Meet our Founder

Leadership

Candace Warner, PH.D.

Dr. Warner is the Founder and CEO of people3, Inc., headquartered in Nashville, TN. She is a sociologist, educator, and diversity and inclusion consultant who has been teaching and facilitating conversations about diversity and inclusion for 22 years.

For the last 15 years, Dr. Warner has worked with private, government, and non-profit organizations to develop diversity and inclusion strategies, education, and consulting services. She has worked with over 200 different organizations in the space of diversity and inclusion.

Dr. Warner holds a Master’s degree in Sociology and a Ph.D. in Public Policy.

In 2021, the Nashville Business Journal honored Dr. Warner as a Women of Influence Winner in the Top Executive category. In 2022, the Anthem Awards honored Dr. Warner as a 2nd place winner for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Leader of the Year.

In 2021, people3 was honored by the Nashville Entrepreneur Center as a NEXT Awards Finalist and in 2022 by the Nashville Business Journal as a Best in Business Finalist. In 2023, people3 was honored for Inclusive Organizations, a people3 online diversity and inclusion course, by the Anthem awards.

Request a Conversation

{

Empathy drives my life’s work. Every day I try to expand my own empathy–this is something sociologists do all the time–to understand someone else’s world from their perspective. Additionally, it’s always my goal to foster and grow empathy in others to help them understand the value of diversity, the benefits of inclusion, and the impact of social inequality.



People3 Honors

Bronze Winner
Employee Learning & Development Initiative
Anthem Awards

Best in Business Finalist
Nashville Business Journal

NEXT Awards Finalist
Products, Services, and Retail Category
Nashville Entrepreneur Center



Dr. Candace Warner Honors

Silver Winner
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion of the Year
Anthem Awards

Women of Influence Winner
Top Executive Category
Nashville Business Journal

Nashville Emerging Leaders
Class of 2021

Fellowship Award Recipient
Council of American Overseas Research Centers & American Institute of Indian Studies

Outstanding Alumni
Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice
Valdosta State University

Faculty Excellence Award
National Institute for Staff & Organizational Development (NISOD)

Distinguished Faculty Award
Columbia State Community College



Certifications

Cultural Intelligence Center

Certified in CQ 360 Assessment and Cultural Intelligence Model Delivery
Certified as Cultural Intelligence Trainer

v

Speaking Engagements

Black in Corporate America
Transformation Life Center
P2SI Leadership Academy

Implementing an Effective DEI Strategy
Association of Energy Services Professionals’ (AESP) Annual Conference

DEI Strategy in Higher Education
Higher Education Tennessee (WHET)

How to Measure the True Impact of DEI
Annual Inc 5000 Vision Conference
Inc. Magazine

Economic Impact of COVID-19 on Women & Minorities
International Women’s Day Nashville

Hacking Implicit Bias
Hacking HR Nashville Chapter

Diversity and Inclusion in the Nashville Construction Industry
Nashville Association for Women in Construction

A Seat at the Table: Women in the Workforce
JumpCon Sales Conference

Women in Leadership: Bridging the Divide
Advancing Women in Nashville

Plenary Conference Speaker
Tennessee Consortium for International Studies Annual Conference

See all speaking events →

Professional Certifications

Membership Organizations