YMCA Norfolk are partnering with Proclaimers Church to host the Global Leadership Summit (GLS), bringing one of the world’s most influential leadership events to the heart of Norfolk.
GLS Norwich will take place on Thursday 5th November at The Space, offering a one-day experience designed to inspire, equip, and empower leaders from all walks of life. The event features world-class content originally filmed at the global gathering in Chicago, streamed locally to create a space for reflection, discussion, and practical application among local leaders.
“Lead where you are” has always been the mantra of GLS. In a world overloaded with information, GLS offers a rare opportunity to pause, reflect, and re-energise your leadership. Whether you lead in business, education, church, your local community, or at home – GLS is designed to inspire and empower you.
It is a highlight of the year for many. We know that other leaders in Norwich feel similarly and we want to facilitate an opportunity for you to either come by yourself to be inspired, or bring a team with you to process the content and consider how to apply it to your organisation together.
If you’re wondering whether GLS is for you – Megan Saunders, Chaplain at YMCA Norfolk, put it clearly: “I would recommend it to anybody who’s got any level of influence, which, to be honest, is all of us.”
We encourage anyone interested in leadership – whether in ministry, business, education, or the community – to attend.
Global Leadership Summit 2025 Highlights
GLS 2025 featured speakers from a wide range of backgrounds and careers.
Church Pastor and Summit Champion, Craig Groeschel, opened the event and demonstrated the power of consistent, intentional actions which drive progress. Sales & Leadership Expert, Stephanie Chung, outlined how the rules of work are changing and provided ways to lead people who are not like you, leveraging the God-given potential of every individual.
Juliet Funt, High Performance Expert, encouraged leaders to embrace a ‘reductive mindset’ by strategically cutting down the work to bring clarity and focus. Best-selling author Jon Acuff concluded the day with a hilarious presentation on how to become procrastination proof.
The event also included breakout discussions and opportunities to connect with other local leaders from churches, charities, education, and business.
John Lee, CEO of YMCA Norfolk, said:
“Everyone wins when the leader gets better. There’s been content today for everyone, no matter what stage of the leadership journey you’re at. Whether you’re working in a church, within a charity or running your own business, the content has been so inspiring and practical. I’ve loved the breakout sessions where I can really unpack it with my team as well.”
Attendees also shared that “It’s been amazing to be around such a great community of like-minded individuals who are just looking to further their leadership and some incredible content from world class speakers that you just don’t get every day.” And “I really like the opportunity to gather in a room full of people, hearing from these world class communicators, and to think about how I can take my leadership forward, and also how I can do a better job of leading the people that I lead.”