great business speakers

Have you ever heard a song while you’re in a bar, at a restaurant, out shopping, or watching tv and wondered, “What is the name of that song!” That happened to Chris Barton all the time. As a huge music fan, he was determined to find a way to identify songs in the world around him. And so, he created Shazam, the revolutionary app that uses technology to bring the magic of music discovery to your fingertips.

These days, it can be hard to be optimistic amid confusing economic news that mostly, let’s be honest…is pretty bad. Depending on what you are reading or experiencing, it is safe to assume we are all feeling a little overwhelmed as we continue to navigate this post-pandemic world, inflated gas prices, delayed supply chains, and political instability – just to name a few. 

What’s one of the biggest challenges facing business leaders in the post-pandemic world? Employee well-being and mental health.   We are living in a time when people are dealing with a lot more stress and anxiety – the ability to cope has become a challenge.  Gallup® recently came out with a State of the Global Workplace report that showed only 33% of the world’s employees are thriving – and that percentage has only increased by 1% since the start of the pandemic in 2020. The needle has not moved much at all…why is this?

PREFACE Before I tell you about those happy smiles, I need to provide a bit of background. The magician BILL HERZ and his wife Gwenn are treasured friends.

THE EXHAUSTION EPIDEMIC Are you feeling tired, like most of the time? You’re not alone! In the face of the exhaustion epidemic we’re experiencing, it’s time to rethink conventional wisdom about high productivity behavior. Grit and hustle certainly have their place in business but over the long haul, they’re also scientifically associated with burnout. If the pandemic proved anything, it’s that success in business is inextricably tied to health and well-being. You can’t have one without the other! It’s no coincidence that organizations and leaders have started to pay attention to the emotional well-being of their people like never before.

When Duke's season ended just short of the 2022 NCAA Championship Game, it also brought to a close an entire era of college basketball. In that moment the sport lost perhaps its most recognizable name, Coach Mike Krzyzewski. Some consider Coach K to be the most accomplished coach in college basketball history. Others favor the legendary John Wooden, the former UCLA coach. Basketball icon BILL WALTON played for Wooden at UCLA. He helped win two national championships while there and was part of the squads that contributed to UCLA’s incredible 88-game winning streak, which still stands as an NCAA record. On the evening of Duke’s loss to North Carolina, Bill appeared on Westwood One’s "Rich Eisen Show" where Eisen asked Bill what he thought of the debate about who’s the greatest college basketball coach – Coach K or John Wooden?

KEYNOTE MAGIC Ask Vernice “FlyGirl” Armour for her secret to delivering consistently great call-to-action, high-impact keynotes and she’ll tell you without hesitation -- “intense preparation!” Click above to peek behind the curtain and watch FlyGirl when she's on-site for a keynote. You'll glimpse the final preparation, the speech, and the extraordinary impact of FlyGirl’s remarks. 

It’s a new year with big business challenges. You would have thought CEOs would be worried most about the impact of Covid – but not so. That’s #13 on their list.   Disruption is the #1 fear. The frenetic pace of change in businesses and the world has accelerated during the pandemic. An Alix Partners study released on December 27 revealed almost every CEO (94%) surveyed said their company needs to reinvent the business model within the next three years. 57% fear they’re not moving fast enough.   The situation is also spiking CEO anxiety: 72% of CEOs fear losing their jobs due to disruptions facing their industries. That is an unprecedented level of anxiety.   All this comes as no surprise to veteran Fortune senior editor-at-large GEOFF COLVIN. He's been speaking and reporting on business model transformation for years – watching how leaders are leading the change that keeps their companies competitive and relevant. Here's a great example of Geoff's reporting and research – a Fortune profile on how Goodyear has reinvented their business.  Geoff also co-hosts a Fortune podcast and a recent topic was GM's transformation towards electric vehicles.  

Think fast! Speed is life! COL. NICOLE MALACHOWSKI (USAF, ret.) a 21-year Air Force pilot, combat veteran, and first female pilot in the elite Thunderbirds, has important advice for those trying to cope with nonstop and radical change. Thinking fast. Deciding fast. Acting together. These factors literally determine survival in combat. They’re just as important in today’s business arena, too. One of the most impactful speakers on handling change, creating high-performance culture, and leadership, Nicole started hearing from executives organizing conferences that speed and quick decision-making were two vitally important qualities they wanted to instill in their organizations.

BILL WALTON is a wonder of modern medical science. He should not be standing, but 39 – yes, you read that right, 39! – orthopedic surgeries have made it possible.   Bill’s physical health problems began in college when an undiagnosed foot abnormality led first to stress fractures and then more serious issues – culminating in a complete collapse of his spine in 2008.