New & Notable : Top 10 New Keynote Speakers to The Sweeney Agency’s Roster
These 10 keynote speakers are talking about the topics that our clients are talking about. Our job is to keep track of what you want to know, and then find great speakers who can help you learn, understand and thrive.
These 10 speakers are not new keynote speakers.
Each of these keynote speakers has received a minimum of 4.5 out of 5 for their keynote presentations from clients just like you, and has been honing their craft over years of hard work and attention to what is happening in their world.
We are excited to welcome them to The Sweeney Agency and introduce them to you.
Here are the Top 10 New Keynote Speakers to join The Sweeney Agency in 2024:
Kath Koschel – Founder, Kindness Factory; Resilience Expert
A testament to the power of human spirit, Kath Koschel is a survivor who has overcome incredible odds and unimaginable tragedy to inspire ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Koschel is a former professional cricketer and Ironman competitor who’s world came crashing down when she broke her back twice in the span of five years and was told that she would never walk again. Instead, she faced the challenges head-on and defied all medical prognosis by teaching herself to walk again on three separate occasions. In the midst of these harrowing experiences, she believes she experienced two things in large amounts: adversity and kindness. After re learning to walk for the second time in her life, this realisation kickstarted a 2-month journey around Australia which relied solely on the kindness of strangers. No cash, credit card food or water – and no help from family or friends!
Driven by a passion to spread gratitude and kindness sin the world, she founded Kindness Factory™ with the goal of encouraging one million acts of kindness. To date, Kindness Factory has recorded over 7 million acts of kindness and is now a registered not-for-profit in three countries.
An internationally sought after speaker and author of Kindness the book, Kath has worked with some of the biggest and most well-known companies and brands in the world to help them achieve perspective, resilience, good culture and of course, kindness.
Richard Newman – Best-selling Author, Speaker on Communication and Leadership:
Richard Newman is an award-winning expert in Leadership Communication, Storytelling and Influence, working in advanced communication since 1995. Richard specialises in showing leaders how to speak with greater impact and influence. He is regularly featured on BBC London Radio and is the author of the best selling book You were Born to Speak and the recently launched Lift Your Impact.
Richard’s clients include CEOs, Vice-Presidents and leadership teams across many industries, including Virgin, Expedia, EE, AXA, Microsoft and 3M.
In 2014 he won the Cicero Grand Award, the most coveted award in the world for speechwriting. In December 2018 he published his book ‘You were Born to Speak’ which on launch day ranked with Amazon as #1 best-seller on both kindle and hardcover editions.
Richard began by ‘Teaching English as a Foreign Language’ living in a Tibetan monastery in India. He then studied professional acting in London for three years. Richard worked as an actor on stage and screen, whilst continuing to study communication skills. Richard has been featured on Sky TV, Channel 5 News, in the Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, Forbes Magazine and many appearances on BBC London Radio and BBC Breakfast TV.
Richard founded Body Talk in 2000 and began working with a well-known Formula 1 team. His team at Body Talk have now worked with over 120,000 clients from 46 countries around the world. Recently they helped one client win over £1.2 Billion in new business by improving the way they communicate.
Quinn Conyers – Renowned Women in Leadership Keynote Speaker, Professional Event Emcee, and Corporate Communications Trainer
Quinn Conyers has established a reputation for transforming the speaking and communication abilities of diverse leaders/executives across multiple industries, giving them the courage to be powerful presenters, excel in their careers, and confidently address crowds internally and externally as clear, concise, and compelling communicators.
Quinn is a faculty and founding member of the Black Speakers Network (BSN) and has taught Speech Communications for 5 years at Coppin State University. In 2021 she was named one of 20 Black Women Entrepreneurs to Watch, a Distinguished Alumni from her high school and an AT&T Dream in Black Future Maker alongside Lebron James, Tabitha Brown and Sarah Jakes Roberts to name a few.
Paul de Gelder – Army Airborne, Navy Bomb Disposal Diver, Shark Attack Survivor, Author
IMPROVISE…ADAPT…OVERCOME… These three words – a mantra Paul de Gelder learned in the Australian Army as a young Paratrooper – resonated with him the first time he heard them. Paul de Gelder chased adventure wherever he could find it, from his wild ride as a teen and his whirlwind lifestyle working in clubs and the music industry to hauling his way up to the elite echelons of the Australian Defense Forces as an Army paratrooper and then Navy bomb disposal diver.
In February 2009, Paul’s adventurous life took a dramatic turn when a 10-foot bull shark attacked him during a routine Navy dive, severing his hand and leg. Rather than succumbing to despair, Paul channeled his indomitable spirit, fought through excruciating pain, and reclaimed his life.
His journey from trauma to triumph is extraordinary, marked by resilience and determination. His inspiring story, vividly chronicled in his autobiography “Uncaged,” takes “Never Say Die” to a new level.
Paul has also been a guest on major TV talk shows and starred as a guest trainer twice on the Biggest Loser Australia. He has hosted over 25 documentaries for Discovery Channel’s Shark Week, where he learned to hand-feed bull sharks, hammerheads, and blue sharks and dive with tiger sharks and even Great Whites without the protection of a cage. Megastar Will Smith featured Paul in his Facebook series “Bucket List” as his shark diving mentor, UFC Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey was taught how to hand-feed bull sharks by Paul, and most recently, Iron Mike Tyson became Paul’s shark diving student. Paul also became part of an anti-poaching team in Africa to film the excellent work the Rangers did for FEARLESS, which aired on NatGeo.
An incredible life and an incredible story.
Chaunté Lowe – Motivational Olympic Medalist, American Record Holder, and TEDx Speaker on Helping Your Group Navigate This Challenging Climate
Chaunté Lowe is the story of determination perseverance and strength. Not only is Lowe a mother of 3, a wife and a finance professional; she is also a professional athlete, an American Record Holder, a 4-time Olympian, a 3-Time World Championship medalist, and 12 times US National Champion.
When speaking she is true to how she performs. She is animated, entertaining and humorous. She dances and plays to the crowd as she shares her stories of beating impossible odds, time and time again. She possesses the ability to keep the group engaged and hanging on her every word or jump. Those who get a chance to encounter her leave inspired and motivated. Her infectious personality is electrifying. You can’t help but leave an interaction with her with a winning, “I can do ANYTHING” attitude.
Dan Chuparkoff – Leading Experts on AI, Innovation, & The Future of Work
Dan Chuparkoff isn’t just a speaker – he’s one of the world’s leading experts on AI, innovation, & the future of work. As a technology leader at Google, McKinsey and more; Dan led transformations for teams in every industry as the world navigated three decades of technological change. Dan knows first hand that the people who leverage the power of technology will outperform the people who don’t.
The Technology-speaker for non-tech teams, Dan’s superpower is making complex things simple and useful. With his skill as an AI-educator combined with his formula for harnessing the power of innovation, he helps audiences to escape disruption and find growth and success. Dan shows teams how to make sense of AI, how to harness the Power of Technology, and how to combine that with the Power of Human Expertise. With this powerful blend, teams will learn to leverage AI & other technological advantages to thrive in the exponential future ahead.
Jason Tharp – Award-winning Keynote Speaker, Author, and Illustrator
Jason Tharp challenges the status quo of the impossible to inspire audiences to embrace their authentic selves and work together towards success. Through his unique storytelling abilities and team-oriented approach, Jason delivers engaging and dynamic speeches at conferences across the country, sharing his own broken impossibles that include surviving brain cancer, obesity, negative self-talk, and self-doubt. His work focuses on leadership and self-leadership, encouraging individuals and teams to overcome challenges and pursue their full potential.
Jason Tharp has earned a reputation as a trusted source of dynamic and impactful leadership advice for high-level companies. He is renowned for inspiring audiences to break through their own impossibles while emphasizing teamwork and self-leadership. Jason’s speeches inspire audiences to stay focused, committed, and to never accept the impossible.
Jason’s interactive speaking style uses personal storytelling to inspire audiences to self-reflect on their own experiences. He creates a bridge of empathy through vulnerability, using a “H.O.P.E.” acronym to provide audiences with a “Power-Up” to stay focused on their goals. Jason’s keynotes are empowering, with moments of laughter, tears, and joy that have a transformative effect.
Crystal Washington – Leading Female Futurist and Technology Expert
Futurist, author, and Hall of Fame Speaker, Crystal Washington equips organizations with the knowledge they need to become “future-proof.” As a technology strategist and certified futurist, Crystal makes complex artificial intelligence, social media, and app technology easy to understand and accessible for everyday people.
Crystal’s clients include Fortune 100 companies, including Google, American Express, and Pfizer. As a sought-after keynote speaker, she has entertained and educated audiences around the globe. As one of Forbes’ 50 Leading Female Futurists, she appears weekly on season two of the Emmy nominated show Life 2.0. She’s also appeared in numerous publications, including Entrepreneur and Bloomberg Businessweek, and major television networks regularly call on her as a tech expert.
Crystal is the author of One Tech Action and The Social Media Why.
Richard Bliss – Renowned Speaker, Author, and Social Media Expert
Richard Bliss is the founder and president of BlissPoint, a social media consulting company that helps improve executives’ online communications and sales teams’ social selling behaviors.
Richard is recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voices Influencer and an experienced executive communications manager. His expertise has helped thousands of people master social media tools and become fluent in social conversations, building their platforms and confidence to reach their audience and define their brand effectively.
Richard is also the author of the book “Digital First Leadership,” where he simplifies the world of social media and how leaders can use it to their advantage. His podcast, “Digital First Leadership,” has been a transformational time for many, leading to success in their respective fields.
Natalie Nixon – Strategy, Foresight, and Innovation Expert, Award-winning Author
Creativity strategist Natalie Nixon is “the creativity whisperer for the C-Suite”. She is a highly sought after keynote speaker, valued for her accessible expertise on creativity, the future of work and innovation.
Natalie advises leaders on transformation- by applying wonder and rigor to amplify growth and business value. She brings an innovative and unique perspective to every keynote, strategic advisory engagement, and leadership coaching session. Her experience living in 5 countries combined with her background in anthropology, fashion, academia, and dance distinguish her as a one-of-a-kind creativity expert.
Natalie is a trustee of the Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt Design Museum; Vassar College; and Leadership+Design. Natalie received her BA (honors) from Vassar College, and her PhD from the University of Westminster in London. She lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Doug Manuel – Performer, Social entrepreneur, Inspiring Speaker on Building a Culture of Collaboration
Doug Manuel is a speaker and performer specializing in fostering purpose driven engagement and collaboration. He has performed at TED Global and with Oprah, and for 3 decades he has been delivering interactive virtual and in-person programs for fortune 500 companies and leading business schools around the globe.
His clients include HBS, The World Economic Forum, LVMH, Google and literally hundreds of others. The foundation of his work draws on the timeless wisdom of rural Africa where he has traveled and lived for more than 25 years pursuing his passion for West African music and culture.
He is the creator of ‘Do You Speak Djembe?’ an award nominated stage show (Chicago JEFF Awards). An ex-BBC documentary producer of 8 years, he has recently returned to film making to produce a documentary for Netflix (BEATS AS ONE) about the cure to the loneliness and isolation epidemic. His not for profit ‘Lighting Up Lives’, encourages partnerships with rural villagers across West Africa inspiring and supporting local action to solve local problems putting words into action.