About this Event
PuLSE 2026 Women's Power Breakfast Forum: DTE Energy Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Chief Diversity Officer Diane Antishin and Blue Cross Senior Vice President and Foundation President Tiffany Albert
Diane Antishin, the senior vice president of human resources and chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer at DTE Energy and Tiffany Albert, the senior vice president of community relations at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and president of the BCBSM Foundation will take center stage as the main speakers at an upcoming leadership forum for a discussion on the advancement of women in the national and local workforce and the opportunities for them to make meaningful social impact.
The program dubbed, Women’s Leadership Breakfast Forum, organized and hosted by The PuLSE Institute, Detroit’s national and non-partisan anti-poverty think tank, is held every year in honor of Women’s History Month. This year's program will take place on Tuesday, March 24, from 8:30am-10:30am at the Colony Club in downtown Detroit. The theme, Elevating Women's Influence in Business: A Necessary Component for a Thriving Economy, is anchored on the belief that in the fight against global poverty, the challenge facing the 21st century is not a question of whether there are enough women who are willing to join the campaign against poverty and inequality. The issue is there are not enough women in business leadership positions of influence with the resources and decision-making powers to bend the arc of the moral universe towards justice.
"This forum reflects Bankole Thompson’s unwavering commitment to truth, equity, and community empowerment as well as that of the leadership of The PuLSE Institute in continuing to challenge us to confront injustice and imagine what’s possible," Antishin said in a statement.
At DTE Energy, Antishin is responsible for the design, development, and execution of enterprise-wide strategy for workforce planning and development, talent acquisition, talent and succession planning, executive and employee compensation and benefits, payroll, health and wellness, and labor and employee relations. In addition, she oversees the company’s diversity, equity and inclusion strategy, cultivating a work and learning environment that encourages, supports, and values the multicultural mosaic of DTE’s team members, customers, business partners, suppliers and communities. Connected to her stewardship of DTE’s work environment, she leads the company’s efforts to equip and inspire team members to continuously improve their work processes to provide better service to customers and each other. Antishin also leads the employment and education pillar of the company’s force for growth strategies, driving economic growth and prosperity in the communities it serves.
"The PuLSE Institute’s Women in Leadership Forum is a wonderful opportunity to bring together business and community leaders to discuss important topics impacting our communities. By empowering women to take on more leadership roles, we can build stronger teams that create a brighter future," said Albert of BCBSM.
At Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Albert is responsible for community responsibility, social mission, and BCBSM Foundation functions. She most recently served as Senior Vice President of Health Plan Business with oversight for new group sales, specialty benefits, account management, distribution channel partnerships and sales operations. This follows her tenure as President and Chief Executive Officer of Blue Care Network and leading LifeSecure Insurance Company. Albert is a member of numerous professional organizations and has been an active member of the National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) since 1997. She is past president of both the Metro Detroit Association of Health Underwriters (MDAHU) and the Michigan Association of Health Underwriters (MAHU), where she previously served as vice president, secretary and treasurer, among other roles.
This will mark the first time Antishin and Albert have been invited on The PuLSE Institute’s high profile speaker forum which in the past has featured notable leaders and individuals such as: Dr. Natalia Kanem, United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, Ambassador Ann Derse, former United States Ambassador to Lithuania (2009-2012) and to Azerbaijan (2006-2009); Cynthia J. Pasky, President and CEO of Strategic Staffing Solutions; Sister Simone Campbell, SSS, former executive director of NETWORK and 2022 Recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom Award, Gary Torgow, Chairman of Huntington Bank, United States Federal Bankruptcy Judge Mark Randon, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, Rev. Dr. Frederick Douglass Haynes III, Senior Pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas, Jerry Norcia, Chairman and CEO of DTE Energy, Daniel Loepp, former president and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Sandro DiNello, former president and CEO of Flagstar Bank, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, former University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel, Wayne County Executive Warren Evans amongst others.
The forum will delve into the fact that this century’s biggest deficit is the lack of women in top leadership roles across the political and socioeconomic spectrum who could directly influence how resources are distributed in the fight against poverty.
Attorney Tina M. Patterson, the President and Director of Research at The PuLSE Institute, and one of the few women leading a prominent think tank in the country underscored the essence of the leadership forum.
“The Women's Leadership Breakfast Forum is one of The PuLSE Institute's most esteemed programs because it powerfully demonstrates exactly what we as an organization are all about- lifting up the talented, skilled, and intelligent voices of those whom society would otherwise attempt to ignore and dismiss. At this event that we host in honor of Women's History Month, we listen with purpose and intention to our accomplished speakers who are barrier breaking women that command significant power, steward substantial resources, and direct influential organizations," Patterson said. "At The PuLSE Institute, we thrive in showcasing such a norm that fully exists but is not appreciated and too often intentionally hidden. Hosting our distinguished guests at this Leadership Forum shatters the illusion that women must be confined to background roles and are not or cannot be competent business executives, accomplished professionals, and intellectual thought leaders."
Patterson, a distinguished attorney with more than a decade of legal expertise and prolific public commentary and the principal attorney at Patterson Justice Counsel PLLC, added, "We thank this year's confirmed speakers, Diane M. Antishin and Tiffany Albert, for their presence, participation, and generosity in sharing their perspectives with us on stage, and we look forward to learning and gaining inspiration from their incredible experiences."
Journalistic thought leader Bankole Thompson, who is the founder and dean of The PuLSE Institute, said the Women’s Leadership Breakfast Forum is critical to the continued push to elevate women across every facet of our national life.
“Any definition of economic advancement is incomplete unless it includes the comprehensive and enduring role that women have played in lifting up families and their communities from the dungeons of economic inequality,' said Thompson, a nationally acclaimed journalist and standard-bearer for economic justice issues. "That is why The PuLSE Institute's thematic and solution-oriented forums are geared towards moving the needle of equity and social impact and that includes asking some uncomfortable questions about the need to enhance the trajectory of women for the betterment of society."
Thompson said. “Women’s History Month affords us the opportunity and the space to delve into conversations that are necessary is breaking barriers and to see the full spectrum of leadership qualities that women bring to the table.”
Thompson a twice-a-week opinion columnist at The Detroit News and host of the podcast, , whose latest sixth book, HOPE: On The Mountain Of Fear will be out in April, added, “Diane Antishin and Tiffany Albert are two highly accomplished women who have demonstrated multidimensional leadership across many sectors and have shown through the immortal words of the great Maya Angelou, that women still continue to rise above the chasms of society to foster human development and innovation in this era."
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Colony Club Detroit, 2310 Park Avenue, Detroit, United States
USD 81.88
