KEYNOTE SPEAKER On High-Performing Teams & Cultures
Looking for a high-impact keynote on building high-performing teams and cultures?
Nick Jankel delivers inspiring and insightful keynotes that leverage discretionary effort, deliver performance upgrades, and drive hustle without losing humanity and integrity—from 10x serial entrepreneur leading smart and often entirely remote teams to deliver excellence with few resources.
seasoned specialist at senior leadership & top 10-500 events
Classic high-impact keynotes or interactive formats with time for reflection & participation—alone & together
optional workshop sessions with takeaway tools that build leadership skills
Cutting-edge content but also engaging
journies that Boost coherence, challenge complacency & build momentum
AN Unprecedented ROI:
4 reasons to book Nick as your leadership KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Electrifying, Energizing & HYPER-ENGAGING "WOW" Keynotes —including
immersive & Experiential formats
Nick is a virtuoso speaker who harnesses the science, art, and craft of storytelling to open up portals of possibility for your audience. His emotional courage, passion for his work, and conviction in his science-backed, ground-in-gritty-reality ideas will invite attendees of all persuasions to enter possibility spaces with him and experience their work and the world anew. His style can engage even the most tired and cynical"seen-it-all-before" attendees and spark fires of resolve in their bellies. His keynotes ignite meaningful conversations and memorable connections between attendees that can last well beyond the keynote.
ORIGINAL Science-BACKED IDEAS, ACTIONABLE Ah-HA! INSIGHTS & Real-world EXAMPLES
Each keynote Nick gives blends evidence-based and neuroscience-powered thought leadership, bold yet useful ideas, and hard-won experience drawn from 30 years of work on the frontlines of disruption, supporting 100+ Fortune 500 corporations, major institutions, and start-ups crack innovation, transformation, change management, and exceptional leadership. Nick is particularly good at getting smart people (e.g., execs, engineers, scientists, professionals, technologists, etc.) to engage in a keynote fully and always holds the intention to ignite multiple Ah-Ha! moments for each attendee.
Exquisitely Customized KEYNOTES to fit your brief & ELEVATE YOUR EVENT
Every keynote Nick designs and delivers is crafted to fit your specific event goals and context, speak to your business needs and strategy, and connect with your unique audience type and culture. The resulting tailored keynote content and delivery style is intended to amplify and accelerate your specific event ambitions, drive the biggest impact possible for you and for your attendees, and deliver beyond expectations for the work a keynote can do.
TAKEAWAY TOOLS & PRACTICAL HACKS THAT TURN INSPIRATION INTO ACTION
Nick can include and share powerful tools and short yet effective mindset practices (from his world-class leadership and innovation firm) that attendees can put to work in the hours, weeks, and years after your event. His tools and practices can turn inspiration into action out in the world and are designed to ignite meaningful change. Attendees will be given a way to access his materials, which they can use to switch on their teams and colleagues to some of Nick's ideas, cascading the impact across their organizations.
Why "working groups" are very different from high-performing teams that can drive results together across silos and functions—and how to energize hustle without losing our humanity.
How to motivate not manipulate people, build genuine psychological safety without being too soft, and empower team members to perform with guidance and guardrails rather than micro-management
Go beyond high-performing teams to high-performance cultures that can drive efficiencies and improvements with existing KPIS while delivering change, digital transformation, and innovation.
Ways to instill accountability and responsibility without resorting to "shame and blame"—and how to inspire excellence without perfectionism and anxiety.
Why managers, leaders, and team members should watch out for seemingly innocuous habits that actually tank team trust, reduce intrinsic motivation, and undermine collaboration.
The different "archetypes" needed in teams—and how to balance people's different strengths and weaknesses depending on the team's ambition and the company culture.
A standing ovation! I am already sharing the insights with my leaders. Thank you!
CEO,
Unilever USA
Nick was the highlight of the 2-day conference. He made it worth going to. Thought-provoking, insightful, and very enjoyable.
SVP
Investment Bank
Nick had a pronounced and profound impact. Exceptional!
President,
Kellogg’s North America
Nick transformed our event with an engaging and evocative talk that hit all the nails that we put out there. It set a perfect scene for the remainder!
Head of Marketing,
Syngenta
Top Keynote Speaker On high-performing Teams & CULTURES
Nick Jankel is a top 50 global professional keynote speaker who shares penetrating and inspiring insights into how to lead significant change, transformation, and innovation born from 25 years on the frontlines of disruptive innovation, purpose-driven entrepreneurship, and transformational leadership.
Nick is a sought-after and accomplished keynote speaker and futurist who helps audiences make sense of and simplify complexity, understand what is coming and what is possible, and understand how they can metabolize unstoppable disruption into value-creating, customer-centric ideas, insights, and innovations.
Nick is an award-winning author of multiple books on transformation and leadership, has been a master transformation coach on two global TV shows, and is a thought leader who has spoken at the illustrious Aspen Ideas Festival, The Economist Innovation Summit (alongside Elon Musk), and at Talks@Google.
keynote on high-performing teams taster video
Employees in high-trust companies experience remarkable benefits, with over 100% more energy, 50% higher productivity, and 40% less burnout compared to standard companies. Engaged employees outperform satisfied ones by 44%, while inspired employees boast an impressive 125% productivity boost. However, a concerning 60% of team members report negative team environments, with 84% encountering toxic coworkers and 87% having experienced toxic bosses.
Research consistently underscores that emotional dynamics within teams surpass IQ levels, job titles, or advanced degrees as predictors of high performance. Teams comprising diverse individuals of average intelligence often outshine groups of like-minded, highly intelligent individuals. Conventional management techniques geared toward efficiency may lead teams into learned helplessness, reduced agency, poor judgment, faux delegation, immunity to change, and failed innovation, resulting in loss of competitiveness and significant talent acquisition costs.
Drawing from over 20 years of experience, I’ve led businesses, coached successful innovation teams, and advised top leadership in multinationals. I’ve learned that high-performing teams don’t arise solely from smart and successful individuals. To unlock discretionary effort, new ways of thinking, breakthrough innovations, and collaboration critical for thriving in a changing world, teams must foster agility and accountability rooted in trust and safety.
In my keynotes, I tailor insights to exceed expectations, connecting with audiences to unleash energy, momentum, inspiration, and traction. I share crucial differences between working groups and transformational teams, guide on balancing performance with purpose, and detail the framework for creating cross-functional teams realizing bold visions. I address seemingly innocuous behaviors that damage trust and teamwork and offer hacks to cultivate genuine psychological safety.
Motivating people without manipulation is a complex skill, and I provide strategies to unlock coherence, creativity, and sustained collaboration in any team. Let me amplify your messages, elevate ambitions, and deliver a keynote customized for your audience, making a lasting impact on innovation, transformation, and team dynamics.