The Leading Speakers Bureau

Triple Guiness World Record Holder, Solo Ocean-rower, Motivational Speaker, Adventurer & Writer and Celebrity speaker

Sarah Outen is the first and only woman and the youngest person to row solo across the Indian Ocean, dedicating her row to her father’s memory having rowed for 124 days, 14 hours and 9 minutes in 2009. Her subsequent expedition is ‘London to London: Via the World’ – a Sarah-powered loop of the planet involving the first ever attempt by a woman to row across the North Pacific Ocean. She will row, cycle and kayak her way from London back to London, sharing stories about the adventure and experience. The 20,000 mile journey is expected to take two and a half years to complete, around Autumn 2013.

“She could hold any audience enthralled effortlessly & was a joy to have on our programme” Mark Radcliffe, BBC Radio 2 presenter

[expand title=”In detail”] Sarah Outen attained a degree in Biology from the University of Oxford, where she started rowing in 2004. She was the first woman to attempt the crossing single-handedly, and only the fourth person to ever complete a solo crossing. She was elected Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society shortly afterwards and awarded three Guinness World Records for her crossing. Having masterminded the whole project herself, her journey captured the imagination of people right around the globe, and regular satellite link ups to Australian and British channels and radio shows provided a beautiful insight into her salty world.[/expand]

[expand title=”What she offers you”]Sarah Outen is hooked on life and wild places, and inspiring others to follow their own dreams. Having battled 100ft waves, searing heat and mid-ocean capsizes, she talks of her ocean adventures, sharing photography and footage from the row, and about her next expedition, a solo human-powered loop of the planet. The story of setting up the expedition, raising the capital, driving the media campaign, building the boat, training mind and body and just making the Australian start line is as valid as the ocean tale itself.[/expand]

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[expand title=”How she presents”]With adventure running through her veins, Sarah Outen is a fresh young talent who captivates her audiences with her energetic, witty, engaging and truly inspiring story. A natural speaker, her lust for life is highly contagious and her dogged determination and refusal to be beaten, thread her extraordinary story, which she tells with natural ease and bubbly humour, captivating her audience – whoever they may be. The energy is uplifting and the pathos she evokes, endearing.[/expand]
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Award-winning Visionary British-American Film Director, Screenwriter & Producer

Christopher Nolan is known for writing and directing such critically acclaimed films as Memento (nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Academy Award (Oscar) for best screenplay), the remake Insomnia, the film adaption The Prestige, Inception, and rebooting the Batman film franchise. He was nominated for the Directors Guild of America Award for Best Director for The Dark Knight.

“The best actors instinctively feel out what the other actors need, & they just accommodate it” Christopher Nolan

[expand title=”In detail”] Christopher Nolan began making war movies using his father’s super 8mm camera and an assortment of male action figures. He was educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College, England and later studied English literature at University College, London. He directed his first feature film, Following, in 1998. His short film, Tarantella, was shown on Image Union, an independent film and video showcase featured on PBS, in 1989. Another short film of his, Larceny, was shown during Cambridge Film Festival in 1996.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]One of Hollywood’s most innovative filmmakers, Christopher Nolan offers captivating insights into today’s innovative and creative movie making. His work is often based around an emotional or conceptual theme and he provides his audiences with fascinating details of his use of non-linear storytelling at the very height of his craft. For anyone interested in the creative process behind this film, he is ideally positioned to reveal his cinematic visions.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents”]Having always dreamed as a child to direct a big blockbuster film, Christopher Nolan’s passion for relating a story and natural charisma add to a wide range of worldwide events.[/expand]
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Expert on Japanese Issues, President of International Business School IMD (Switzerland)

Prof. Dominique Turpin was named IMD President in 2010. He is also Nestlé Professor at IMD and was previously the director of the IMD MBA (Master of Business Administration) and PED (Program for Executive Development). Given the recent developments in Japan in 2011, he is in great demand in the media for insights into Japanese issues as he attained his Ph.D. in Japan, speaks Japanese, lived in Japan for 5 years and has been responsible for the Japanese market for 25 years.

“Dominique Turpin is a leading Business Expert”

[expand title=”In detail”] Dominique Turpin received his master’s degree from ESSCA in France and earned a doctorate in economics from Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan. He has worked as a consultant and management educator, directing customized programs with a large number of international companies. He also served as a board member for ITOCHU Europe, a leading Japanese trading company and the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne. Prior to joining IMD, he spent several years in Tokyo as a representative of a French firm in Japan. He served as Visiting Professor at the Keio Graduate School of Business Administration, Japan. Since 1994, he serves as the IMD representative on the Academic Council of the China-Europe International Business School in Shanghai (People’s Republic of China).[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]With widespread executive seminar and consulting experience for clients in Europe, Asia and Latin America, Dominique Turpin shares his insights on the impact of brands in a global world and models for long-term growth, profitability, stability and survival through periods of crisis. His current research focuses on brand management. He has been widely published in more than 100 books, articles and case studies including the Financial Times, European Business Forum and MIT Sloan Management Review. In his presentations he shares his extensive knowledge in areas of marketing and international strategy both in Europe and in Asia, particularly in the area of brand management, customer orientation and communications strategy.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents”]Educating business leaders to address managerial dilemmas has long been IMD’s central tenet and Dominique Turpin is a high-calibre speaker who helps nurture a new generation of emerging market leaders eager to assume their new role on the world stage.[/expand]
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Leading Creativity & Innovation Expert

Chris Arnold is founder and Creative Partner of Creative Orchestra, the world’s first independent creative department, Social Enterprise ad agency and talent incubator. A former board member and a Creative Director of Saatchi & Saatchi, Chris has worked in many top advertising agencies over his 20 year career and with many of the world’s top brands.

“Chris Arnold has strong opinions about the state of management in the UK advertising industry”

[expand title=”In detail”] A champion of ethics, Chris Arnold writes the ethical marketing blog on Brand Republic and has written for numerous publications, including the FT, Creative Review, Times and Brand Strategy magazine. He also writes the ecoSuperMan Twitter. He’s done many TV appearances advising on marketing, including a recent BBC programme on disgusting foods, Mischief with Alex Riley, Working Lunch, Watchdog and Channel 4’s Battlefronts. He has been a board member of the DMA, Europe’s largest marketing trade body, and was former chair of the DMA Agencies Council and the Creative Council. He has also been a founder of several other agencies; Symple, Barradale Leagas Arnold Campbell (BLAC), FEEL and H20 Walk for Water, Walk for Life. In 2011 his new projects are writing a new book on creativity, ‘THUNK’ (a different way to think) and a book on Maverick Brands.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]A former Chairman of the Creative Council and with a string of awards to his name, Chris is one of the industry’s biggest champions of creativity. Chris Arnold runs workshops and lectures around the world on creativity, opening minds and numerous marketing subjects, including ethical marketing. He provides an essential guide to understanding the new consumer and why they buy, what they buy and what they don’t.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents”]Chris Arnold is passionate about encouraging young creative talent, leaving his audiences inspired through his enthusiasm and passion. His approach to people management seems to emerge naturally from his creative and business strategies. His presentations are packed full of information and creative examples. Chris is an energetic, entertaining, passionate, inspiring and thought-provoking speaker. He always scores very highly on both delivery and content. He’ll help you see things from a different angle and leave you inspired and motivated. You’ll not forget one of his lectures.[/expand]
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Prof. Recognised World Expert in Integrated Innovation Management

Prof. Göran Roos is one of the founders of modern intellectual capital science and a recognised world expert in this field. He is also the originator of thinking around integrated innovation management i.e. technology and design based innovation to create value and business model innovation to appropriate value. He has made substantial contributions to the thinking around strategy as well as industrial policy.

“Expert in Integrated Innovation Management” Continue Reading »

Chief Operating Officer at Facebook

Sheryl Sandberg is the Chief Operating Officer of Facebook. Prior to Facebook, she was Vice President of Global Online Sales and Operations at Google. She also helped launch Google’s philanthropic arm Google.org. Prior to Google, she served as Chief of Staff for the United States Department of the Treasury under President Bill Clinton where she helped lead the Treasury’s work on forgiving debt in the developing world during Asian financial crisis.

In 2008 Facebook announced that Sheryl Sandberg would be their first COO

[expand title=”In detail”] Sheryl Sandberg graduated from Harvard College with a B.A. in Economics and was awarded the Prize for the top graduating student in economics. She later enrolled at Harvard Business School and earned her MBA with highest distinction. Her first job out of college was at the World Bank where she worked on health projects in India dealing with leprosy, AIDS, and blindness. She was also a management consultant with McKinsey & Company and an economist with The World Bank. In 2009, she was named to the board of the Walt Disney Company and joined the Board of Directors of Starbucks. [/expand]

[expand title=”What she offers you”]Described by The Economist as “the unseen driving force behind the creation of Google.org”, Sheryl Sandberg has vast experience navigating the complex and socially sensitive world of international economics. She provides insights from her distinguished career at the Treasury, Google and at Facebook, where she currently oversees the firm’s business operations including sales, marketing, business development, human resources, public policy and communications.[/expand]

[expand title=”How she presents”]A globally respected businesswoman that has received accolades including being named as one of the 50 Most Powerful Women in Business by Fortune, Sheryl Sandberg’s presentations are rich in content, powerfully delivered and highly sought-after at prestigious events worldwide.[/expand]
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Roboticist, Creator of Marilyn Monrobot Labs, One of the World’s First Robot Theatre Companies

Heather Knight runs Marilyn Monrobot in New York, where she and her cohort create “charismatic machine performances and she helped build the amazing Rube Goldberg machine for OK Go’s “This Too Shall Pass”. She was recently named Assistant Director of Robotics at Humanity+. She wants you to like robots. Really like them.

“Heather Knight has a thing for robots”

[expand title=”In detail”] Heather Knight is conducting her doctoral research at the intersection of robotics and entertainment at Carnegie Mellon’s Robotics Institute. She is an alumnus from the Personal Robots Group at the MIT, where she earned her bachelor and masters degrees. Her installations have been featured at the Smithsonian-Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, LACMA, SIGGRAPH, PopTech and the Fortezza da Basso in Florence, Italy. Her past work also includes robotics and instrumentation at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, interactive installations with Syyn Labs (including the award- winning Rube Goldberg machine music video with OK Go), and sensor design at Aldebaran Robotics.[/expand]

[expand title=”What she offers you”]Heather Knight shows robots can teach us a lot about being human. She is particularly interested how autonomous robots gauge and respond to human behaviour through live theatrical performance, explaining that intersecting two fields is a great way to inspire new thoughts and innovation. In her first-of-its-kind demo at TED 2010, she introduced Data, a robotic stand-up comedian that does much more than rattle off one-liners — it gathered audience feedback.[/expand]

[expand title=”How she presents”]A true pioneer who has worked on several amazing projects already, including developing the touch sensing panel in the head and the infrared detection in the eyes of the robot NAO, Heather Knight warmly and informatively presents her creation of socially intelligent robot performances and sensor-based electronic art.[/expand]
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Expert Economist on the Middle East

Dr. John Sfakianakis is Chief Economist of Banque Saudi Fransi, serving in various management committees as a Group General Manager. He previously served as SABB’s (Saudi British Bank) Chief Economist in Riyadh. He has published frequently on Saudi economic and trade issues as well as issuing the first business confidence index report by a Saudi-based bank.

“One of the most respected business personalities in the Middle East”

[expand title=”In detail”] John Sfakianakis holds a BSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science, an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies and a PhD from Harvard University. Prior to joining SABB, he was the Chief Regional Economist for Samba Financial Group. He also worked for the United National Development Program (UNDP) seconded at the Ministry of Economy and Planning of Saudi Arabia where he served as part of the 8th planning team for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He worked as a senior financial advisor to the Gulf Research Center (GRC) and continues until today to be member of the editorial board of the GRC. He has also worked as an economist for The World Bank in Washington D.C. in the Middle East, and East Asia departments.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]John Sfakianakis is recognized in the Middle East and beyond for his balanced views into economic developments. He regularly contributes articles for the international and local press, often a commentator in news channels such as Al Arabiya, BBC, CNBC, CNN, and Bloomberg. He helps shape thinking across the Middle East business environment, as well as drive debate, new thinking and business leadership that will, in turn, encourage best practices and the development of a new generation of Middle Eastern business leaders.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents”]Prominent economist John Sfakianakis is a charismatic, eloquent and warm orator and commentator who reassuringly speaks with great clarity and content at a wide range of events.[/expand]
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Roboticist, Prominent Young Innovator & Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at MIT

Cynthia Breazeal has developed some of the world’s most famous robotic creatures, ranging from small hexapod robots to highly expressive humanoids, including the social robot Kismet and the expressive robot Leonardo. She founded and directs the Personal Robots Group at MIT’s Media Lab. Her eminently charming and huggable creatures appear to have stepped out of Santa’s North Pole workshop.

“I would much rather build something and interact with it than philosophize about it”
Cynthia Breazeal

[expand title=”In detail”] Cynthia Breazeal received her S.B. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She did her graduate work at the MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab, and received her SM and ScD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At MIT, Cynthia and her team are building robots with social intelligence that communicate and learn the same way people do.

Her robots have also been widely covered in the media including TV, radio, newspapers, magazines, documentaries and films.[/expand]

[expand title=”What she offers you”]Recognized as a prominent young innovator who has developed some of the world’s most famous robotic creatures, Cynthia Breazeal’s recent work investigates the impact of social robots on helping people of all ages to achieve personal goals that contribute to quality of life, in domains such as physical performance, learning and education, health, and family communication. She wants to shift the concept of robots from machines that explore distant places like Mars, to devices that can function in society at large. She has spoken at prestigious events worldwide, including TEDWomen in 2010.[/expand]

[expand title=”How she presents”]Bringing us closer to the question of “when might a machine be a person”, Cynthia Breazeal, a pioneer of Social Robotics and Human Robot Interaction (HRI), expertly reviews various technological aspects ranging from the biological model to the vision for the future.[/expand]
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Health Futurist & Medical Economist, Author & Expert on Key Trends of the Health Industry

Dr. Jeffrey C. Bauer is an established expert on key trends that shape the future of the industry, with 40+ years of experience as a medical school professor and consultant to leading providers of health services. Widely known for his specific proposals to create efficient and effective health care delivery systems though multi-stakeholder partnerships and other initiatives focused in the private sector, he forecasts the evolution of health care and presents practical approaches to improving a country’s medical marketplace.

“Jeff Bauer provokes exchanges of ideas & thoughts on the future”

[expand title=”In detail”] Jeff Bauer received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Colorado-Boulder, completed a certificate in political studies at the University of Paris (France), and was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Geneva (Swizerland). He was a full-time professor at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Denver and was Assistant Chancellor for Planning & Program Development. He served concurrently as Health Policy Adviser to Colorado Governor Richard D. Lamm. He was also on the facutly at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine in Madison. In recent years, he has facilitated an expert task force on the future of health care for one of the country’s largest medical associations and particiapted in strategic market assessments for some of the world’s largest imaging and information technology companies.[/expand]

[expand title=”What he offers you”]As an independent, internationally recognized thought leader, Jeff Bauer has published over 200 articles and books that prepare health care leaders to approach the future proactively and strategically. An excellent teacher with deep background in science and information technology, he is often quoted in the press and writes regularly for professional journals that cover the business of health care. His long-term consulting work has included managing technology assessment for a 28-hospital health system, analyzing performance of clinical service lines, and in-depth strategic planning for hospitals and professional associations.[/expand]

[expand title=”How he presents”]Jeff Bauer delivers dozens of speeches in several countries every year and consistently receives superb evaluations for dynamic, insightful, and thought-provoking presentations that provide attendees with a wealth of helpful “take home” information. All speeches are customized to meet the client’s objectives for the meeting and supported with graphics and full text outlines.[/expand]
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