Business leader Carly Fiorina to speak at Dixie State’s commencement

Business leader Carly Fiorina will speak at Dixie State University’s commencement ceremony. Photo date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Dixie State University, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — Helping Dixie State University honor its class of 2022, Carly Fiorina, founder and chairman of Carly Fiorina Enterprises and former CEO of Hewlett Packard, will deliver the keynote address at the university’s 111th commencement ceremony.

The graduation ceremony is scheduled for 7:30 a.m. on May 6 in Greater Zion Stadium on the DSU campus.

“We are honored that Carly Fiorina will share the lessons she has learned as a business leader and presidential candidate at Dixie State University’s 111th Commencement Ceremony,” Dixie State President Richard B. Williams said in a news release. “She is the perfect role model to encourage our graduates as they embark on their future careers.

“As the institution prepares to transition to Utah Tech University this summer, Ms. Fiorina’s perspective as a successful CEO in the tech sector will be invaluable to all of our graduates as they prepare to blaze their own trails, just as she has.”

Fiorina’s career has had two constants: leadership and problem solving. From helming Hewlett Packard, to her 2016 run to lead the country, to heading several philanthropic organizations tackling global poverty and female empowerment, Fiorina has channeled an innate ability to help others reach their highest leadership potential.

Notably, Fiorina has been a business leader in turbulent times, leading HP to become the 11th largest company in the U.S. when the industry was facing the worst technology recession in 25 years, the news release said. Additionally, Fiorina’s leadership skills have been leveraged to problem solve world health crises. During the 2014 Ebola crisis, as chairman of the board for Good360, Fiorina led the world’s largest product philanthropy organization’s dramatic response to the crisis by galvanizing the U.S. business community to provide U.S. supplies to West Africa.

A Dixie State University commencement ceremony, St. George, Utah, May 5, 2017 | File photo by Mori Kessler, St George News

Fiorina’s leadership expertise has been sought by the public sector as well. She was an advisor for the State Department and Department of Defense, and she counseled on the formation of the Department of Homeland Security. After 9/11, she was appointed by President George W. Bush and CIA Director Michael Hayden to serve as the chairman of the External Advisory Board of the CIA.

In 2015, Fiorina launched a campaign for president. Fiorina is also a best-selling author. Her titles include “Tough Choices” and “Rising to the Challenge.” Her third book, “Find Your Way,” was published in spring 2019 and documents the path to unleashing one’s own power and highest potential.

Today, Fiorina is a passionate, articulate advocate for problem-solving, innovation and effective leadership. She is founder and chairman of Carly Fiorina Enterprises, which works with companies to create an equitable workplace culture, build high-performance teams and teach the fundamentals of leadership.

Dixie State’s Class of 2022 consists of 2,684 degree candidates. Among the candidates for graduation are students from 49 states and 15 other countries. Of the graduates, 63% are female and 37% are male.

Dixie State University is an open-enrollment institution that offers more than 200 academic programs across all disciplines — humanities, arts, education, health sciences, business and STEM. With the most affordable university tuition in Utah, DSU helps students make, create and innovate in the classroom and online while gaining real-world active learning experiences through internships, clinical experiences, undergraduate research, industry partnerships and service learning.

To learn more about Dixie State University’s 111th Commencement Ceremony, click here.

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