About Charlene Wheeless
Charlene Wheeless is a renowned communications pro, author, and speaker with more than three decades of experience in business, corporate affairs, and communications.
She leads her namesake communications and business advisory firm, Charlene Wheeless LLC, and is the senior advisor for equity and justice at APCO Worldwide, a global advisory, and advocacy communications consultancy.
Charlene Wheeless is a member of the APCO Worldwide International Advisory Council. Additionally, she partners as a senior counselor with Gagen MacDonald, a strategy execution firm and a longstanding APCO partner.
YOU ARE ENOUGH! chronicles Charlene’s fearless quest to be the best possible version of herself in every aspect of her life. “For me, this means busting up stereotypes, breaking down barriers, and flat-out refusing to be ignored, pigeonholed, or forgotten.” While YOU ARE ENOUGH! is her story, it’s everyone’s story.
A key voice in shaping the future of the communications profession, Wheeless is the chairman of the board of trustees for the Page Society, the world’s leading professional association for senior public relations and corporate communications executives.
Earlier, Charlene Wheeless served as the principal vice president of global corporate affairs for Bechtel Corporation, a$40B company and one of the leading engineering and construction companies in the world.
A sought-after speaker, Charlene Wheeless has presented at global business and industry events about societal issues, empowerment in corporate America, her “a-ha” career moment, the importance of being authentic, diversity beyond inclusion, and much more.
Most recently, Charlene Wheeless has appeared in several broadcasts and publications on the topic of social and racial injustice, finding and living your purpose, and a new way to climb the corporate ladder, including Chief Executive, Business Insider, Chief Learning Officer, CCO Podcast, Swaay, Populist, and Thrive Global.
Charlene Wheeless has been named by PR Week magazine as one of the 50 most influential PR professionals in the industry for five consecutive years. She was also named to the PR Hall of Femme, the PR Global Power Book, and the 2017 Network Journal’s “25 Influential Black Women in Business.” In addition, she was named a Woman Worth Watching” by the nationally known Profiles in Diversity magazine and a “Women Who Mean Business” honoree by the Washington Business Journal.
She resides in Northern Virginia with her husband of 29 years with whom she shares two adult daughters.
You Are Enough!: Reclaiming Your Career and Your Life with Purpose, Passion, and Unapologetic Authenticity
From renowned businesswoman and communications visionary Charlene Wheeless comes an inspiring memoir about facing life’s struggles with unrelenting courage and strength.
Part memoir, part motivational guide, and a clear roadmap for thriving in career and in life, YOU ARE ENOUGH! draws from Wheeless’s experiences climbing the corporate ladder and battling breast cancer to illustrate life lessons for others.
Personal recollections are used to illustrate that Black women not only have to contend with a glass ceiling but also a concrete wall that makes it impossible to even see what lies on the other side, much less determine how to get there. While acknowledging that there’s no single path around that wall, Wheeless shares advice on how she navigated the route herself. For Wheeless, this means busting up stereotypes, breaking down barriers, and flat-out refusing to be ignored, pigeonholed, or forgotten.
While YOU ARE ENOUGH! chronicles Charlene’s fearless quest to be the best possible version of herself in every aspect of her life, her story is everyone’s story regardless of race, ethnicity, or gender. With wit, raw honesty, blazing courage, and solution-driven sensibility, Charlene reminds us that we are enough!
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