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My Experience At ELI

  • Writer: Sarah Bryant
    Sarah Bryant
  • Jun 5
  • 5 min read

In 2021, I had the opportunity to attend the Emerging Leaders Initiative (ELI) hosted by The Center Consulting Group. Last night, The Center hosted an ELI Alumni Gathering for participants from the past five years. It was a great networking event to reconnect with mentors, catch up with peers, and make new connections!

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In-person networking & print media marketing

still matter!)


"ELI is a leadership development program designed for the next generation of leaders. Participants have the unique opportunity to learn from leaders across professional fields, explore future career interests, and identify their leadership strengths and growth areas. This selective program is for a maximum of 10 participants aged 18-24 and has a competitive application process."


ELI Logo

It was a week of engaging seminars and on-site presentations from local leaders across a wide array of industries.


All of the consultants and team at The Center are such genuine people who truly care about encouraging the next generation of leaders. It was so refreshing to be in an environment where we felt safe to be vulnerable, share personal struggles, and ask difficult questions. Everything was answered and executed in the framework of learning how to become our most authentic selves as individuals, so we can go on to help others do the same, and therefore be meaningful leaders.


*Photos courtesy of The Center Consulting Group.


A quick memory to share was when we spontaneously stopped at a lemonade stand on the way to a site visit. It was such a sweet gift for us all to see the joy on the girls' faces when we pulled up with a group order! (As their Instagram caption put it: "Our emerging leaders are supporting even younger leaders!")


My favorite part of the program was completing a DISC profile. This wasn't like other personality tests I had taken previously, where it just pumped out an answer, and you fit into an auto-generated box, and that's it. The way The Center handled DISC was different. It was personal. They purposefully planned time in the jam-packed program schedule to thoroughly explain our individual results so we could better understand ourselves and how to apply our profiles in real-world personal and professional scenarios. We even collaborated together to learn about each other's strengths and weaknesses, discussing what might blend well vs. potential challenges if we were a sample team to lead. It was incredibly helpful to learn how both my unique gifts and areas to grow could impact others.


Since ELI, I actively work to understand how people operate differently, and strive to help others understand how to co-exist productively and respectfully.


Most importantly, the Emerging Leaders Initiative helped confirm for me how I thrive in settings where I can serve, and it motivated me to start my business so I can help others with the skills I've been given.


This is why Bryant Marketing Solutions is not just about making money; it's truly a passion project through which I am personally fulfilled by the opportunities I have to connect with members of my local community and help them succeed in their professional goals.


The work I do is not just silly social media posts. It's meaningful marketing content which directly impacts the first impressions, continual perceptions, and overall growth potential of local entrepreneurs' businesses.


I'd love to help your business next! Schedule a consult call here.


Special Shoutouts


Jay Desko, Ph.D. - President & CEO at The Center Consulting Group

Billy Dunn, M.S. - Vice President & Senior Consultant at The Center Consulting Group


Jay has been a close family friend my entire life, and a personal mentor since my teen years. He is one of the smartest people I know, and I have been extremely blessed with the opportunity to learn from his guidance.


I met Billy when I attended ELI and greatly appreciated his down-to-earth, personable, and knowledgeable approach to motivating others.


These are two leaders whom I look up to and aspire to resemble in every way. If I can become a fraction of the leader they are, I will be gratified. I know they will brush this off in humility, but I sincerely mean every word. Thank you for your mentorship.


If you are a leader, I highly encourage you to check out Jay & Billy's resources, including these specific recommendations:

Thank you to all consultants who have presented at ELI over the years, and everyone on the Operations Team at The Center, who have all collectively invested in the upbringing of the next generation of leaders. (& I want to give a specific mention to my fellow lover of event planning Bre, for all her much-appreciated hard work planning the reunion event!)


Local Business Supporters of ELI


  • The Square at the Dublin Town Center - The location of the beautiful offices at The Center in Dublin, PA.


  • Branch Creek Taphouse - One of my absolute favorite local spots in Souderton, PA, and the amazing host of the ELI Reunion networking event. (Do yourself a favor and try their nachos & margs on the tap wall for Taco Thursdays!)


  • The ELI 2021 Anonymous Benefactor - You know who you are. Without your contribution, ELI may not have started, and our first group of participants may not have been blessed with the opportunity.


On-Site Locations & Presenters for ELI 2021



Fellow ELI 2021 Participants


  • Cole Brauer, now the proud owner of Brauer Services renovation company serving Bucks & Montgomery Counties

  • Louis Cocco, now an Associate Producer covering Philly sports on 94WIP and co-host of the Defend Philly Podcast

  • Jakob Siegel, now the Pastor of Youth & Outreach at Bethel Baptist Church in Cherry Hill, NJ

  • Julia Dunn, now an elementary school teacher and a recent graduate from Temple with her Master's degree (Congrats!)

  • & fellow leaders Joelle Grossman, Cole Derstein, Andrew Winner, Luis Morales, & Anthony Goodell (I know you're all doing great things!)


New Connections


Click here to learn more about ELI and apply for next year's program!

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