Kinetic Keynotes

Jessi Arrington

A designer by training, Arrington is known for wearing secondhand clothing in a rejection of fast fashion and encourages attendees to design their lives creatively rather than conforming to corporate norms. Arrington provides bright-colored clothing for attendees to wear and leads them in rainbow parades.

Topics

Work culture, art and design

Arrington’s Website

Simon Bailey

A business thought leader and author, Bailey has audience members repeat key parts of his presentation so that they retain the information. Attendees help each other film themselves explaining what they are going to do when they return home to act on his message.

Topics

Breaking through obstacles, igniting your inner spark

Bailey’s Website

Brian Biro

A motivational speaker and author, Biro invites attendees to focus on what is holding them back and create a plan to breakthrough it. Participants then write the obstacle or challenge on a wooden board and learn how to break the board like a martial artist.

Topics

Breakthrough leadership, building people, from ego to “we go”

Biro’s Website

Boris Brott

A world-renowned conductor, Brott draws parallels between how businesses and symphony orchestras function. He provides tone bars to each audience member and demonstrates how, by collaborating, they can create music together.

Topics

Collaboration, creativity

Brott’s Website

Tamara Ghandour

Attendees take an online assessment tool called Innovation Quotient Edge before one of Ghandour’s talks, so they are already invested in the experience when she walks on stage. The business and innovation leader then tailors exercises to each innovation style.

Topic

Innovation

Ghandour’s Website

Phil Hansen

After developing nerve damage in his hand, artist Phil Hansen “embraced the shake” to develop new ways to make art. Each of his audience members is supplied with materials to create art, and even if they don’t believe they have talent, their contributions are used to create giant, collaborative artworks.

Topic

Overcoming challenges with creativity, transforming limitations into
opportunities

Hansen’s Website and Bureau

Jennifer McGovern

A certified laughter yoga leader, McGovern brings audience members out of their comfort zone by making them laugh. Based on science that says the body cannot tell the difference between real and fake laughter, the extra oxygen, release of endorphins, and loosening of the body allow attendees to begin conferences relaxed and open to new ideas.

Topics

Universal acceptance, finding joy

McGovern’s Website

Cathy O’Dowd

An elite mountain climber and inspirational speaker, O’Dowd shares one of her journeys up Mount Everest with audience members who use a polling app to show what they would do at critical moments during the climb. She exposes how unconscious bias can derail decision-making, whether on a climbing team or in a business.

Topics

Leadership, decision-making, risk management

O’Dowd’s Website

Alex Valdez

A comedian who happens to be blind, Valdez has audience members complete tasks with made up disabilities, such as speaking without using their tongues, and investigate what accommodations they could make in their workplaces to increase diversity.

Topics

Accessibility, diversity