The McDonald Cadet Leadership Conference is a three-day conference hosted at West Point that brings together top undergraduate student leaders from around the world. The conference focuses on developing leadership skills like critical thinking and collaboration through panel discussions on topics like the global economy, education, connectedness, and stewardship. Students are divided into small teams that work through case studies and produce op-eds. The 2015 conference had 84 student attendees from 27 US schools and 12 international schools. It featured panels moderated by US Military Academy leaders and presentations from accomplished senior fellows. The agenda included leadership tours, panels, team activities, and social events. Past attendees commented that the conference was inspirational and helped cultivate relationships that furthered their leadership development.

1. McDonald Cadet Leadership Conference
2015 OVERVIEW
Hosts: Mr. Bob & Diane McDonald
Department Head: COL Bernie Banks
As of: 8 April 2015
Officer-in-Charge: LTC Remi Hajjar
Lead Conference Planner: MAJ Laura Weimer

2. The mission of the McDonald Cadet Leadership
Conference (MCLC) is to bring together top
undergraduate student leaders from diverse
backgrounds to participate in a team-based,
experiential and analytical exercise that bolsters
leadership skills, fosters critical thinking and
collaboration, and develops potential strategies for
addressing pressing global issues.
Mission
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3. Bob McDonald
• Retired Chairman of the Board, President and
Chief Executive Officer of Procter & Gamble
• Current Secretary of Veterans Affairs
• Graduate of USMA, Class of 1975
Diane McDonald
• Former co-chair of Procter & Gamble
International Transferee Group (PGITI) non-profit group
Conference Vision:
Bob & Diane’s vision is for the conference to be the premier transformative, short-
duration leadership experience for young, emerging global leaders who unite with world
leaders in an enduring partnership. Co-founded conference in 2012, the MCLC is now in its
third iteration bringing together the best and brightest young minds at one of the best
leadership institutions in the world.
Co-Founders: Bob & Diane McDonald
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4. – Interdisciplinary collaboration
– Panels covering scalable, leadership-relevant topics
– Global and regional diversity
– Student-centric with active participation
– Focus on developing leadership skills
• Assess, Challenge, & Support
– Team-based problem solving with 360 feedback
– Close interaction with preeminent leaders as mentors
(mentorship continued after conference)
– Collaboration and networking with the world’s top
undergraduate student leaders
– OpEd publication from each small group
What makes this conference unique?
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5. Global Economy.
This panel explores how global organizations realize their organizational vision, core values, and a
develop a cohesive organizational culture when the organization spans multiple national/regional
cultures. Specifically, why is it important for leaders of global businesses and governments to
cultivate cross-cultural competence in their organizations and how is this achieved? How do
organizations think globally but act locally to balance the tension between globalization and
localization in regard to employees, customers and other stakeholders?
Education
This panel will consider how education can foster not only a culture of respect, but how education
can go further in creating a culture of understanding. Can college be an “ideal world” in miniature?
How do institutions of learning create opportunities for maximum exposure to diverse populations?
We will examine how education seeks to accomplish its inherent responsibility of equipping students
with the tools that will allow them to be successful in a diverse global community.
Connectedness
Connectedness is the manner and process of uniting people and purpose. Focused on social
connectedness, we seek to enhance cross-cultural competence by examining how to create positive
social change through social entrepreneurial endeavors, quality interpersonal relationships,
storytelling, traditional media, and technology.
Stewardship
Stewardship is a concept embracing the realization that leaders protect, preserve, enhance, and
are responsible for something. Stewardship is not a concept to embrace after one has become
successful. It is an approach to leadership that ensures our successes are real, tangible, durable,
and sustainable. To be a Steward in the complexity of the modern world requires cross-cultural
competence. This compelling discussion will explore the meaning of stewardship, its impact on
leadership, organizations, and its potential to be a source of pragmatic change in a complex world.
MCLC 2015: Cross-Cultural Competence
Conceptual Overview
-Vision/StrategyWoventhroughout:
-Governance/Policy
-Cross-CulturalCompetence
-DiversityofIdeas/Perspective
Guiding Question: How do leaders cultivate cross-cultural competence to best realize their
organizational vision, uphold their core values, and genuinely engage local actors in a global community?
Composition
Goal: Panels of 3
senior mentors
diverse in
experiences,
ideas, processes,
spans of
influence (from
local to global
levels), various
demographics
(age, gender,
ethnicity) and
cultural /
geographical
representation,
in order to spur
intellectually
stimulating
conversation
about how to
improve one’s
own footprint
and contribute
to their global
community.
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6. Ms. Ndidi Nwuneli
Founder of LEAP Africa and co-founder of AACE Foods
(Nigeria)
Mr. Randall Wallace
Screenwriter, director, and producer (including
Braveheart, We Were Soldiers, Pearl Harbor,
Secretariat)
Mr. Craig Mullaney
Author of “The Unforgiving Minute;” Former Senior Policy
Advisor for USAID; Former President of Content,
Strategy, and Operations at Ustream
Stewardship
Mr. Bob McDonald
MCLC Founder and host, retired president and CEO of
Procter & Gamble
Mr. Xiao an Ji
Chairman of the Board of Hainan Minzu Tech
Investment Co, Ltd., Beijing Hualian Group, and Beijing
Hualian Group Investment Holding Co., Ltd.
Ms. Moono Mupotola
Division Manager of Regional Integration and Trade of
the African Development Bank
Mr. Ho Kwon Ping
Executive Chair of Banyan Tree Holdings (Singapore)
GlobalEconomy
Education
Connectedness
MCLC 2015 Panel Moderator: LTC (P) Todd Woodruff
Panel Moderator: LTC Darcy Schnack
Panel Moderator: LTC Matt ClarkPanel Moderator: LTC Dan Smith
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Sir John Hood
President and CEO Robertson Foundation, Chairman
of the Rhodes Trust, Former Vice-Chancellor of the
University of Oxford
Dr. Daniel Polisar
Founder of Shalem College; Founder and Director of
Peace Watch
Dr. Donna Shalala
President University of Miami; Former US Secretary of
Health and Human Services; Recipient of the
Presidential Medal of Freedom
Mr. Bekele Geleta
Secretary General Emeritus of the International
Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies
Mr. Steven Nardizzi
CEO & Founder, Wounded Warrior Project
Mr. Tom Tierney
Co-Founder & CEO of the Bridgespan Group, former
Chief Executive of Bain & Company
Senior Fellows & Guest Speakers
Guest
Speakers
General (Retired) Stanley McChrystal – Keynote
Former Commander, International Security Assistance
Force (ISAF) and Commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan
Mr. Ray Jefferson – Cohort Bonding Journey
Leadership Practitioner, Consultant, and Speaker

7. Conference Methodology
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Theme:Cross-CulturalCompetence
Panel 1
Panel 2
Panel 3
Panel 4
Team 1 Question/Context
Team 2 Question/Context
Team 3 Question/Context
Team 4 Question/Context
Team 5 Question/Context
Team 6 Question/Context
Team 7 Question/Context
Team 8 Question/Context
Team 9 Question/Context
Team 10 Question/Context
Team 11 Question/Context
Team 12 Question/Context
LeadershipLens
Team 1 OPED
Team 2 OPED
Team 3 OPED
Team 4 OPED
Team 5 OPED
Team 6 OPED
Team 7 OPED
Team 8 OPED
Team 9 OPED
Team 10 OPED
Team 11 OPED
Team 12 OPED
Output: NY Times in Leadership Opinion Editorials
http://nytimesinleadership.com/spotlight-on-leaders

8. Student Fellows
27 Domestic Schools
46 attendees
12 International Schools
16 attendees
United States Military Academy
22 attendees
Total 2015 Student Fellows:
84
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9. Global Representation
9
Student Attendee
Senior Mentor

10. Thursday,
16 APR
Friday,
17 APR
Saturday,
18 APR
Sunday,
19 APR
MORNING ACTIVITIES
• West Point Leadership
through History Tour
MORNING ACTIVITIES
• Global Economy Panel & Team
Breakout Sessions
• Cross-team discussions
MORNING ACTIVITIES
• Cohort building activities
• Reflection/Op-eds
AFTERNOON ACTIVITIES
• (Senior Fellow Arrivals)
• Lunch (Cadet Mess Hall)
• Welcome/Senior Fellow
Introductions
• Education Panel & Team
Breakout Sessions
AFTERNOON ACTIVITIES
• Lunch (West Point Club)
• Stewardship Panel & Team
Breakout Sessions
AFTERNOON ACTIVITIES
• Farewell and Lunch
(Thayer Hotel)
• Student Fellow
Departures
EVENING ACTIVITIES
• Student Fellow Arrivals
• Dinner in Cadet Mess
Hall
• Student Fellow CLI
• Reflection Exercise with
Ray Jefferson
• USMA Band: Core of the
Corps
EVENING ACTIVITIES
• Connectedness Panel & Team
Breakout Sessions
• Dinner with Keynote
Speaker: GEN(R) McChrystal
• West Point Museum Social
Reception
EVENING ACTIVITIES
• Trophy Point & Flag Ceremony
• VIP Cocktail Hour with USMA Dean
• Dinner with Keynote Speaker:
Bob McDonald
• Cullum Hall Social Reception
• (Senior Fellow Departures)
2015 Conference Agenda
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11. “MCLC was most influential to me in a big-picture way. It was, for lack of a better term, a call to action.
The collaboration, inspiration, and brining together of so many amazing individuals really served as an
inspiration for my own leadership aspirations.”
– Michael Promisel, 2013 Student Fellow
“The three days that we all experienced together were far more profound than I could have ever
anticipated. I have attended leadership conferences before and, in fact, even took a semester-long
leadership course at Yale. However, the lessons that I learned at this conference, and the close-knit
relationships that I fostered with both students and mentors alike, made for an experience that far
surpassed these prior leadership initiatives. I certainly entered with a level of skepticism, always wary
of the extent to which leadership can be taught. I left feeling rejuvenated with a sense of purpose and a
desire to truly evoke change in the world around me.”
– Erin Biel, 2012 Student Fellow
“I have been surrounded by a group of deeply engaged individuals before, but never have I seen a
program that was able to cover so many pressing issues while pushing students to connect and engage
in such a short period of time.”
– Ryan Carter, 2012 Student Fellow
Student Comments
(MCLC 2012-2013)
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12. Senior Fellow Comments
(MCLC 2012)
“What a privilege to get to know [the student fellows] and to guide them over the past few
days. Thank you both for the opportunity. All I can say is “wow.””
– Maggie Wilderotter, CEO, Frontier Communications
“Such an honor to be a part of this amazing event!”
– Dave Sommer, Facebook Global Marketing Solutions
“Thanks so much for hosting this past weekend and including me in your gathering at West
Point. It was a privilege to be included in the group you convened, and such an incredible
opportunity to connect with some truly inspiring future leaders.”
–Richard Barth, CEO, KIPP Foundation
“It is a wonderful investment in these talented students.”
– Anne Mulcahy, Former CEO, Xerox
“I was honored to be a part of the team of panelists and mentors, and it was very gratifying
to spend time with the students. I’m confident that the experience had a profound impact
on the young adults who attended.”
– Gail McGovern, CEO, American Red Cross
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13. #MCLC2015