Future

Find a Future Speaker

    Simon J. Anderson Speaker

    Simon J. Anderson

    Founder of Venture Foresight, Futurist, Award-winning Author and Global Speaker on Trends & Technology.

     About

    • Simon talks about the near future and how to recognize important trends and technologies that are reshaping industries like AI, Robots, and Automation.
    • Audiences learn specific actions and next steps that they can take right away to make their organizations more future-resilient.
    • Simon is the Founder of Venture Foresight, a firm dedicated to helping leaders recognize opportunities in emerging technologies and trends.
    • Past clients include: AT&T, American Heart Association, Michigan Bankers Association, Telekom Austria Group, TMW

    About Simon J. Anderson - Founder of Venture Foresight, Futurist, Award-winning Author and Global Speaker on Trends & Technology:

    Simon J. Anderson is an Applied Foresight speaker and consultant. He helps leaders and organizations be more future resilient - and has shared his compelling message with thousands of senior executives and other leaders in a variety of industries from coast to coast in the United States, as well as internationally. In 2013, he founded Venture Foresight, a company dedicated to helping leaders recognize opportunities in emerging technologies and trends. The world is changing faster than ever, and every industry is being transformed. Find out how Simon can help you spot the opportunities created by all this change before they become challenges.

    Simon co-authored the 2014 Bellwether Award winning book Foresight 20/20: A Futurist Explores the Trends Transforming Tomorrow with fellow global futurist Jack Uldrich. With two new chapters and hundreds of updates, the 2015 “Updated & Expanded” edition broadens the focus to include new industries, insights, and advancements. Watch for Simon's upcoming book to be released Fall, 2019 - in progress with the working title Outrunning Automation: How to Create Value in a Fast-Changing World.  This too will be a must-read!

    As a key member of the international organization Communities of the Future, Simon works to promote and facilitate “future’s thinking’ in communities around the world. His work as a futurist also informed his roles as an advisor to several technology startups and a multinational educational non-profit organization.

    Having traveled to more than 25 countries, Simon brings a global perspective to his work, which has been featured in numerous publications including the World Future Society’s monthly newsletter, “The Futurist” and the Austrian management magazine the “Hernsteiner.”

    Simon and his wife Helena Cruz Sanchez live in Minneapolis, MN.

    Nikolas Badminton Speaker

    Nikolas Badminton

    Futurist Speaker, Advisor, and Best Selling Author

     About

    Nikolas Badminton is a global futurist speaker and Chief Futurist that mentors top executives and the highest levels of government to explore desirable futures, anticipate unforeseen risks, and strengthen strategic planning.

    He has spent 30+ years working with leadership at over 400 leading organizations at the frontline of foresight, strategy and disruption - including NASA, United Nations, Google, Microsoft, Intel, IBM, WM, JP Morgan CHASE, VISA, TD Bank, American Express, BISCI, ISACA, Rolls Royce, Procter & Gamble, US Department of State, UK Home Office and many more.

    Facing Our Futures: How foresight, futures design and strategy creates prosperity and growth - is Nikolas’ number one best selling book and has been selected for the Next Big Idea Club and as JP Morgan Private bank’s ‘Next Gen Pick’ for their prestige 2023 Summer Reading List to guide new leaders to ignite curiosity and embrace futures thinking.

    Nikolas’ essential research has been featured by the BBC, VICE, The Atlantic, Fast Company, Business Insider, Forbes, Sunday Telegraph and many others. He appears on SIRIUSXM and CTV regularly, was a key advisor to the ‘Age of AI’ series with Robert Downey Jr, and appears in the Franklin Institute's series ‘2050’.

    Lisa Bodell Speaker

    Lisa Bodell

    Globally Recognized Futurist and Expert on Simplification and Innovation

     About

    • Talks about disruptive trends and ideas, and how to apply them to develop new business concepts
    • Teaches audiences action-based tactics that use small, incremental innovative changes to create huge ripple effects on business
    • Bestselling author of Kill the Company and Why Simple Win, and taught innovation at both American University and Fordham University
    • Past clients include: IBM, Merck, Microsoft, Novartis, Procter & Gamble

    FutureThink CEO Lisa Bodell ranks among the Top 50 Speakers Worldwide and is the best-selling author of Kill the Company and Why Simple Wins. She’s a global expert on simplification and innovation, who inspires audiences to stop their old ways of working so they can do more work that truly matters.

    A thought leader and serial entrepreneur, Bodell's transformational message has inspired executives at top-ranked organizations such as Google, Novartis, Citigroup, LinkedIn, and CVS/Aetna.  Her provocative yet practical approach enables leaders and their teams to eliminate the unnecessary complexity and time-sucks that hold them back and make simplicity their competitive advantage.

    Bodell is a monthly contributor to Forbes and has frequently appeared in Fast Company, WIRED, The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, and more. She's been featured in many major books such as Warren Berger’s A More Beautiful Question, Adam Grant’s Originals, and After Shock, the 50-year celebration of futurist Alvin Toffler’s Future Shock

    Bodell has taught at both American University and Fordham University and has a TED talk on the topic of simplification. She's served on the board of advisors of several organizations, including the Global Agenda Council for the World Economic Forum, the United States National Security Agency, the Association of Professional Futurists, and the Novartis board of Culture, Diversity & Inclusion.

    Book Your Next Great Speaker in 5 Easy Steps Speaker

     About

    Did last year's speaker knock your socks off? Not sure where to go next? Let our team of experienced professionals help you find your next great speaker. 

    Here's a quick guide to help you get started:

    Find A Theme

    Decide on a theme or topic for your event.

    Going through a period of transition? Looking to shake up your creative? Building trust within your teams? We have great speakers on all of those topics.

    Having trouble? Check out our IDEA GENERATOR for inspiration.

    Get in Touch

    Get in touch with your Event Date & Theme.

    We will ask you some key questions to find the perfect speaker for your live or virtual event.

    We pride ourselves on our personal touch. We are small team of dedicated professionals with over 20 years experience. When you call us, you speak to us directly... and quickly.

     

     

    Shortlist

    By now, we have a great idea of what you are looking for and will send you a shortlist of exceptional speakers.

    Each speaker will be vetted with YOUR event in mind, along with our personal thoughts on how that speaker can inspire your attendees.

    Let's talk

    Futurist Keynote Speaker Mike Walsh at The Sweeney Agency Speakers Bureau

    From the shortlist, you've narrowed it down to two great speakers. Let's discuss your needs to help make the final decision.

    With over 20 years experience, you can trust us to provide all of the information you need to choose the right speaker.

    We work with you to find the best format for your presentation, including live streams, Q&A sessions and even follow up programs to ensure maximum engagement for your key stakeholders.

    The Details

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    Daniel Burrus Speaker

    Daniel Burrus

    Futurist Expert and Speaker on Business Strategy, Technology, Innovations & Their Impact

     About

    • Talks about developing game-changing strategies based on his proven methodologies for capitalizing on technology innovations and their future impact.
    • Audiences learn about Anticipatory Thinking, a learning system that provides a framework for identifying certainties in the market, and for leaping ahead of competition with much lower risk by acting on HARD TRENDS.
    • Author of seven books, including The New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-seller Flash Foresight; One of the world's leading futurists who the New York Times called “…one of the top three business gurus in the highest demand as a speaker…”
    • Past clients include: Microsoft, GE, American Express, Google, Toshiba, Procter & Gamble, Honda and IBM

    Click Here to Watch Daniel's Virtual Presentation

    Daniel Burrus is considered one of the world's leading futurists on global trends and innovation. The New York Times has referred to him as one of the top three business gurus in the highest demand as a speaker.

    Burrus has delivered over 2,800 keynote speeches worldwide, and is a strategic advisor to executives from Fortune 500 companies, helping them to develop game-changing strategies based on his proven methodologies for capitalizing on technology innovations and their future impact. His client list includes companies such as Microsoft, GE, American Express, Google, Toshiba, Procter & Gamble, Honda and IBM.

    He is the author of seven books, including The New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-seller Flash Foresight, as well as the international best-seller Technotrends. His latest book, The Anticipatory Organization: Turn Disruption and Change Into Opportunity and Advantage (2017), is an Amazon #1 Hot New Release for Business.

    Burrus is also a featured writer with millions of monthly readers on the topics of innovation, change and the future for CNBC, Huffington Post, and Wired Magazine to name a few.

    He has been the featured subject of several PBS television specials and has appeared on programs such as CNN, Fox Business, and Bloomberg - and is quoted in a variety of publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Fortune and Forbes.

    Burrus is an innovative entrepreneur who has founded six businesses, four of which were national leaders in the United States in the first year. He is the CEO of Burrus Research, a research and consulting firm that monitors global advancements in technology driven trends to help clients profit from technological, social and business forces that are converging to create enormous, untapped opportunities.

    His accurate predictions date back to the early 1980s where he became the first and only futurist to accurately identify the twenty technologies that would become the driving force of business and economic change for decades to come. Since then, he has continued to establish a worldwide reputation for his exceptional record of predicting the future of technology driven change and its direct impact on the business world.

    Andrew Busch Speaker

    Andrew Busch

    Renowned Political Economist, Author, Keynote Speaker

     About

    Andrew Busch was the first Chief Market Intelligence Officer (CMIO) for the U.S. government at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). As CMIO, he was charged with improving and enhancing the government’s understanding of the markets. Andy provided briefings to White House, US House and US Senate staffers on a wide range of issues including the economy, stock market direction, interest rates and China's influence on the global commodity markets.

    Mr. Busch created and directed a new research group, Market Intelligence Branch (MIB), for the agency. As CMIO, his job was to provide objective research on the financial markets to the CFTC, SEC, US Treasury and Federal Reserve. Energy, agriculture, interest rates and technology (Bitcoin, blockchain, AI) were some of the areas of research covered by the team. Each week, he led the agency on a market and economic roundtable discussion with the staffs of the White House, the US Treasury, the SEC, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the Federal Reserve Board.

    Prior to joining the CFTC, Mr. Busch was CEO and founder of a boutique financial markets and policy research firm, Bering Productions, Inc (BPI). Before BPI, he was the Global Currency and Public Policy Strategist for Bank of Montreal (BMO) in Chicago.

    He is author of the book “World Event Trading” covering large crises like infectious disease outbreaks and their impact on the markets.

    Dr. James Canton Speaker

    Dr. James Canton

    Renowned Global Futurist, Social Scientist, Keynote Speaker on Business Trends

     About

    Dr. James Canton is a leading global futurist, social scientist, keynote presenter, author, and visionary business advisor. For over 30 years, he has been insightfully predicting the key trends that have shaped our world. He is a leading authority on future trends with an emphasis on harnessing innovation. Dr. Canton has advised three White House Administrations and global business leaders.

    He is the author of Future Smart: Managing the Game-Changing Trends that will Transform your World, The Extreme Future: The Top Trends that will Reshape the World in the 21st Century and TechnoFutures: How Leading-Edge Innovations will Transform Business in the 21st Century.

    Dr. Canton is CEO and Chairman of the Institute for Global Futures, a leading think tank he founded in 1990 that advises business and government on future trends. He advises the Global Fortune 1000 on trends in technology, innovation, financial services, health care, population, life sciences, energy, security, workforce, climate change and globalization. From a broad range of industries, clients include: IBM, BP, Intel, Philips, General Electric, Hewlett Packard, Boeing, FedEx, and Proctor & Gamble.

    Dr. Canton has served as a Senior Fellow at the Center for Research in Innovation at the Kellogg School of Management, the MIT Media Lab Advisory Board in Europe, Motorola’s Visionary Advisory Board and the International Advisory Council, Economic Development Board, State of Singapore. He has been an advisor to the National Science Foundation.

    Recognized as “one of the top presenters in the 21st century” by Successful Meetings Magazine, Dr. Canton is a highly sought-after keynote presenter. He has spoken to thousands of organizations on five continents. He is noted for his fascinating, informative, dynamic and entertaining keynotes.

    A frequent guest of the media, Dr. Canton is a commentator on CNN. He was named "the Digital Guru” by CNN and “Dr. Future” by Yahoo. Dr. Canton’s media coverage has included CNBC, Fox, PBS, ABC, Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Report, The New York Times, US News and World Report, CEO, CIO and CFO Magazines. His Huffington Post blog and Twitter feed is followed by a global audience.

    Jim Carroll Speaker

    Jim Carroll

    Global Futurist, Keynote Speaker and Expert on Trends & Innovation

     About

    Jim Carroll is recognized as the world’s leading futurist, trends and innovation experts, with a massive global blue-chip client list. Over the last 30 years, more than 2 million people have shared his insight at his events. Jim’s global client list gives him a front-row seat to the high-velocity change that is occurring as disruption comes to take hold of every industry and every organization.

    With that insight, and the customized research that he undertakes for every engagement, he helps to transform growth-oriented organizations into high-velocity innovation heroes!

    Jim provides high-energy keynotes for audiences of 50 to 5,000, as well as intimate, customized strategic planning sessions for CEO/CxO, board, and senior management meetings. He has researched key innovation success factors for dozens of organizations and industries including life sciences, health care, insurance, automotive, manufacturing, agriculture, technology, education, government, consumer products, retail, banking, and countless others.

    He has been invited in by NASA (twice) to share his insight on the future of the space industry; by Disney, to advise on new strategies for creativity and innovation; by the PGA of America for his thoughts on how to accelerate the golf industry; by Pfizer for insight on the future of medical science; by the World Bank for his thoughts on opportunities for economic development; and by the Wall Street Journal for his perspective on disruptive trends. Among countless others…

    Jim Carroll is an author, with numerous books including Now What?, Think Big, Start Small, Scale Fast;, Surviving the Information Age, The Future Belongs To Those Who Are Fast, Ready, Set, Done: and What I Learned From Frogs in Texas.

    Conference Plans Changed? Speaker

    Conference Plans Changed?

    How to Plan a Great Virtual Event

     About

    Click Here to Receive Your Customized List of Speaker Ideas

    Virtual Events can:

    1. Reach a wider audience
    2. Offer a great experience at a much lower cost
    3. Create long term impact with recorded elements that allow for content to be watched over a period of time
    4. Have an increased impact over time, as viewers re-watch, discuss and connect over social media and other channels

    And, most importantly: offer the ability for inspiring and impactful presentations to connect in a one-on-one way, directly to the attendee.

    WHO is your audience?

    Who are your virtual event attendees? Are they across a specific group within your organization, or are you serving clients across a wide range of levels? Determining who you are speaking to will help you determine a format for your event that will captivate your audience.

    WHAT is your key message?

    Are you focusing on change? Innovation? Leadership?

    Creating a single focus or mission will allow you to hone in on the type of speaker(s) you need to engage your audience and help event producers to format the event into a dynamic program that balances inspiration with information and audience interaction.

    WHAT type of event suits your audience?

    • Virtual Conference
    • Webinar
    • Hybrid Event

    Virtual event technology has come a long way over the last few months, offering a huge range of different options from pre-recorded webinars, to multi-day virtual conferences, to hybrid events with some attendees in the audience while the event is live streamed.

    OUR ADVICE

    COMBINATION of live and pre-recorded elements will allow your virtual event to run smoothly and stay on time.

    Many of our clients are also opting for multi-day virtual conferences with shorter segments spaced over a few days.

    This allows some flexibility for attendees in different time zones and accommodates different teleworking situations for attendees, allowing them to tune in when it is convenient.

    WHERE? It’s all about Tech.

    Virtual meeting technology has exploded over the last few months as teleworking became the norm.

    Consider your needs:

    • Interactive elements like breakout rooms, polls & Q&A
    • Seamless blend of live & pre-recorded elements
    • Ability to replay segments
    • Live tech support

    If you plan for rain, it’s likely the sun will shine…

    Tech isn’t perfect so don’t forget to test, rehearse and have a back up plan ready to go for your virtual event.

    Pro Tip: Think of a virtual presentation like a podcast. Viewers can view the content multiple times and refer back to it.

      WHEN? A Date… or Dates?

    As we have all noticed, our attention spans for meeting in real life versus meeting online are a lot longer.

    When deciding on a date, consider spreading your virtual event out over a few days, with a variety of speakers, interactive elements and information.

    The benefits of a multi-day format:

    • Viewers watch content fresh for a short period every day
    • Allows attendees in different time zones to stay on top of the content
    • Attendees can review & re-engage with content

    Virtual Event Checklist:

    Is your event?

    • Interactive?
    • Informative?
    • Able to be rewatched?

    WHY? Pandemic 2020

    Just because you are online instead of in person, it doesn’t mean you are missing out on connection.

    Using the technology that we have become so accustomed to over the last few months, our keynote speakers have the ability to connect to your viewers one-on-one, in a way that was impossible in live events.

    FIND YOUR WHY…

    What do you want the audience to leave thinking at the end of the presentation?

    Apply this question to all the presentations and segments in your event to create a cohesive, impactful virtual event.

      HOW? Virtual Event Checklist

    To wrap it all up

    • TECH: Find the right tech platform & don’t forget to test drive before your event
    • AGENDA: Use a mix of live and pre-recorded segments, mixed with interactive elements, to ensure a smooth flow of events & audience engagement
    • ANTICIPATION: Build up your event with emails, teasers and sneak peeks into what content will be offered
    • NETWORKING: Create and encourage online chat functions, an event specific hashtag or even a dedicated event page to allow attendees to network virtually. Maximize the networking opportunities offered by your tech platform.
    • EXTEND YOUR IMPACT: A dedicated social media page is a great place for attendees to connect after an event to discuss ideas and implement some of the learnings from the event.

    Offer a password protected, limited time recording of keynote presentations to continue the conversation long after the virtual event has ended.

    Continue the conversation with post-event touch points like emails or questions based on the key presentations.

    To find a GREAT Speaker for your Virtual event, get in touch.

    Arne Elias Corneliussen Speaker

    Arne Elias Corneliussen

    Geopolitical and Strategic Advisor & Keynote Speaker, Founder NRCI

     About

    • Arne talks about geopolitics and global affairs and how both impact business strategy, investments and the global economy. His extraordinary geopolitical and strategic insights are drawn from many overland fact-finding expeditions across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America.
    • Audiences leave with a panoramic view of the fundamental issues impacting global affairs and examines key geopolitical hotspots.
    • Arne Elias Corneliussen is a geopolitical and strategic advisor and the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at NRCI – a geopolitical advisory firm.
    • Past clients include: The Norwegian Society of Financial Analysts, AIG, Bogstad Manor,  Nordea Markets, Sparebank1 Markets, Lonely Planet and Equinor.

    Arne Elias Corneliussen is a geopolitical and strategic advisor and he provides inspiring, eye-opening and engaging speaking engagements. He is a political scientist and he studied in the US, Egypt and Chile. He travelled around the world from a young age and he has a broad and unique global understanding of geopolitical and strategic events. He is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at NRCI – a geopolitical advisory firm.

    Arne travelled to 115 countries and he regularly conducts long overland expeditions by train, car, and bus across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America where he maps political, security and business risks and opportunities, infrastructure developments, logistics corridors and local conditions. He travelled on 10 fact-finding expeditions to 42 countries in Africa and he crossed 28 countries on the African continent alone by public bus.

    In the fall of 2017 he travelled on an expedition by train, bus and car from Shanghai across China, Central Asia and the Caucasus to Istanbul to map infrastructure developments, logistics clusters, and the geopolitical landscape along One Belt One Road – or the New Silk Road as it is also called, which China now develops. Arne travelled to many of the most dangerous countries and regions in the world and he is comfortable in high-risk environments. He brings a unique combination of a geopolitical advisor with extensive on the ground experience around the world. His vast global on the ground experience combined with managing a geopolitical advisory firm for over 10 years make him uniquely experienced and highly knowledgeable about geopolitical and strategic events and dynamics worldwide.

    He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society of London – a world-leading society for geographers and explorers. Arne Elias Corneliussen maintains close dialogue with a vast network of insightful and informed contacts in academia, business, diplomacy, and governments worldwide. He is the program chair, keynote speaker and moderator for Norwegian Risk Forum – NRCI’s annual geopolitical conference focusing on geopolitical risks and business opportunities worldwide. Arne provides eye-opening and inspiring keynote presentations and speaking engagements.

    Dr. Ken Dychtwald Speaker

    Dr. Ken Dychtwald

    Futurist, Best-Selling Author, Entrepreneur, Psychologist, Gerontologist and Recognized Speaker on the Aging Population.

     About

    Over the past 40+ years, Dr. Ken Dychtwald has emerged as North America’s foremost visionary and original thinker regarding the lifestyle, marketing, health care, economic and workforce implications of the age wave.

    Ken is a psychologist, gerontologist, and best-selling author of 18 books on aging-related issues, including Bodymind, Age Wave: The Challenges and Opportunities of an Aging Society, Age Power: How the 21st Century Will Be Ruled by the New Old, Healthy Aging, Gideon’s Dream: A Tale of New Beginnings, A New Purpose: Redefining Money, Family, Work, Retirement, and Success and What Retirees Want: A Holistic View of Life’s Third Age (an Amazon #1 bestseller in both the retirement and business marketing categories). He also released a memoir in April 2021: Radical Curiosity: One Man’s Search for Cosmic Magic and a Purposeful Life (an Amazon #1 New Release in the psychologist biographies category). He was the executive producer and host of the highly rated/acclaimed PBS documentary, The Boomer Century: 1946–2046 which aired over 2,000 times on PBS stations nationwide and his new Public Television special is titled Life’s Third Age. Ken also conceived and hosted the innovative new American Society on Aging series “The Legacy Interviews,” featuring interviews with the legendary pathfinders of the field of aging.

    Since 1986, Ken has been the Founder and CEO of Age Wave, an acclaimed think tank and consultancy focused on the social and business implications and opportunities of global aging and rising longevity. His client list has included over half the Fortune 500. He has served as a fellow of the World Economic Forum and was a featured speaker at two White House Conferences on Aging. Ken has twice received the distinguished American Society on Aging Award for outstanding national leadership, and American Demographics honored him as the single most influential marketer to baby boomers over the past quarter century. His article in the Harvard Business Review, “It’s Time to Retire Retirement,” was awarded the prestigious McKinsey Award, tying for first place with the legendary Peter Drucker. He was honored by Investment Advisor as one of the 35 most influential thought leaders in the financial services industry over the past 35 years. Ken and his wife, Maddy, recently received the Esalen Prize for their outstanding contributions to advancing the human potential of aging men and women worldwide. In 2018 he was awarded the Inspire Award from in the International Council on Active Aging for his exceptional and lasting contributions to the active-aging industry and for his efforts to make a difference in the lives of older adults globally. In 2020, he was the first recipient of the Pioneer Award from the Retirement Coaches Association.

    During his career, Ken has addressed more than two million people worldwide in his speeches to corporate, association, social service, and government groups. His strikingly accurate predictions and innovative ideas are regularly featured in leading print and electronic media worldwide and have garnered nearly fifteen billion media impressions.

    Dr. George Friedman Speaker

    Dr. George Friedman

    Author of The Next 100 Years: A Forecast for the 21st Century and Speaker on International Affairs

     About

    • Talks about geopolitics, the state of international affairs, and the effects of both on the economy, business strategy, and wealth management.
    • Audiences learn from one of  the pre-eminent geopolitical minds of our time as he analyzes and forecasts the course of global events
    • New York Times bestselling author of The Next 100 Years. His books have been translated into more than 20 languages. Founder of Stratfor, and the online publication, Geopolitical Futures.
    • Past clients include: CITGO Petroleum, Mackenzie Financial, Manulife Securities, KPMG, McKinsey, CFA Institute (various), CVC Capital, Wells Fargo, GIC Private Ltd., RBC, Fidelity Investments

    Dr. George Friedman is an internationally recognized geopolitical forecaster, international affairs strategist and best-selling author. As Founder and Chairman of Geopolitical Futures, an online publication dedicated to forecasting the course of global events, Friedman combines his passion for writing and publishing for his readers world wide who follow international affairs.

    Prior to founding Geopolitical Futures, Friedman guided the intellectual vision of Stratfor, the geopolitical intelligence publishing and consulting firm he founded in 1996.

    In 2019, he was appointed as Senior Advisor to the Gallup organization - to help make sense of the geopolitical forces shaping U.S. and global economic and political policy.

    Friedman is the author of numerous New York Times best-selling books. His book, Flashpoints: The Emerging Crisis in Europe (2015), predicts the borderlands where centuries old tensions are re-emerging and will spark new conflicts. The Next 100 Years: A Forecast for the 21st Century (2009), predicts the geopolitical changes shaping the 21st century and was published in over 20 languages. The prescience of Friedman’s geopolitical predictions keep this book alive as they continue to unfold in many countries. Friedman’s The Next Decade: Where We've Been and Where We're Going (2011), was also a best-seller. His other books on warfare and intelligence have included America's Secret War, The Future of War and The Intelligence Edge. Dr. Friedman's latest book: The Storm Before the Calm: America's Discord, the Coming Crisis of the 2020s, and the Triumph Beyond – was  released in February-2020 (Doubleday).

    A very popular keynote speaker on the future of international geopolitics, Friedman is in high demand at numerous conferences and industry-specific events. He has briefed for many major military and government organizations - and is frequently invited to speak internationally.

    Friedman appears regularly as an expert on international affairs and intelligence on major television and radio networks - and is frequently quoted in leading American and international news publications.

    Friedman received his bachelor’s degree from the City College of the City University of New York and holds a Ph.D. in government from Cornell University.  He lives in Austin, Texas.

    Click here to subscribe to Geopolitical Futures

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    Nancy Giordano Speaker

    Nancy Giordano

    Futurist, Corporate Strategist & Speaker

     About

    • Talks about exponential technologies that are changing “everything,” and how business can thrive by adapting to them
    • Audiences learn to sense and synthesize future trends. Nancy provides a roadmap to those ready to build more relevant and sustainable solutions.
    • Singularity University guest lecturer, SXSW Panelist, Founder/CEO of Play Big Inc.
    • Past clients include: Nestle, Brinker International, The Coca Cola Company, Sprint, Acumen

    Described as endlessly optimistic, Nancy Giordano is a strategic futurist and bestselling author with a drive to help enterprise organizations and visionary leaders transform to meet the escalating expectations ahead. Recognized as one of the world’s top female futurists, she has spent her career building, shaping and evolving a portfolio of $60+ billion worth of major global brands.  With growing conviction of what will (and needs to) shift, executives value her unique abilities to sense and synthesize the terrain ahead and guide those ready to build more relevant and sustainable solutions.

    With a career at three of the top global advertising agencies and as founder of her own strategic inspiration company, Play Big Inc, Nancy has a rich history of advising and learning with some of the top companies in the world, including Nestle, Brinker International, The Coca Cola Company, Sprint and Acumen. In 2015 she took a leap to help shape a company of the future: artificial intelligence start-up, Lucid and later went on to build a leadership summit designed to encourage c-suite executives to explore seven of the most disruptive emergent technologies for business. Two years ago, Nancy joined Austin-based artificial intelligence services company, Kungfu.AI, to help visionary enterprise leaders better understand and harness the transformative effects of AI applications. She is also championing the work of Riane Eisler to create a movement around Partnerism, a socio-economic system that is built on partnership versus the domination models of Capitalism and Socialism.

    A 10-year TEDx curator (and world’s first licensee), Nancy is a Singularity University guest lecturer, frequent panelist at South by Southwest (SXSW), creator of the first Career Fair For the Future event for college + high school students, recent co-founder of the Femme Futurists Society (a growing collection of interviews with leading futurists around the world) and she remains an active strategist. She has served on the board of retail trade association GMDC, on the advisory council for both Retail Tomorrow and Future Frontiers, co-designed + produced a fintech conference to strengthen community banking and is helping move forward two brands poised to weave a more human, distributed internet: Holochain + Holo hosting.

    Ranked #1 on Amazon for both Business Ethics and Organization Strategy, her first book, titled Leadering: The Ways Visionary Leaders Play Bigger, defines and makes visible the dynamic, inclusive and audacious mindset leaders must cultivate in order to stay relevant and help build a better next. A techno-optimist, Nancy is committed to advancing societal structures and the new mindsets necessary to effectively harness the significant technology innovations heading our way and ensure a safe and thriving future for us all.

    Kian Gohar Speaker

    Kian Gohar

    Founder & CEO of Geolab, Keynote Speaker on Innovation, Disruptive Technologies, & The Future of Work

     About

    Kian Gohar is Founder & CEO of Geolab, an innovation research and leadership training firm. He is a master facilitator and has coached the CEO and leadership teams of over 50 companies in the Fortune 500 on innovation, disruptive technologies, moonshot thinking, leadership and the future of work.

    He's co-author of the Wall Street Journal bestselling book Competing in the New World of Work, published by Harvard Business Review and with #1 NY Times bestselling author Keith Ferrazzi. This bestselling book explores the most important leadership behaviors and team skills necessary to succeed in the post-pandemic era, and outlines how to build a successful hybrid workplaces and workforces.

    Previously, Kian was an executive director at the XPRIZE Foundation, where he founded the world's leading corporate innovation ecosystem, and was also an executive director of Singularity University in Silicon Valley. His 20-year innovation career spans venture capital, academia and startups around the world. Early in his career, he was a Luce Scholar in China.

    A sought-after public speaker, Kian has been featured in global media like CNBC, Fortune, Fast Company, HBR, Axios, and NPR, and headlined marquee events like SXSW and the World Economic Forum. He speaks 5 languages, is a graduate of Harvard Business School, the London School of Economics, and Northwestern.

    Garry Golden Speaker

    Garry Golden

    Academically Trained Futurist and Speaker on Emerging Trends

     About

    • Talks about: Finding the Future – Tomorrow’s Emerging Trends, and How to Anticipate and Act on Them for Success
    • Garry works with municipal and investor owned utilities seeking to embrace the integration of new solutions ranging from new customer experiences to distributed energy resources.
    • Author of   Designing Your Future, and The Age of Adaptive Experiences
    • Past clients include: Alliant Energy, Chartwell, Sunoco, Eversource, Haliburton, Xcel Energy, Reliant Energy, Duke University EDGE, Direct Energy Business, The Energy Authority (TEA), ElectriCities of North Carolina, American Public Power Association (APPA)

    Garry Golden is a professionally trained futurist who writes, speaks, and consults about issues that will shape society and business in the 21st century. His uncanny sense of what will hit—and what won’t—can be seen in futurethink’s research and heard in his international keynotes and corporate leadership seminars. His insights on how to align talent development to coming industry and market transitions have been shared with and implemented by such organizations as the McGraw-Hill Companies, Goodyear, S&P, and Reliant Energy.

    Garry serves as Adjunct Lecturer on the Future of Energy and Environment for the University of Houston. He has consulted on projects as diverse as the future of utilities; transportation and supply chains; food safety and health; financial services; and sustainable retail packaging. He is the co-author of the inspiring book Designing Your Future, and author of the upcoming book titled The Age of Adaptive Experiences.

    Garry attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison and received his Futures Studies degree from the University of Houston. He is a past board member of the Association of Professional Futurists (APF) as well as an aspiring collector of street art (which will likely be huge in the year 2040.) If left to his own devices at a museum gift shop, odds are a micro-machine or geological piece will be finding itself a future home.

    Ian Goldin Speaker

    Ian Goldin

    Former VP of World Bank, Speaks on Future Trends, Globalization & Innovation

     About

    Professor Ian Goldin was the Founding Director of the Oxford Martin School from September 2006 to September 2016. He is currently Oxford University Professor of Globalization and Development and the Director of the Oxford Martin Programme on Technological and Economic Change. He is a Senior Fellow at the Oxford Martin School and a Professorial Fellow at the University’s Balliol College.

    During his decade as Director, the School established 45 programs of research, bringing together more than 500 academics from across Oxford, from over 100 disciplines - and becoming the world’s leading centre for interdisciplinary research into critical global challenges.

    Professor Goldin initiated and was Vice-Chair of the Oxford Martin Commission for Future Generations, which brought together 19 international leaders from government, business, academia, media and civil society - to address the growing short-term preoccupations of modern politics and business, and identify ways of overcoming today’s gridlock in key international negotiations. The Commission’s report, Now for the Long Term - was published in October 2013.

    From 2003 to 2006 he was Vice President of the World Bank, and prior to that the Bank’s Director of Development Policy (2001-2003). He served on the Bank’s senior management team and led the Bank’s collaboration with the United Nations and other partners - as well as with key countries. As Director of Development Policy, he played a pivotal role in the research and strategy agenda of the Bank.

    From 1996 to 2001 he was Chief Executive and Managing Director of the Development Bank of Southern Africa - and served as an advisor to President Nelson Mandela. He succeeded in transforming the Bank to become the leading agent of development in the 14 countries of Southern Africa. During this period, Goldin served on several Government committees and Boards, and was Finance Director for South Africa’s Olympic Bid.

    Previously, Goldin was Principal Economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in London, and Program Director at the OECD Development Centre in Paris - where he directed the Programs on Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development.

    He has a BA (Hons) and a BSc from the University of Cape Town, an MSc from the London School of Economics - and an MA and Doctorate from the University of Oxford.

    Ian has served as a non-executive director on the boards of a number of leading businesses, including Old Mutual, Implenia AG, Metropolitan Life, and CDC Plc. His board positions include being the lead independent director - and chairing investment, credit, risk, audit, strategy, remuneration, social responsibility and ethics committees. Ian has advised over 50 governments and 100 leading global businesses. His non-profit activities include being the Chair of the CORE-econ.org initiative to reform global economics - and serving as a trustee of Comic Relief and other charities.

    Goldin has received wide recognition for his contributions to development and research, including having been knighted by the French Government and nominated Global Leader of Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum. He has published over 50 articles and 20 books, including Globalization for Development: Meeting New Challenges (Oxford University Press, 2012), Exceptional People: How Migration Shaped our World and Will Define our Future (Princeton University Press, 2011), Divided Nations: Why Global Governance is Failing and What We Can Do About It (Oxford University Press, 2013), The Butterfly Defect: How Globalization Creates Systemic Risks, and What To Do About It (Princeton University Press, 2014) and an edited volume, Is the Planet Full?  (Oxford University Press, 2014). His latest books are The Pursuit of Development: Economic Growth, Social Change and Ideas (Oxford University Press, 2016) and  Age of Discovery: Navigating the Risks and Rewards of Our New Renaissance (Bloomsbury and St Martin’s Press, 2016).

    Kristen Hadeed Speaker

    Kristen Hadeed

    Founder & CEO of Student Maid, Author & Entrepreneur

     About

    • CEO and founder of Student Maid, a cleaning company that has employed thousands of millennials and is known for building the next generation of leaders
    • Kristen talks about how to build a culture of belonging with multiple generations in the workplace, and how to deliver and receive criticism as a leader.
    • First TED Talk has received more than two million hits on YouTube
    • Past clients include: Apple, Burger King, jetBlue, Ohio State University, PGA Tour,  Re/MAX

    Kristen Hadeed believes that authentic, human leadership can change the world.

    At 19, with hardly any leadership experience, Kristen started a cleaning business called Student Maid. She never expected it to be her career; it was simply a way to earn money while she was in college. But before she graduated, her company received a contract to clean hundreds of apartments—and it changed her path forever. Kristen hired a team of 60 people help her, and within days, 75% of that team quit. That’s when Kristen’s obsession with learning how to be a leader began.

    Over the next 14 years, Kristen learned a lot by screwing up. But most importantly, she learned how to lead from her heart. Doing so helped her take Student Maid from a small cleaning company to a business known on a global scale for its culture of belonging, its focus on people, and its purpose of building leaders.

    Today, Kristen spends her time helping leaders, teams, and organizations around the world embrace their humanity. She’s worked with just about every industry with one purpose behind it all: To build a better world through courageous, compassionate leadership.

    Kristen’s work has been featured in news outlets including PBS, FOX, Inc., NBC, TIME, and Forbes. Kristen’s book, Permission To Screw Up, has sold more than 40,000 copies worldwide. Her first TED Talk has more than three million views on YouTube

    Ignite Your Innovation Speaker

    Ignite Your Innovation

    The Top Ten Keynote Speakers on Innovation

     About

    10 Most Requested Speakers on Innovation

    Click here to get your Customized List of Speaker Ideas

    Innovation is the catalyst for growth, profit, and sustainability for any business so it is no wonder that it is one of the most requested speaking topics from just about every industry. Here are our highest rated Speakers on Innovation:

    Scott Anthony | Innovation Strategist

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Scott-Anthony

    Andy Boynton | Dean of Boston College’s Carroll School of Management, Speaker on Innovation and Leadership

    Andy Boynton’s presentations take his audiences from conceptualization to implementation when it comes to innovative ideas and putting them into practice. He leaves audiences with openness to new and exciting views that may lead to the visionary ideas your organization needs.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Andy-Boynton

    Lisa Bodell | CEO of Futurethink and Best-selling author of Kill the Company

    Often innovation is associated with a complicated and overly challenging process, however, innovation expert Lisa Bodell argues that this need not be the case. Lisa’s keynotes demonstrate that the complex processes that organizations have developed over the years actually hinder innovation and block original thought.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Lisa-Bodell

    Dr. James Canton | Global Futurist and Visionary Business Advisor

    Dr. James Canton instills in his audiences that innovation cannot wait for the future, but rather innovation comes through the anticipation of the future and the actions of the present. His keynotes outline potential disruptions to your organization and attendees will leave with a better understanding of what is coming and how to take full advantage of these rapid industry changes.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Dr.-James-Canton

    Whitney Johnson | Co-founder of the Investment Firm Disruptive Innovation Fund

    Whitney Johnson will inspire audiences with her call for personal disruption as a means to create an organization-wide innovative culture. She motivates attendees to actually do the things they would only dare to dream. Whitney Johnson is a true influencer and innovator and will teach your audiences how to do the same.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Whitney-Johnson

    Kaihan Krippendorff | Strategy and Innovation Expert & Founder of Outthinker

    Kaihan Krippendorff is committed to helping organizations and individuals thrive in today’s era of fast-paced disruptive technological change. Kaihan is known for his ability to turn difficult concepts into easy-to-understand ideas that drive meaningful outcomes and actions. He is an internationally recognized thought-leader, battle-tested consultant, and sought-after keynote speaker on the topics of business strategy, growth, transformation and innovation.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Kaihan-Krippendorff

    Steve Blank | Thought Leader on Startups and Innovation, Expert on Entrepreneurship

    Steve Blank has led one heck of an interesting life. He’s had 3 careers: First, in the U.S. Air Force for 4 years during the Vietnam War. Next, as a Silicon Valley entrepreneur in 8 start-ups in 2 decades (with 4 IPOs). Currently as an academic, teaching at Stanford, Berkeley, Columbia, and NYU. Steve, the Father of Modern Entrepreneurship, has changed how startups are built; how entrepreneurship is taught worldwide; how science is commercialized in the U.S., and how companies and the government innovate.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Steve-Blank

    Polly LaBarre | Author, Speaker, and Entrepreneur

    Understanding that many organizations have been working since their inception to maintain and protect the foundational practices on which it was built, Polly LaBarre pushes audiences to break the status quo in order to achieve exceptional performance. Her keynotes highlight the importance of adaptability – or risk paralysis. Polly’s presentations are truly inspiring as she encourages attendees to be relentlessly creative, excited, and inventive.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Polly-LaBarre

    Josh Linkner | Bestselling Author on Creativity, Innovation, and Leadership

    You’ve come up with a spectacularly creative idea for your organization – so the hard part’s over, right? Unfortunately it’s not. Turning raw, unpolished (albeit great) ideas into a reality can be very challenging. Josh Linkner’s keynotes provide practical tools and methodologies to turn those big ideas into big results and big profits. Oh, and he’s an excellent jazz guitarist too!

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Josh-Linkner

    Mike Walsh | Best-selling author of FUTURETAINMENT, Speaker on Technology and Innovation

    So often companies survive on one big idea or major breakthrough, however, in contemporary business those who thrive are continuously creating and cultivating those big ideas and breakthroughs. Mike Walsh helps organizations create strategic priorities in order to prepare for the future of business today.

    Video: https://thesweeneyagency.com/speakers/Mike-Walsh

    *Speakers are listed in alphabetical order

    To Learn more about these speakers contact [email protected]

    Derek Sweeney is the Director of Speaker Ideas at The Sweeney Agency. www.thesweeneyagency.com. For 15 years Derek has been helping clients find the right Speakers for their events. Derek can be reached at 1-866-727-7555 or [email protected]

    Christina Kerley Speaker

    Christina Kerley

    Innovation Keynoter, Futurist, Strategist, and Professor

     About

    • Professor at Rutgers Business School for Executive Education where she instructs on Mobile, IoT, AI, and Immersive Media (AR-VR-MR)
    • Talks about: FUTURE-PROOF: Today’s Big Tech - And Bold Moves - To Win You Tomorrow
    • Innovative tech forerunner for 20+ years
    • Past clients include: Verizon, Microsoft, Amazon, Cisco, E*TRADE, ADP, Johnson & Johnson, Prudential

    Christina Kerley -- known simply as “CK” -- pushes Fortune 500's ahead of the curve through the 10+ tech dominating the next 10 years. An innovative tech forerunner for 20+ years, CK takes on the big topics, like: The Tech Megatrends; Future-Proof; The Human-Robot Revolution; Business In The AI Age; Hi-Tech Health; Next-Gen Marketing; and The Reskilling Revolution.

    CK connects with diverse generations -- from Boomers to Zoomers -- and guides a wide range of professionals working in IT, marketing, sales, HR, R&D, supply chain, and leadership.

    Through her next-level content, edu-taining style, and razor-sharp insights, CK electrifies audiences while navigating executives through scores of digital revolutions. Praised for her boundless energy, humor, and inspiration, she has wowed crowds at Verizon, Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft, Amazon, TEDx, E*TRADE, The United Nations, Bissell, Best Buy, Cisco, Prudential, and The Barbara Bush Literacy Foundation.

    A top-rated member of faculty at Rutgers Business School for Executive Education, she has guest lectured at Stanford, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Northwestern, and USF.

    Along with work for commercial industries -- across tech, consumer, healthcare, insurance, and financial -- she’s also addressed state governments in IL, MN, MO, NY, TX, VA, and WI.

    A passionate advocate for closing the opportunity divide, her pro bono program, aptly named impaCKt!, gives a leading edge to under-served groups.

    Constantly reinventing her business -- and herself -- CK is always on-trend, ahead of the curve, and in pursuit of the next BIG thing. She is based in New York City.

    Get Ahead. Get Inspired. Get CK!

    Tom Koulopoulos Speaker

    Tom Koulopoulos

    Chairman and Founder of Delphi Group, Author and Speaker on Innovation & The Future

     About

    Click Here to Watch Tom's Virtual Presentation

    Tom Koulopoulos is Chairman and Founder of Delphi Group, a 30-year-old Boston-based think tank named one of the fastest growing private companies by Inc. Magazine, and the founding partner of Acrovantage Ventures, which invests in early-stage technology startups. He is also the author of 13 books, an Inc.com columnist, the past Executive Director of the Babson College Center for Business Innovation, the past director of the Dell Innovation Lab, and a professor at Boston University.

    His insights have received wide praise from luminaries such as the late Peter Drucker, the father of modern management; Dee Hock, founder of Visa International, and Tom Peters, who called his writing, “a brilliant vision of where we must take our enterprises to survive and thrive.” His Inc. column is read by over one million people yearly.

    Mr. Koulopoulos’ thirteen books include his most recent, Reimagining Healthcare, The Bottomless Cloud, Revealing the Invisible, The Gen Z Effect, and Cloud Surfing. His upcoming book, Gigatrends, looks at the seven tech trends that are shaping the future of how we live, work, and play.

    According to Tom’s mentor, Peter Drucker, Tom’s writing "makes you question not only the way you run your business but the way you run yourself."

    Kaihan Krippendorff Speaker

    Kaihan Krippendorff

    Futurist, Strategy and Innovation Expert & Founder of Outthinker

     About

    Click Here to Watch Kaihan's Virtual Presentation

    • Talks about the Outthinker Process, a set proven business strategy tools he has used with more than 300 clients in almost every industry to create innovative strategies and growth ideas that have generated more than $2.5B in revenue.
    • Teaches audiences how to tap into the resources they already have to produce breakthrough market-disrupting solutions, without disrupting their own businesses
    • Thinkers50 recognized Kaihan as one of the 8 most influential innovation thought leaders in the world. Bestselling author of five books, most recently the Edison Award nominated,  Driving Innovation From Within: A Guide for Internal Entrepreneurs
    • Past clients include: AIG, Cisco, Google, Kraft, Sotheby’s, United Technologies, the YPO

    Kaihan Krippendorff has made a commitment to helping organizations and individuals thrive in today’s era of fast-paced disruptive technological change.

    He began his career with McKinsey & Company before founding the growth strategy and innovation consulting firm Outthinker. His growth strategies and innovations have generated over $2.5B in revenue for many of the world’s most recognizable companies including Boeing, Citibank, CVS Health, L’Oréal, Microsoft, and Verizon.

    Named to the Thinkers50 list of the 30 management thinkers most likely to shape the future of how organizations are managed and led, Kaihan is a best-selling author of five books, most recently the Edison Award nominated, Driving Innovation From Within: A Guide for Internal Entrepreneurs.

    Kaihan is founder of the Outthinker Strategy Network, an exclusive network of Chief Strategy Officers from large organizations with over $1B in revenue. A trusted advisor to these Fortune 500 Strategy Executives, Kaihan is known for facilitating powerful conversations that create strategic clarity and yield actionable and impactful ideas for this diverse cross-industry group.

    Amidst his dizzying schedule of keynote speeches, consulting projects, ongoing research and writing, Kaihan still finds time to teach at business schools throughout the US and internationally(including NYU and FIU), contribute regularly to Fast Company and other major business media outlets, host the Outthinkers Podcast, and play an active advisory role on the board of a growing roster of both high-growth startups and established companies.

    He holds degrees from the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering, Wharton, Columbia, and London Business Schools and a doctorate in strategy. With a mother from Bangladesh, father from Germany, and wife from Latin America - Kaihan brings a holistic, diverse, and global perspective to everything he does.

    Gerd Leonhard Speaker

    Gerd Leonhard

    Keynote Speaker, Futurist & Humanist, Author, CEO The Futures Agency, Film-Maker

     About

    Click Here to Watch Gerd's Virtual Presentation

    Gerd Leonhard’s passions are the future of humanity, culture, society - and business in the face of exponential technological progress. In his keynotes, talks, presentations, and seminars, Gerd addresses topics such as digital ethics (the ethics of technology), artificial intelligence (AI), the future of work and jobs, rebooting education, the digital transformation of business and society, the future of politics - and many more issues focussing on the next 5-10 years.

    In a world dominated by technology, data and algorithms, robots and intelligent machines - what will it mean to be human? Are humans and machines really destined to ‘converge’? What do we need to do, today - to make sure that human happiness and collective flourishing remain the most important objectives? Is our current economic system suitable for a future where technology is virtually unlimited?

    Gerd’s latest best-selling book is Technology vs. Humanity - now available in 10+ languages. He is also a film-maker, to view his videos - please visit Vimeo and Youtube.

    Greg Lindsay Speaker

    Greg Lindsay

    Speaker and Author on the Future of Travel, Technology, and Urban Development

     About

    • Greg talks about how cities‐as‐a‐service are changing how we live, work, move, and more – and the new real estate, services, and business model opportunities this creates.
    • Audiences leave with an understanding of how to recognize the changes technology and innovation have brought to urban environments and how to leverage the opportunities these disruptions have created.
    • Greg Lindsay is a journalist, urbanist, futurist, and speaker, director of applied research at NewCities and director of strategy at its mobility offshoot CoMotion. He is also a non-resident senior fellow of the Atlantic Council’s Foresight, Strategy, and Risks Initiative, a visiting scholar at New York University’s Rudin Center for Transportation Policy & Management, and co-author of Aerotropolis: The Way We’ll Live Next.
    • Past clients include: Intel, Samsung, Starbucks, Audi, Chrysler, Hyundai, Tishman Speyer, British Land, André Balazs Properties, Emaar, and Expo 2020.

    Greg Lindsay is a journalist, urbanist, futurist, and speaker. He is the director of applied research at NewCities and director of strategy at its mobility offshoot CoMotion. He is also a non-resident senior fellow of the Atlantic Council’s Foresight, Strategy, and Risks Initiative, a visiting scholar at New York University’s Rudin Center for Transportation Policy & Management, and co-author of Aerotropolis: The Way We’ll Live Next.

    His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Harvard Business Review, The Financial Times, McKinsey Quarterly, Inc., The Atlantic, Quartz, The New Republic, Politico, The Economist Group, The World Economic Forum, The Nikkei Asian Review, European Management Journal, World Policy Journal, Next City, Time, Wired, New York, Slate, Marie Claire Italia, Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, and Departures. He was previously a contributing writer for Fortune and Fast Company, and an editor-at-large for Advertising Age.

    Greg speaks frequently about globalization, innovation, and the future of cities - most recently at Sandia National Laboratories, the U.K. Treasury, the OECD, Harvard Business School, the MIT Media Lab, Deloitte, and McKinsey. His work with Studio Gang Architects on the future of suburbia was displayed at New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in 2012. His work has also been displayed at the 15th and 16th Venice Architecture Biennales, the International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam, and Habitat III. He sits on the board of Aerial Futures, and is guest curator of the 2018 and 2019 editions of reSITE.

    He’s been cited as an expert on the future of travel, technology and urbanism by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, USA Today, CNN, NPR, and the BBC. He’s a partner at FutureMap, a geo-strategic advisory firm based in Singapore, and has advised Intel, Samsung, Starbucks, Audi, Chrysler, Hyundai, Tishman Speyer, British Land, André Balazs Properties, Emaar, and Expo 2020, among many other organizations. He was the inaugural urbanist-in-residence at URBAN-X — BMW MINI’s urban tech accelerator.

    Greg is a two-time Jeopardy! champion (and the only human to go undefeated against IBM’s Watson). He lives in Montréal with his wife Sophie Donelson and their two children.

    Terence Mauri Speaker

    Terence Mauri

    Innovation & Disruptive Leadership Speaker

     About

    • Talks about 3D leadership & how leaders can own their future & helping organizations scale their purpose
    • Audiences learn about the principles of 3D leadership that will help organizations go beyond disruption to take control of their futures and lead with improved mindset and agility to focus on creating exponential opportunities.
    • Founder of Hack Future Lab, INC Magazine columnist, Partner at MIT Solve, Bestselling author of The 3D Leader & Former Director of Satchi & Satchi
    • Past clients include: Facebook, HSBC, Alibaba, Apple, Microsoft, Netflix & Novartis

    Click Here to Watch Terence's Virtual Presentation

    Leaders from Alibaba, HSBC and Facebook choose Terence to ignite Mindset 2.0 – a disruption mindset to break the rules and reimagine your business today.

    Terence Mauri is the Founder of global think tank Hack Future Lab and is a Partner with MIT Solve, an initiative to address world challenges. He brings decades of experience and knowledge sharing cutting edge principles on the future of leadership beyond disruption. He is a Bestselling Author and his new book The 3D Leader: Take Your Leadership to the Next Dimension is an actionable and robust guide for ALL people to realize that a new dimension in personal leadership is at the core of creating opportunity. The 3D Leader is for  every person who wants to learn three winning mindsets - THINK BOLD, CHOOSE BRAVE, GO BEYOND - that will equip you with a practical set of actions for you to completely reimagine how you lead. 

    Terence’s Inc. column Future Proof  has over 1M views per month, and his thinking on how to find your next cutting edge has been published in The Economist, Forbes, Reuters, Huff

    Post and Wired and he has delivered keynotes around the world for clients including Visa, Facebook, VMware, Capital One and HSBC, as well as fast-growing start-ups. Terence holds Entrepreneur Mentor in Residence roles at MIT and London Business School and has over 20 years experience of helping leaders bounce back from adversity and move beyond disruption. He has also been ranked by Thinkers50 as one of the top 30 management thinkers in the world. 

    Terence has had first-hand experience growing $100m+ businesses in rapidly changing times as a former director at Saatchi & Saatchi, where he advised leaders from iconic companies including Apple, Microsoft, Netflix and Novartis.  But one day his fate changed dramatically when a car lost control, mounted the curb and hit him. This terrible accident changed his life forever and has enabled him to share new growth strategies for one of the greatest challenges facing leaders today: transforming your business in the face of massive and yet hard to predict disruption.

    Thinkers50, the global authority on leadership, has ranked Terence as one of the 30 top new thinkers in the world describing him as “an influential and outspoken expert on the future of leadership.” Whether you’re seeking a keynote speaker for a conference, a facilitator for a strategy workshop or a bold shake-up for a boardroom meeting, Terence’s TED style presentations act as a catalyst for reinvention. Leaders choose Terence to give them a path forward that will take them BEYOND DISRUPTION and stay focused on creating exponential opportunities.

    Viktor Mayer-Schonberger Speaker

    Viktor Mayer-Schonberger

    Oxford Professor & Speaker on Governance of Information and Cyber Security

     About

    Viktor Mayer-Schönberger is Professor of Internet Governance and Regulation at the Oxford Internet Institute of Oxford University and co-author of the international best-sellers Reinventing Capitalism in the Age of Big Data, and Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think. He is among our leading thinkers on trends, and the current and future ways that Big Data, Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence are changing the face of everything from product development and scientific discovery, to human learning and health care, transportation, retail, finance and marketing.

    An internationally acclaimed and sought-after keynote speaker, Mayer-Schönberger has addressed a wide spectrum of audiences, from high-level corporate board retreats to large audience conventions, including such companies as IBM, SAP, Microsoft, Roche, Oracle, Haier and Huawei, professional organizations such as the ITU, the IAPP, and the AACC.

    With a media presence that straddles the international print media, such as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, the Guardian, Die Zeit, Der Spiegel, El Pais, or Le Monde, international broadcast media such as CNN, BCC, PBS or CCTV, and online media such as Ars Technica, Daily Kos, and Wired, Mayer-Schönberger brings special recognition to events where he speaks.

    Heather McGowan Speaker

    Heather McGowan

    Top Futurist and Speaker on the Future of Work, Best-selling Author

     About

    Future-of-work strategist Heather E. McGowan helps leaders prepare their people and organizations for the Post Pandemic world of work. The last few years have forever changed where we work, who works, how we work and measure work, what we do for work and, most importantly, why we work. McGowan is a sense maker, a dot connector, a deep thinker, and a pattern matcher who sees things that others miss. Heather gives people the courage and insight that illuminates their path forward. She’s transforming mindsets and entire organizations around the globe with her message about how the next phase of work will focus on continuous learning, rather than simply learning once in order to work. Pulitzer Prize–winning NYT columnist Thomas Friedman frequently quotes Heather in his books and columns and describes her as “the oasis” when it comes to insights into the future of work. In 2020 Heather was recognized as one of the top 50 female futurists in the world by Forbes. Heather’s sessions help employees and leaders alike prepare for and adapt to jobs that do not yet exist.

    McGowan has provided keynote addresses for audiences from start-ups to government organizations to universities to publicly traded Fortune 100 companies, including AMP Financial, SAP, Abbvie, Biogen, Fidelity, FIS, Mastercard, AT&T, Financial Times, Siemens, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Kaiser Permanente, JPMorgan Chase, Lockheed Martin, MassMutual, MetLife, Best Buy, Raytheon, The US Army, Accor Hotels, Paramount, Chevron, AARP, Zendesk, Tableau, Fidelity, de Beers, Professional Beauty Association, and The World Bank among hundreds of others.

    Heather addresses audiences in person from small summits for C suite executives to large events in the tens of thousands. Her virtual talks have reached hundreds of thousands. Often quoted in the media, notably in the New York Times, McGowan serves on the advisory board for Sparks & Honey, a New York–based culture-focused agency looking to the future for brands. McGowan’s academic work has included roles at Rhode Island School of Design, and Jefferson University, where she was the strategic architect of the first undergraduate college focused exclusively on innovation.

    In 2019 Heather was appointed as a faculty member of the Swinburne University Centre For the New Workforce in Melbourne, Australia. In 2022, McGowan was awarded an honorary doctorate from Pennsylvania College of Art and Design in addition to earning her MBA from Babson College and her BFA in Industrial Design from Rhode Island School of Design.

    McGowan is the co-editor and author of the book Disrupt Together: How Teams Consistently Innovate and a Forbes contributor. McGowan’s first book on the future of work, published in 2020: The Adaptation Advantage: Let Go, Learn Fast, and Thrive in the Future of Work, reached number three in business management books on Amazon and was named one of the best business books of 2021 by Soundview. McGowan’s most recent book The Empathy Advantage: Leading the Empowered Workforce published in March 2023 and is a finalist for the Next Big Idea Book Club and identified as a top ten business book to read in 2023 by Business Chief.

    Jacob Morgan Speaker

    Jacob Morgan

    4x Best-selling Author, Keynote Speaker, Futurist, and Co-founder of The Future of Work University

     About

    • Jacob talks about why employee experience is the next big area of investment, what the top companies are doing – and how you can go about creating an Experiential Organization.
    • Audiences leave understanding what some of the world’s most forward thinking organizations are doing and how leaders can create strategies to design and create employee experiences based around three environments: culture, technology, and the physical workspace.
    • Jacob Morgan is a trained futurist and one of the world’s leading authorities on the leadership, employee experience - and the future of work. He is a best selling author of 4 books on leadership.
    • Past clients include: Unilever, Cisco, MasterCard, Nestle, Best Buy, SAP, KPMG, T-Mobile, and Schneider Electric.

    Jacob Morgan is a trained futurist and one of the world’s leading authorities on the leadership, employee experience - and the future of work. He speaks in front of tens of thousands of people each year and his content is seen over a million times a year.

    After graduating with honours in business management economics and psychology from the University of California Santa Cruz, Jacob was excited to join the corporate world. At his first job he was told that he’d be travelling the country, meeting with executives and entrepreneurs - and doing all sorts of exciting work. A few months in, he was stuck doing data entry, cold calling - and PowerPoint presentations. One day the CEO came out of his nice corner office, handed Jacob a $10 bill and said “I’m late for a meeting, go grab me a cup of coffee - and get something for yourself as well.” That was the last corporate job he ever had.

    Jacob is the best-selling author of four books: The Future Leader (2020), The Employee Experience Advantage (2017), The Future of Work (2014), and The Collaborative Organization (2012). He speaks at over 50 conferences a year including TED Academy - which is one of the largest TED events in the world. In addition, Jacob provides advisory and thought leadership services to various organizations around the world.

    Jacob created “The Future If” a global community of business leaders, authors and futurists - who explore what our future can look like IF certain technologies, ideas, approaches and trends actually happen. The community looks at everything from AI and automation to leadership and management practices to augmented reality and virtual reality, the 4th industrial revolution - and everything in between.

    His work has been endorsed by the CEOs of: Unilever, Cisco, MasterCard, Nestle, Best Buy, SAP, KPMG, T-Mobile, Schneider Electric - and many others.

    In addition, Jacob hosts The Future of Work Podcast - a weekly show where he speaks with senior executives, authors, and business leaders about how the world of work is changing. His Youtube channel explores the latest concepts and ideas around the future of work - with inspiring and educational 2-3 minute videos.

    He has also contributed to - and been cited in publications such as Cosmopolitan, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, CNN, Glamour, the MIT Sloan Management Review, USA Today - and The Harvard Business Review.

    Blake Morgan Speaker

    Blake Morgan

    Customer Experience Futurist, Keynote Speaker and Author

     About

    Blake Morgan is a keynote speaker and customer experience futurist and author of two books on customer experience. She’s a board member of customer service AI software Minerva. Her bestselling second book is called “The Customer Of The Future: 10 Guiding Principles For Winning Tomorrow’s Business” (HarperCollins), identified by Business Insider as one of the top 20 books executives are reading to deal with COVID-19. In 2021 the book won a top 5 spot on Book Authority’s list of the “Top 100 Future Of Technology Books of All-Time.” She was called one of the to  40 female keynote speakers for 2020 by Real Leaders Magazine. Her first book was “More is More: How The Best Companies Work Harder And Go Farther To Create Knock Your Socks Off Customer Experiences.”

    Blake has worked with Comcast, Allstate, Genentech, Accor Hotels, Accenture, Adobe, Cisco, Parker Hannifin, Ericsson, Verizon, and more. Blake is a guest lecturer at Columbia University, the University of California, San Diego as well as adjunct faculty at the Rutgers executive education MBA program. Blake contributes to Forbes, the Harvard Business Review and Hemispheres Magazine.

    She is the host of The Modern Customer Podcast. She lives in the Los Angeles Area with her husband, their two children and two dogs.

    Erica Orange Speaker

    Erica Orange

    Leading Futurist & Speaker on Global Trends

     About

    • Erica talks about new and emerging trends in the global economy and what these mean for your business.
    • Audiences leave understanding the trends affecting their organization and how to leverage those changes for growth.
    • Erica is the Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer of The Future Hunters, one of the world’s leading futurist consulting firms and TEDx Speaker.
    • Past clients include: Human x Design Conference, L’Oreal, Mastercard, Razor Technologies, BNP Paribas

    Erica Orange is Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer of The Future Hunters, one of the world’s leading futurist consulting firms. She evaluates emerging social, technological, economic, political, demographic and environmental trends – and identifies the strategic implications (the “So what?”) of those trends for several of the most influential Fortune 500 companies, trade associations and public sector clients. Erica’s ability to think critically and translate that into actionable and tangible strategies is what has made her an invaluable asset to clients.

    Erica speaks to a wide range of global audiences about the macro trends that are shaping and impacting today’s landscape. She has spoken at TEDx and keynoted over 250 conferences around the world, including across Europe, Latin America, and Asia. She has authored numerous articles and industry white papers, and has been featured in news outlets including Wired, NPR, Time, Bloomberg, and CBS This Morning. In 2020, she was named by Forbes as one of the world's 50 Top Female Futurists.