At The Sweeney Agency, we are constantly gathering recent reviews and references on both our existing speakers as well as new additions to our roster, then tabulate the data to see who clients are picking as the best.

After careful consideration, we have narrowed down our Top 10 Speakers to Watch In 2015 in subjects ranging from Leadership and Increasing Sales Performance to Motivational Strategies and Business Management.

Mike Abrashoff – Former Commander, USS Benfold and Author of It’s Your Ship
Mike Abrashoff’s inspiring speeches challenge people to re-imagine their own leadership thinking and instill a renewed responsibility for results and success. At the age of 36, the Navy selected Abrashoff to become Commander of USS Benfold at the time, the most junior commanding officer in the Pacific Fleet. The immediate challenges that faced him on this underperforming Naval war ship were staggering: exceptionally low morale, high turnover and unacceptably low performance evaluations. Few thought that this ship could improve. In many ways, the USS Benfold was actually an extreme example of the same problems facing many organizations today.

Robyn Benincasa – Firefighter and Motivational Adventure Racer
Robyn Benincasa – NYT Best-Selling Author of How Winning Works: 8 Essential Leadership Lessons from the Toughest Teams on Earth – accepts full blame for inspiring people to do insane things like climb Mount Kilimanjaro, run their first triathlon, start their own adventure racing teams, or start their own businesses. This is, after all, who she is and what she does: Robyn Benincasa inspires people to do amazing things. Her unforgettable presentations have taught countless high-performance leaders all over the world about Building World Class Teams and the followership skills necessary for dynamic role shifting and true teamwork.

Ty Bennett – Speaker on Leadership, Communication and Entrepreneurship
With a natural ability to engage and empower others, Ty Bennett draws on his experience in the trenches to share real and tangible techniques about the principles of leadership that continue to create his success. The founder of Leadership Inc., who has been featured as one of the Top 40 Under 40, Ty is a young fresh voice providing interactive presentations that are engaging, dynamic and inspiring.

Reva Bhalla – Stratfor Vice President of Global Analysis and Speaker on International Politics
Reva Bhalla regularly represents Stratfor at speaking events in the United States and abroad. She provides an audience of decision-makers and sophisticated news consumers around the world with unique insights into political, economic and military developments. She uses her area of expertise combined with geopolitical analysis to produce penetrating explanations and forecasts of world events. This independent, non-ideological content enables users to better understand international events and reduce risks and identify opportunities in every region of the globe.

Dan Clark – Inspirational Speaker on Teamwork and Sales
Dan Clark is CEO of a multi-million dollar corporation, an internationally recognized speaker, champion athlete, entertainer, and author. He is the primary contributing author to the best-selling series, Chicken Soup for the Soul. Dan Clark draws on his experience in the world of sports and business and shares inspirational stories that offer insight into change, motivation, teamwork, and sales.

Mark C. Crowley – Leadership and Management Author
Mark C. Crowley spent over 25 years in the dog-eat-dog world of financial services, an environment known for its heartlessness and “take no prisoners” attitude. Twice, he held national-level responsibilities – most recently as Senior Vice President-National Manager for Investment Product Sales at one of America’s largest financial institutions, where he was named “Leader of the Year.” What he ultimately discovered is that his chosen management style was highly uncommon, yet extraordinarily productive. His teams constantly excelled. When asked what he was doing differently, Mark replied, “It’s the same disciplined approach others have with numbers and production… but mine is with people. You could say I manage the emotional side of work. I intentionally make people feel valued. I identify their raw talents and seek ways to further develop them. I express my deep belief in them, proactively teach them skills and make a deliberate point of honoring and recognizing all their achievements.”

Ryan Estis – Speaks on Business Performance, Leadership and Sales
Ryan Estis has dedicated his career to helping both companies and individual contributors leverage change as a catalyst to achieve breakthrough performance. Using his two decades of hands on business experience the former McCann World Group Advertising Chief Strategy Officer is widely regarded as a leading expert on Culture, Leadership, Sales Effectiveness and the Future of Work.

Steve Gilliland – Motivational Speaker and Author on Teamwork and Leadership
A member of the Speaker Hall of Fame, Steve Gilliland is one of the most in-demand and top-rated speakers in the world. His keynotes are motivational and help inspire better teamwork and leadership. Recognized by his peers as a master storyteller and brilliant comedian, he can be heard daily alongside Jerry Seinfeld and Jeff Foxworthy on SiriusXM Radio’s Laugh USA and Blue Collar Radio. With an appeal that transcends barriers of age, culture and occupation–plus an interactive and entertaining style–Steve shows audiences how to open doors to success in their careers, their relationships and their lives. He speaks to more than 250,000 people a year and has shared the platform with numerous dignitaries. Over two million people have heard him speak, with his audiences crossing over 29 different industries. Steve has the distinction of speaking in all 50 states and in 15 countries. As one newspaper stated, Steve is what happens when the humor of Ron White collides with the inspiration of Zig Ziglar.

David Goldsmith – Leadership and Management Expert
Over the past 29 years, David Goldsmith, author of the book Paid to THINK and president of the Goldsmith Organization, has captivated audiences with his hard hitting, innovative, comprehensive and consultative approach to presenting. It’s not uncommon for David’s research to be so extensive that the CEO of a $14B company remarked, “You understand our business as much as our executive management team.” The pre-presentation research translates into fresh, relevant on-stage content that is anything but the same old presentation you’d hear from one venue to the other. David delivers new models, tools, and insights that are innovative, meaty, and transformative which generates new paradigms for listeners. David is direct in his approach and is known for a consultative presentation style that provides solutions universally to decision makers worldwide. As a result, audience members are empowered to take action and effect change immediately after sitting in on his programs.

Marilyn Tam – Author and Speaker on Leadership, Productivity, and Diversity
Marilyn Tam, Ph.D. is a Speaker, Author, Consultant, Board Certified Executive/Corporate Coach, CEO of Marilyn Tam & Co. and Founder and Executive Director of Us Foundation. She was formerly the CEO of Aveda Corp., President of Reebok Apparel and Retail Group; Vice President of Nike Inc. and also a successful entrepreneur who has built four companies. She is now an international selling author, and she speaks, facilitates workshops and consults with corporations, organizations and people to achieve greater success and happiness. Marilyn helps people and organization find and fulfill their life purpose, and provide them with the principles and actions steps to take them their goals. Her NPR (Net Promoter Score), the industry standard for measuring customer satisfaction, from her clients is among the highest rated of all speakers.

*Speakers are listed in alphabetical order