at a Glance

If you’re headed to Connect on Tour in Portland, these are the presenters and topics we will feature:

Nailing the Landing: Building Employee Engagement While Building the New PDX

Julia Schultz and Lise Harwin - Port of Portland

The new PDX didn't happen to employees. It happened with them.

More than a decade ago, Portland International Airport undertook the largest public infrastructure project in Oregon history. Building a new airport on top of an existing one, while keeping it fully operational? That kind of transformation takes more than construction schedules and operational planning. It requires bringing nearly 10,000 airport employees along every step of the journey.

We’ll look back on the project – how we kept employees engaged, informed, and empowered; used milestone moments to drive PDX pride; and incorporated employee voices every step of the way.

Communication is Humanity’s Heartbeat: Building Resilience in Change, Risk and Complexity

Mark Mohammadpour, APR, Fellow PRSA, Chasing the Sun

Employee communication leaders are Humanity’s Heartbeat. When budgets tighten, members get louder, boards get nervous, and the news cycle is endless, the employee communication leader must be the steadiest voice in the room. This interactive keynote conversation reframes resilient employee communication as social capital, not just message discipline. Attendees leave with the start of a connection habit, a trusted framework, and the language to elevate the public relations profession and professional.

Mark Mohammadpour, APR, Fellow PRSA, is a keynote speaker on communication, employee culture, and well-being. His company, Chasing the Sun, empowers PR professionals to shine in the family room and the boardroom. Before launching Chasing the Sun, Mark was an executive at Weber Shandwick and Edelman, leading award-winning campaigns for Adobe, Microsoft, Samsung, and the U.S. Army.

The Neuroscience of Employee Engagement: Designing Communications for Stressed Brains

Ellen Griley, Equilibrious Communications

Business as usual is over. In its place: polycrisis. 

Employees are overwhelmed, uncertain, and navigating a different world than they were five years ago. The frameworks we’ve been using — built for engaged, stable, trusting audiences — don’t hold up.

Forward-thinking leaders must recognize the day-to-day humanity of what employees are carrying.

By understanding how chronic stress and uncertainty change the way employees respond to information, you can design communications that reach people the way you intend —  informed enough to do their best work.

This workshop introduces the neuroscience behind trauma-informed communications and provides a practical framework for designing messages that work with — not against — stressed nervous systems.

What Attendees Will Learn: 

• How fight/flight/freeze/fawn responses show up in workplace behavior and communication patterns 
• Why traditional “best practices” often fail for trauma-affected brains operating under chronic stress 
• A six-principle framework for designing communications that reduce cognitive load and build trust 
• Practical techniques to redesign key elements of the employee lifecycle (onboarding, change announcements, restructuring) using trauma-informed principles 

Ellen Griley is a trauma-informed communications consultant and founder of Equilibrious Communications. With over two decades leading award-winning newsrooms and employee communications teams at organizations including Cisco and Epson America, she helps organizations communicate with clarity, build trust, and keep people focused in an era of perpetual uncertainty.

DIY Internal Communications Audit

Laura Wentz, Gulfstream Aerospace

Take a fresh look at your communications strategy—without a big budget or outside consultant.

Wondering whether your internal communications are truly reaching and engaging employees? In this practical, hands-on session, learn how to conduct an effective internal communications audit using tools and resources you already have. We'll walk through a simple, step-by-step approach to evaluating channels, content, measurement practices and employee feedback to identify what's working, what's not and where opportunities exist.

As manager of Gulfstream Aerospace’s People Communications team, Laura Wentz is focused on creating impactful content that enhances the employee experience and promotes engagement. Prior to joining Gulfstream in 2013, she was a senior communications consultant at American Electric Power and communications director for the Ohio Department of Mental Health.

“Unpanel” Discussion

During our unpanel discussion, you and your fellow Connect on Tour attendees are the experts — you decide where the conversation goes. Trending employee comms topics, real wins, real challenges — bring your questions and get advice from people who've been there.