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Candace Warner

Dr. Candace Warner is a sociologist who is passionate about culture, diversity, demographic data, and inclusion strategies.  Dr. Warner has served as a trainer, facilitator, organizational consultant, and curriculum developer for public and private organizations seeking diversity and inclusion solutions since 2011. She is the founder and CEO of people3, Inc. The mission of people3 is to provide organizations with diversity and inclusion-centered training, consulting, and research solutions for individuals and organizations. Some of her current clients include Asurion, the Center for Nonprofit Management, Pillsbury Shaw Pittman Law Firm, Sony Nashville, TPAC, Showpad, and Provident Label Group.

Dr. Candace Warner has presented multiple public presentations on diversity and cultural competency in technology along with representatives from Dell, Asurion, and Microsoft. Dr. Warner recently completed certification in Cultural Intelligence and is designated as a CQ Certified Trainer from the Cultural Intelligence Center.

Since 2003, Dr. Warner has also served as a sociology professor and department coordinator for sociology & social work at Columbia State. In 2010, Candace was the recipient of the Distinguished Faculty Award at Columbia State and in 2011 was awarded the Faculty Excellence Award through the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) organization. In 2016, she was honored as Outstanding Alumni for the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice through the College of Arts and Sciences at Valdosta State University.

As a Ph.D. candidate, Candace studied economic development and poverty in China through Dongbei University of Finance and Economics in Dalian, China.  Dr. Warner currently serves as the Director for the India study abroad program through the Tennessee Consortium for International Studies, which provides international learning experiences for students across the state of Tennessee. In January 2019, Dr. Warner was awarded a faculty fellowship to study environmental and economic sustainability in India through the Center of American Overseas Research Centers and the American Institute of Indian Studies. Through the Tennessee Consortium for International Studies, Dr. Warner has taught sociology students in both South Africa and India.

Dr. Candace Warner has traveled to multiple countries including India, China, South Africa, Indonesia, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Aruba, United Arab Emirates, and Belize. Because of her efforts in expanding cultural understanding through consulting, teaching, and research, Dr. Warner served as the plenary speaker at the Annual Conference for the Tennessee Consortium of International Studies in 2018.

Candace completed her master’s degree in Sociology and Ph.D. in Public Policy. Dr. Warner’s dissertation research centered on understanding diversity and inclusive-centered services and initiatives throughout Tennessee communities and municipalities. Her major research interests focus on economic inequality, poverty, race, ethnicity, and gender.

Candace is currently involved with multiple professional groups in the United States and Tennessee, including the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), Pathway Women’s Business Center, Women in Technology in Tennessee (WiTT), Middle Tennessee Society for Human Resource Management (MTSHRM), and the Nashville Technology Council’s Diversity Committee.

For more information about Dr. Candace Warner, see her visual CV and LinkedIn profile.