EARCOS 53rd Annual Leadership Conference

This October 26-28, Senior Associates Ray Sparks, Gez Hayden, and Nick Kendell along with Senior Consultant Norma Hudson had the pleasure of joining over 1,000 participants at the 53^rd annual East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS) Leadership Conference, held this year at the Shangri-La Hotel in Bangkok. For its theme, EARCOS chose ‘Creating Safe Harbors’.

Search Associates was the proud sponsor of Keynote Speaker Charles Vogl, whose talk “Building Resilient Communities” focused on helping leaders create a culture of belonging in, what he calls, the “loneliest era in organizational history.” As the author of three books, Dr. Vogl draws on 3,000 years of spiritual traditions to teach the wisdom and principles that build deep community and resilient relationships, elements that foster innovation and integrity within organizations around the world.

The Search Associates (SEARCH) representatives were incredibly busy catching up with the many SEARCH candidates who have come up the ranks—from teacher to administrator, and now, head of school. Conference sessions were engaging, and Child Safety and Onboarding were both informative and well attended.

Ray adds,

Another plus was joining the fully engaged audience at the workshop held by Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Consultants, Jacinta Williams and Shelley Paul, with whom Search Associates has been working with for several years.

Ray, Gez, Nick, Norma spent a great deal of one-on-one time with member school heads and administrators. Additionally, other school leaders dropped by the SEARCH table to see what services are offered. Ray shared,

Numerous exhibitors and school heads mentioned how busy we always were, engaging with everyone who dropped by to see us. No question, we do stand by our motto: Spanning the globe with a personal touch.

SEARCH has been a strong supporter of EARCOS over the years and is proud to be one of its 146 associate members. The majority of SEARCH member schools in East Asia attend EARCOS conferences, creating a valuable opportunity for SEARCH to engage with all attendees. Next year’s EARCOS Leadership Conference, to be held once again at the Shangri-La Hotel in Bangkok, will take place October 24-26^th , 2024.