Lisa Williams

Lisa Williams

Senior Director Operations Talent Strategy and Employee Experience Dow

Lisa Williams received a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Prairie View A&M University and a master’s degree in manufacturing management from The Pennsylvania State University. Lisa joined Dow as a design and construction engineer for capital projects. After a few years she transitioned to Supply Chain in global planning and improvement leadership roles. In 2010, she led a team supporting Dow’s $1B SAP upgrade in 3 regions. In 2015, Lisa transitioned into Global Procurement as senior category leader for equipment, logistics, and terminal services totaling more than $1.1 B in spend. In 2021 Lisa was selected to lead a corporate team to create Dow’s first-generation contract labor strategy, governance system, and operating model to govern a multi-billion-dollar annual contract labor investment. In 2024, after a successful contract labor strategy launch Lisa’s role was expanded to develop a global, fully comprehensive strategy for Dow M&E Operations talent impacting over 22,000 current and future employees. Lisa is a Six Sigma Black Belt, APICS CPIM and CSCP, and Prosci ADKAR change leadership certified. She is also the Dow University Champion for Florida A&M University and leads the corporate HBCU engagement strategy. Lisa advocates for talent evolution in a skills-first world, champions for improved employee experience, inclusion and equity. She is a published author, TEDx speaker, and keynote speaker, panelist and advisor for many industry and academic organizations.

Main Conference Day 1 - February 24, 2026

4:50 PM Reimagining Talent Strategy with AI: Building a Resilient Workforce

In today’s volatile landscape, traditional workforce planning is no longer enough. Lisa shares how Dow is rethinking talent strategy from within operations, not HR, by identifying the urgent need for AI-powered models that can forecast, modernize, and redeploy talent across global sites. This session will explore how to build a resilient, data-informed talent strategy that meets the demands of a rapidly evolving marketplace.

  • Understand why legacy job structures and outdated data systems are no longer fit for purpose and how AI can help organizations forecast talent gaps, model workforce scenarios, and make smarter, faster decisions in times of disruption
  • Explore how Dow is laying the groundwork for transformation by capturing raw skills data from 22,000 employees, creating a foundation for modernizing roles, identifying risk areas and targeting upskilling efforts with efficiency
  • Analyze how AI models could help visualize workforce dynamics across geographies, identifying where critical skills are lacking and where surplus talent could be redeployed enabling smarter, more agile workforce planning
  • Gain insight into why Lisa is calling for industry-wide collaboration, encouraging peers and competitors alike to articulate shared needs so that technology providers can build scalable, cross-sector solutions that benefit the entire ecosystem 

Check out the incredible speaker line-up to see who will be joining Lisa.

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