Elena Joy Thurston
CEO at Latitude
Human Resources
Education: Arizona State University
Phoenix, AZ, USA
Biography
Speaker | Author | Executive Team Coach | Inclusive & Sustainable Leadership Expert
Elena Joy Thurston is a nationally recognized speaker, training facilitator, and founder of Latitude, a leadership development company helping organizations build inclusive and sustainable leadership pipelines. Featured in the award-winning documentary CONVERSION, Elena Joy blends personal story with practical strategies to ignite lasting change in workplace culture and morale.
A former Mormon mom of four, Elena Joy lost her marriage, church, and community when she came out as a lesbian, an experience that fuels her work today in creating inclusive and syst. Her viral TEDx talk on surviving conversion therapy has reached over 45,000 viewers and led to keynotes and trainings with organizations such as the Denver Broncos, Penn State, Michaels, Logitech, ABC, CBS, FOX, Forbes, and HuffPost.
Elena Joy helps leaders move beyond buzzwords, equipping them with actionable skills to create cultures where people feel safe, seen, and able to thrive.
Passion
I absolutely adore fly fishing. Yes, I live in Arizona. I also love raising puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind, playing Tetris, and traveling.
Best Story
How I came out to my Mormon kids, ages 8-16 at the time.
Origin Story
I'm Elena Joy and my journey has been shaped by resilience, self-discovery, and a deep commitment to helping others thrive. As a survivor of conversion therapy, I’ve shared my story in a TEDx talk that has reached thousands, and those experiences have given me unique insights into fostering authentic connection and purpose-driven leadership.
My mission is to help organizations create environments where all humans feel safe, valued, and empowered to do their best work. In the past, this has included a focus on DEI strategies, especially when it comes to disability, neurodiversity, and gender diversity. Today, I also focus on leadership development, building sustainable pipelines through burnout prevention and emerging leader programs. I’ve been fortunate to share this work with organizations like ABC, CBS, Forbes, HuffPost, Michael’s, and the Denver Broncos.
I'm the founder and CEO of Latitude Leaders, where all of this work plays out with an amazing team. Simply put, I make it easier for your leaders to come to work. I'm glad you're here!
Example talks
Build Your Burnout-Free Future
Most leaders think preventing burnout is about better time management—but that’s a costly misconception. True productivity and resilience aren’t about squeezing more into the day; it’s about curating capacity.
When leaders and teams have more capacity, they bring greater energy, creativity, and resilience to their work—fueling a self-sustaining cycle of productivity and engagement. In this interactive workshop, we’ll break down the science of capacity, uncover the hidden drains on your team’s potential, and explore practical strategies to expand your leadership bandwidth.
Join us to rethink how you approach burnout prevention and discover how curating capacity can transform performance, retention, and workplace well-being. Participants will learn three skills they can put into practice immediately to increase their capacity and prevent burnout in 2025.
Design a personalized method to increase focus and get more done in less time
Identify internal boundaries that free up capacity and increase energy
Discover a method of restoring capacity before burnout hits
Inclusive Leadership Skills: Beyond the Basics & Into Action
Beyond Buzzwords and Into Action: Inclusive Leadership
In her signature keynote/workshop, TEDx speaker, trainer and author, Elena Joy, inspires her audiences to speak up and create a culture of allyship and belonging. Elena Joy moves her audiences to both tears and laughter as she integrates her stories of life as a Mormon mom of four who lost her marriage, her church, and her community when she came out as a lesbian, with actionable ways to increase authentic inclusive leadership through allyship.
Through a solid foundation of Inclusive Leadership, participants will understand a deeper meaning of Allyship, whether you're trying to increase inclusivity around race, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, age, etc. We will look at all the skills that are required to be a good ally, and we can use role plays that are appropriate based on what your organization is grappling with. In this experience, we will identify key behaviors that demonstrate allyship, learn to speak up on behalf of one's self and members of marginalized groups while also developing a new language to apologize for causing harm.
Whether you are a seasoned leader looking to lift the people behind you, or a rising leader who wants to speak up for yourself and marginalized communities, this workshop is a perfect fit for HR leaders, DEI programs, and executive leadership retreats.
By the end of this presentation/ ½ day workshop your audience will:
Identify what lack of inclusive leadership is costing your organization with specific action steps to remedy the most common missteps, including clues to see if actions are performative vs authentic.
Discover the four pillars of inclusive leadership so that you can shift your mindset and your behavior in a sustainable way.
Identify/Develop the highly effective skills that are needed to speak up and influence to develop a culture of allyship, while centering and elevating marginalized voices.
Learning Objectives:
Learn actionable Inclusive Leadership skills that will make your organization’s DEI initiatives sustainable and successful.
Understand the foundation of authentic inclusion to create a safe work environment that attracts and retains key talent
Gain knowledge on inclusive communication to increase global and cultural effectiveness
Featured Video
I am willing to travel
More than 100 miles
When it comes to payments
I generally get paid for speaking but make exceptions
Topics
Best Story
How I came out to my Mormon kids, ages 8-16 at the time.
Origin Story
I'm Elena Joy and my journey has been shaped by resilience, self-discovery, and a deep commitment to helping others thrive. As a survivor of conversion therapy, I’ve shared my story in a TEDx talk that has reached thousands, and those experiences have given me unique insights into fostering authentic connection and purpose-driven leadership.
My mission is to help organizations create environments where all humans feel safe, valued, and empowered to do their best work. In the past, this has included a focus on DEI strategies, especially when it comes to disability, neurodiversity, and gender diversity. Today, I also focus on leadership development, building sustainable pipelines through burnout prevention and emerging leader programs. I’ve been fortunate to share this work with organizations like ABC, CBS, Forbes, HuffPost, Michael’s, and the Denver Broncos.
I'm the founder and CEO of Latitude Leaders, where all of this work plays out with an amazing team. Simply put, I make it easier for your leaders to come to work. I'm glad you're here!
Example talks
Build Your Burnout-Free Future
Most leaders think preventing burnout is about better time management—but that’s a costly misconception. True productivity and resilience aren’t about squeezing more into the day; it’s about curating capacity.
When leaders and teams have more capacity, they bring greater energy, creativity, and resilience to their work—fueling a self-sustaining cycle of productivity and engagement. In this interactive workshop, we’ll break down the science of capacity, uncover the hidden drains on your team’s potential, and explore practical strategies to expand your leadership bandwidth.
Join us to rethink how you approach burnout prevention and discover how curating capacity can transform performance, retention, and workplace well-being. Participants will learn three skills they can put into practice immediately to increase their capacity and prevent burnout in 2025.
Design a personalized method to increase focus and get more done in less time
Identify internal boundaries that free up capacity and increase energy
Discover a method of restoring capacity before burnout hits
Inclusive Leadership Skills: Beyond the Basics & Into Action
Beyond Buzzwords and Into Action: Inclusive Leadership
In her signature keynote/workshop, TEDx speaker, trainer and author, Elena Joy, inspires her audiences to speak up and create a culture of allyship and belonging. Elena Joy moves her audiences to both tears and laughter as she integrates her stories of life as a Mormon mom of four who lost her marriage, her church, and her community when she came out as a lesbian, with actionable ways to increase authentic inclusive leadership through allyship.
Through a solid foundation of Inclusive Leadership, participants will understand a deeper meaning of Allyship, whether you're trying to increase inclusivity around race, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, age, etc. We will look at all the skills that are required to be a good ally, and we can use role plays that are appropriate based on what your organization is grappling with. In this experience, we will identify key behaviors that demonstrate allyship, learn to speak up on behalf of one's self and members of marginalized groups while also developing a new language to apologize for causing harm.
Whether you are a seasoned leader looking to lift the people behind you, or a rising leader who wants to speak up for yourself and marginalized communities, this workshop is a perfect fit for HR leaders, DEI programs, and executive leadership retreats.
By the end of this presentation/ ½ day workshop your audience will:
Identify what lack of inclusive leadership is costing your organization with specific action steps to remedy the most common missteps, including clues to see if actions are performative vs authentic.
Discover the four pillars of inclusive leadership so that you can shift your mindset and your behavior in a sustainable way.
Identify/Develop the highly effective skills that are needed to speak up and influence to develop a culture of allyship, while centering and elevating marginalized voices.
Learning Objectives:
Learn actionable Inclusive Leadership skills that will make your organization’s DEI initiatives sustainable and successful.
Understand the foundation of authentic inclusion to create a safe work environment that attracts and retains key talent
Gain knowledge on inclusive communication to increase global and cultural effectiveness