The Leading Speakers Bureau

One of the World’s Leading Wine Authors and Oeonologists

Hugh Johnson is considered worldwide as the leading wine author. The two exceptional successes of his amazing career are ‘The World Atlas of Wine’ which is celebrating its quarter century and the annually updated ‘Pocket Encyclopedia of Wine’ now in its second decade.

With his extensive knowledge and his outstanding talent Hugh’s strength is taking the incredibly complex subject of wine and making it accessible to any audience.

International Wine & Spirit Competition 1998 Communicator of the Year.

[expand title=”In detail”] Hugh Johnson began acquiring his knowledge of wine as a member of the Wine and Food Society at Cambridge University. In 1963 he succeeded André Simon as editor of ‘Wine and Food’. With the publication of his first book ‘Wine’ he established himself, at the age of 27, as one of the subject’s foremost writers. Hugh regularly publishes articles in the most prestigious magazines worldwide. He was feature writer for Condé Nast Magazines, Editor of the Wine and Food Magazine, Wine Correspondent for the Sunday Times and Wine Editor of the New York Cuisine Magazine. Currently Hugh is President of The Sunday Times Wine Club and The Hugh Johnson Collection Ltd.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]A highly respected author, editor and broadcaster, Hugh is a brilliant communicator and experienced speaker who inspires his audiences with his sensibility and expertise.

He has appeared in several TV series including ‘Wine – A User’s Guide’. ‘Vintage – A History of Wine’ and ‘Return Voyage’.

Acknowledged as a leading authority he won numerous awards including the contested Literature prize from the Academy of Bordeaux, 1987, in 1998 he won the highest decoration from the German Gastronomic Academy (GAD) and 1998 he was chosen as the Communicator of the Year from the International Wine and Spirit Competition.[/expand]
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A Commentator on Climate Change and Europe’s Leading Futurist

The hottest topic around continues to be Global Warming and the challenges climate change will bring to the Global Population. Ray Hammond’s 2005 published novel ‘Extinction’ focused on these issues and confirmed his amazing ability to take his readers forward to a world which we are now accepting may one day become reality. Through ‘Extinction’ Ray has been nominated for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award 2007.Living in the future is a way of life for Ray and as the environment continues to be threatened few commentators are better equipped to communicate how the future will look.

“I listened with great interest to Ray Hammond earlier and I made a note of the seven key drivers of the future he has identified.I am speaking in New York tomorrow and I intend to steal all seven of Ray’s drivers for that speech – and for all the speeches I make after that.”

– Jack Welch, ex CEO and Executive Chairman of General Electric

[expand title=”In detail”] Based in London, Ray is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (F.R.S.A.), a contributing editor to the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory at the University of Maryland, U.S.A. and a visiting lecturer at the London Business School. In February 2007 he was elected a Fellow of the World Innovation Foundation (F.W.I.F.), a Swiss-registered charity which counts 91 Nobel-laureate scientists among its 3,000 strong fellowship. The W.I.F.’s mission is to provide advice to national democratic governments about the application of science for the benefit of future society. [/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]As an inspirational keynote and motivational speaker, Ray Hammond is in worldwide demand by business, government and non-government organizations keen to hear his accurate predictions about how climate changes will affect the way we do business and the far reaching implications both socially, economically and politically around the globe.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents”]Ray is a stunningly gifted free-form speaker who requires no slides, notes or AV props to enthral an audience! He projects real warmth and dynamism and, using plain language he cuts through complex technical issues, new innovations and business concepts. A natural inspirational orator, Ray steps down into his audiences around the world to motivate and personally inspire them.[/expand]
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Expert on Leadership and Former General Secretary for the UK TGWU

Lord Bill Morris is renowned for his achievements as one of the UK’s most prominent union leaders. Now retired from the TGWU, he is involved in a range of activities. These include being a member of The Panel for Mergers and Takeovers, Chair of Midland Heart and serving as a lay Judge on the Employment Appeals Council. He is a regular broadcaster on current social, economic and political issues, and he presented a BBC Radio Four series, Workaday World which looked at the changing patterns of work in the UK and further a field.

”Diversity is the compass which guides our moral pathway”
Bill Morris

[expand title=”In detail”] Former non-Executive Director of the Bank of England and the Unity Trust Bank, Bill also served on the Royal Commission on the Reform of the House of Lords, the Commission for Racial Equality and the Advisory Councils of the BBC and IBA. His lifelong enthusiasm for education has led to numerous honorary degrees, and he is Chancellor of the University of Technology in Jamaica and Stafford University. [/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]A “people’s champion”, as the most skilled negotiator and confirmed social reformer, he can guide audiences through the challenges of change like no other. He offers unique perspectives of globalisation and the changing world and his leadership qualities, skills as a negotiator and political acumen have made him a force to be reckoned with.[/expand]
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Expert on the Middle East and Former Israeli Deputy National Security Adviser

Professor Chuck Freilich is a highly respected specialist on the Middle East. As co-director of a Middle Eastern affairs consultancy, his primary areas of expertise are US-Mid East policy and Israeli national security policy. He teaches political science at Tel Aviv and Hebrew Universities and is also a Senior Fellow at the Belfer Center at Harvard’s Kennedy School, where he is writing a book on Israeli national security decision making.

“A revitalized U.S.-Israel strategic dialogue is more vital than ever”

[expand title=”In detail”] Professor Freilich was Israeli’s Deputy National Security Adviser and a Senior Analyst at the Israel Ministry of Defense, focusing on strategic affairs. He was Policy Advisor to a cabinet minister and a Delegate at the Israeli Mission to the UN. He was also the Executive Director of two non profit organizations and served in the Israel Defense Forces for five years (reserve major). Prof. Freilich earned his Ph.D. from Columbia University. [/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]Few are better positioned to talk in depth about the current state of the political and economic situation in the Middle East than Chuck Freilich. With a wealth of hands on experience he offers an insider’s perspective to businesses, not only of US/Middle East relations but also of the opportunities that will present themselves to the region in the future.[/expand]
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Olympic Coach and Gold Medal Winning Rower

Few Olympians have made the transition from athlete to coach as smoothly as Tim Foster. After achieving his goal of winning a gold medal at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 Tim Foster retired from international rowing. Continuing to be involved in the sport at the highest level, Tim joined the UK Sport-sponsored Elite Coach Programme in 2004. In January 2007, he became the Head Coach of the Swiss national rowing squad.

“Tim Foster is one of the UK’s most determined and dedicated athletes”

[expand title=”In detail”] Tim Foster began rowing at Bedford Modern School and competed in the Junior World Rowing Championships in 1987 and 1988. In the latter he competed in a pair with a Matthew Pinsent. He became the first British rower to win gold medals at two consecutive Junior Worlds. From there he proceeded into the senior squad.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]The quintessential Olympic champion Tim is a great motivator and using the lessons he learned on the way to achieving his Olympic gold medal, he shows audiences how to achieve their own goals and sets them on the path to winning ways both on a professional and personal basis.[/expand]
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Andes Aeroplane Crash Survivor

Nando Parrado is one of the survivors of the dramatic aeroplane crash on October 13, 1972 when a plane carrying a Uruguayan old boys rugby team over the Andes lost its bearings in bad weather and crashed in the remote mountains. Despite spending 74 days on a glacier at 18000 ft, without suitable clothing, training, equipment or supplies and against all odds Nando walked out of the mountains to raise the alarm to save his stranded companions

“It is better to decide and make a mistake, that not to decide. There is always time to turn back”
Nando Parrado

[expand title=”In detail”]
Nando now lives in Montevideo, Uruguay and has rebuilt his life to become a very successful businessman. He is the owner of a cable television channel, he produces six television programmes and he also runs family businesses in the United States and Europe[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]Nando talks candidly about his experiences in the Andes and how it has affected him. He offers audiences a very close and personal account of the events after the crash and explains how camaraderie and relationships are the keys to survival.[/expand]
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Director of Global Logistics for Amazon.com

Girish Lakshman has been a part of the Amazon.com e-logistics strategy since July 1999, he has been instrumental in shaping the logistics strategy of the company and is now a recognised leader in this field. He has thirteen years experience in the manufacturing and automotive industry, and has provided corporate strategy advice in the biotech industry in India.

Through his presentations he explains how to develop prototypical decision support systems to demonstrate the benefits of using IT for creating an optimal level of core inventory. Girish also uses his expertise to enable business leaders to design and implement systems to project production at cost for different manufacturing facilities to level load production and reduce manpower requirements.

[expand title=”In detail”] He has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Osmania University, India, and studied a variety of topics at the Graduate School of the University of Missouri Rolla. He has been an officer of the Young Orators Club for several years, learning and teaching the art of public speaking.

He has led the effort to establish an optimised inventory distribution plan across the network at Amazon.com, including formulating the functional specifications to correlate split shipments with inventory placement and distribution centre capacity, systems evaluation and integration.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]Girish has been an inspirational leader in transforming traditional business culture into an environment ready to compete intelligently in the e-commerce world. His experience has been hands-on and has left a legacy of leadership and forward thinking in all the places he has worked.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents”]Most recently he has designed several decision support systems, and has implemented a number of training programmes to demonstrate the complexities of IT systems and the benefits that can be reaped by correct system application.

Girish Lakshman is a highly motivating and articulate speaker, his enlightening presentations are always well received. He not only inspires but also presents his clients with actionable solutions that can be implemented immediately.[/expand]
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Trend Spotter Extraordinaire and Innovation speaker

Magnus Lindkvist is a future trends speaker who offers insightful and tangible solutions to companies wishing to grow their business in an organic way. He is the founder of the trend agency Pattern Recognition who helps companies to make sense (and money) out of the future. Furthermore, he is the creator of “Trendspotting and Future Thinking”, one of Europe’s first academically accredited courses in the subject.

“Where the day takes you, that’s where you’re going”

[expand title=”In detail”] Previously he worked as a brand strategist at Differ and for the brand strategy agency, Grow. As a member of TED and The Long Now Foundation, Magnus combines a passionate interest in the future with a strong desire to share insights that has made him one of Europe’s most sought-after future trends speakers. He is also a course director at Stockholm School of Entrepreneurship, a collaborative partnership between Stockholm School of Economics, The Royal Institute of Technology, The University College of Arts, Crafts and Design and Medical University Karolinska Institute.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you as a keynote speaker”]Magnus Lindkvist will inspire and provoke you into better future-thinking. He considers what is happening now and in the future and how it affects how we do business. He gives businesses a tangible and simple call to action on how to adapt to these future trends to develop and market their products and services.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents as a keynote speaker”]Magnus is an energetic and exciting future trends speaker who in his fun and fact-filled tailored presentations, uses humour to deliver great insights about the trends that will shape your business.[/expand]
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Leading Management Strategist

Dr. Kenichi Ohmae is an acclaimed management strategist renowned for his work on globalisation and the borderless economy. He is a concert playing flutist, a nuclear physicist, would-be politician, a former McKinsey consultant and much more. He is also the dean of two private schools in Tokyo: Isshinjuku, which studies public policy, and Attacker’s Advantage, which studies Entrepreneurship. He is also the Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at the UCLA School of Public and Social Research.


The Financial Times called Kenichi Ohmae “Japan’s only Management Guru”

Kenichi Ohmae has been ranked among the top 50 most influential business thinkers. In 2009 Thinkers 50, the global ranking of management gurus, placed him among the list of most influential thinkers

[expand title=”In detail”] A graduate of Waseda Unversity and the Tokyo Institute of Technology, Ohmae joined McKinsey consultants in 1972 after the completion of his PhD at MIT. He spent 23 years at McKinsey where he cofounded its strategic management practice, eventually leaving to stand for the Governorship of Tokyo in 1995.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]His special area of expertise is formulating creative strategies and developing the organizational concepts to implement them. Some of the world’s most successful companies continue to seek his help in shaping their competitive global strategies. He urges executives to tap into the new global stage and its new platforms of economic power and growth.[/expand]
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Author and Leading Authority on Creative Problem Solving and Lateral Leadership

Paul Sloane is well known as a thought provoking, entertaining and motivational speaker. He is the author of 17 books on lateral puzzles, creative problem-solving and lateral leadership. He was described in the Independent as the ‘King of Lateral Thinking Puzzles.’ He is the founder of Destination-Innovation, a consultancy that helps organisations gain competitive advantage through innovation.

“Really useful material presented enthusiastically and
with immediate relevance.” Syntegra

[expand title=”In detail”] Paul took a first in Engineering at Cambridge. His stellar career started in IBM where he came top of Sales School. He was part of the team that launched the IBM PC in the UK. Paul then went on to be Managing Director of the database leaders, Ashton-Tate. He became VP International for MathSoft Inc. and CEO of Monactive Ltd[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]Paul gives after-dinner talks, keynote addresses, link presentations and workshops. His talks offer a unique blend of puzzling challenges and hard-hitting business messages. They are motivational, stimulating and fun but with strong takeaway themes on leadership, creativity and innovation[/expand]
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