Highly-Interactive Keynotes with Practical Takeaways
for Courageous Leaders and Innovative, High-Performing Teams
Karin Hurt is the CEO of Let’s Grow Leaders, a global leadership development firm known for practical, human-centered programs that stick. An award-winning author and international keynote speaker, Karin helps leaders build courageous, collaborative cultures—where people speak up, connect deeply, and lead with confidence through change.
A former Verizon Wireless executive and Inc. 100 Great Leadership speaker, she brings decades of leadership experience to her work with clients such as Amazon, Marriott, and Honeywell Aerospace. She translates that experience to practical takeaways from the keynote stage.
Karin’s keynotes are interactive, high-energy, and deeply practical. She engages audiences with active participation and conversation, making every session feel personal and actionable. For association conferences and company events, Karin can curate video soundbites from association members, executives, or employees to highlight relevant insights and best practices aligned with her key messages.
She’s the author of five books, including Courageous Cultures and Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict, and her “Asking For a Friend” show and blog are known around the globe for practical advice.
Whether she’s speaking to executives or frontline teams, Karin equips leaders with the tools and courage to navigate conflict, foster trust, and build habits for lasting impact.
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Inspiring Courageous Leadership and High-Performing Teams Worldwide
Karin Hurt and David Dye’s programs are highly interactive and rich in practical content. Your attendees will leave not only inspired but ready to apply what they’ve learned immediately. We strive to add deep value to your conference or event, and are happy to include an executive program, pre-conference workshop, or breakout session while we are there.
“Karin Hurt delivered exactly what we needed – high-impact, customized sessions that truly resonated with our audience. She crafted two powerful programs: one for our executives, built on her Courageous Cultures research and book, and another for all attendees, inspired by her most recent book, Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict. The sessions were strategically integrated, highly interactive, and packed with practical takeaways our members could immediately apply. Karin was a joy to work with – professional, insightful, and fully invested in our success. We would definitely love to work with Karin again in the future!“
–Erin Glarner
Director, Industry Relations, American Soybean Association
These leadership keynotes are perfect for:
- Companies that want higher profits and more engagement and innovation from their teams
- Leaders working to build more innovative, high-engagement cultures
- Managers struggling to get their teams to think more creatively and solve problems on their own
- Teams looking to take their performance to the next level
- Anyone looking for more remarkable, practical, usable ideas
These keynote programs are perfect for:
- Anyone looking to communicate with more confidence for better influence and impact
- People looking for practical tools and techniques to navigate difficult conversations
- Teams who’ve been through a lot, and are ready to talk about it, take a breath, and prepare for a brighter, bolder future.
- Organizations working to foster deeper trust and collaboration
These keynote programs are perfect for:
- Leaders working to build a high-performing, high-engagement culture
- Overwhelmed managers ready for a breakthrough
- Managers and teams working to take their results and relationships to the next level
- Teams looking for practical tools and techniques they can use right away
- Team members looking to contribute more deeply to their in-person, hybrid or virtual team
Human-Centered Leadership Speakers for Courageous Cultures
Managerial Courage and Workplace Innovation Keynotes
Photo Credit: Oscar and Associates
Courageous Cultures: How to Help Your Team Solve Problems Faster, and Surface Remarkable Ideas
Based on ground-breaking new research in innovation and problem-solving, you’ll learn what leaders like you are doing to build more creative and solutions-oriented teams. Teams who don’t just bring you more ideas, but practical, ideas you can use to make work, work better.
You’ll explore the root causes of FOSU (fear of speaking up) and ways to turn your team’s fears and frustration into practical innovation. You’ll learn: easy-to-use tools and techniques to empower solutions-thinking and customer-focused problem solving; how to respond to wacky ideas without crushing your team’s hearts and spirits; and techniques to encourage courage and deeper dialogue up, down, and sideways.
Courageous Leadership: Practical Ways to Be More Daring
When you’re barraged with problems every day, sometimes it’s easier to take the path of least resistance. You don’t speak up because it might rock the boat. You procrastinate on a decision, or don’t try that new idea because you’re afraid of failure. Or you don’t invite feedback because you might not like what you hear. In these moments, you miss opportunities, you waste money, and erode your team members’ trust.
Building your reputation as a courageous leader doesn’t necessarily mean making big, bold, game-changing moves. It happens every day, little by little, as you own your strengths, speak up, stand out, and dare to take appropriate risks. This highly engaging keynote gives you five practical ways to be a bit more daring every day—to become the courageous leader you want your boss to be.
Innovative Minds in a Digital World: Fostering a Fearless Tech-Driven Culture
While technology is a vital tool, it’s humanity that truly fuels innovation and solves complex problems.This keynote empowers managers to unlock what humans do best—connect and create.
You’ll gain actionable strategies to dismantle the Fear of Speaking Up (FOSU) in tech-enriched settings, cultivating a culture where cutting-edge ideas and transparent communication are the norm.
This program is ideal for leaders who want practical ways to use technology better, by tapping into the ideas and best practices of every team member.
Equip your team with the means to forge stronger connections and tackle problems more effectively and efficiently, utilizing their innate human capacity to imagine and realize the extraordinary, with technology in hand as your steadfast partner.
Start Reading Courageous Cultures now, for free!
Human-Centered Leadership Speakers for Powerful Phrases
Communication and Collaboration Keynotes
Navigating Workplace Conflict: How to Have More Influence, Less Drama, and Better Collaboration
Master any workplace conflict with confidence and ease, have less drama, better results, and thrive at work.
When there are problems to solve, and people who care (and there are so many things to care about) you’ll face conflict. And if you want to have more success, influence, and joy in your work, you’ve got to navigate it well. But conflict is hard. You weren’t born knowing the perfect words to say when you’re angry, dealing with a jerk, or when someone calls your game-changing idea “stupid.”
This highly experiential keynote is based on findings from our expansive World Workplace Conflict and Collaboration study. You’ll leave with the courage, confidence, and competence to navigate even the trickiest conflict scenarios and build better, lasting collaboration.
“Karin and David knocked it out of the park with their Mega Session delivered in this year’s HR VA SHRM annual conference. Their presentation was both informative and interactive. So glad they presented.”
–Shelley Smith, Virginia SHRM
Human-Centered Leadership Speakers for Winning Well
Leading High Performance Teams
Winning Well: Breakthrough Results Without Losing Your Soul
Do you ever wish your team had more energy, would get more done, or solve problems on their own? It’s tempting to demand more, tighten control, and micromanage to get more results out of your team…but there is a better way.
WINNING WELL is a practical leadership strategy to achieve breakthrough results that really last. Get results while keeping your team (and yourself) energized, motivated, and inspired.
In this highly-interactive keynote, you’ll learn six proven approaches to give you the courage and confidence to have more influence and impact, and practical tools to build high-performance, high-engagement teams.
The Accountability Advantage: Elevate Your Team’s Commitment through Greater Clarity
Do you feel like you’re constantly chasing after your team to get them to do what must be done? Are you frustrated and often ask yourself “why can’t people just do their job?” Do you worry about losing team members if you hold them accountable? Maybe you’re exhausted and wondering if this whole “leadership thing” is worth it?
You can overcome these challenges and enjoy your work, your team, and achieve remarkable results by mastering The Accountability Loop.
In this practical and highly interactive program, you’ll learn how to easily incorporate The Accountability Loop into everything you do: communicating and reinforcing clear expectations and aligning on a shared understanding of success; engaging in accountability conversations that create commitment; and celebrating outcomes. And you won’t just learn tools and techniques– you’ll leave with a specific plan for your team and your work.
Start Reading Winning Well now, for free!
Karin Hurt and David Dye were invited to speak to an elite group of highly engaged volunteer leaders from around the world – a tough audience to please. It was an early morning session on the last day of a long conference. Their delivery style, real-world stories, and innovative concepts kept this audience engaged. The feedback from the leaders is that they gained takeaways they could immediately apply in their volunteer and professional roles – including tools and templates. I would hire Karin and David again to improve the skills of people who manage others in any capacity.”
–Linda Jones Coordinator, PMI Leadership Institute Master Class
WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP KEYNOTE SPEAKER – POWERFUL AND INSPIRING
Do you have amazing women on your team, who are not speaking up for fear of not being heard?
Are you looking for a powerful and inspiring women’s leadership keynote speaker for your next conference or corporate event? Could your team benefit from a powerful women’s leadership speaker who’s been where you are, leaving a strong track record of results? Are you looking for a women’s leadership speaker to help your team gain more confidence and influence?
Karin Hurt will work with you to custom-design an inspiring and highly practical keynote or masterclass to inspire and motivate your team. Whether you’re looking for straight talk for your executive women’s leadership conference, or inspiring and practical techniques to help the women leaders on your team gain more confidence and impact, Karin will work with you to get the message just right.
Karin draws on her depth of experience as an executive who’s also a mom growing emerging leaders. She’s made a significant impact in her work at Fortune 50 Verizon, and now in her work with leaders at all levels around the world. She shows up real and approachable, and as one recent women’s leadership conference participant put it, “I feel like I was listening to my best friend.”
Karin was recently recognized on Inc.’s 60 Great Business Books: All Written By Women as well as Inc.’s 100 Most Innovative Leadership Speakers.
“Karin is the perfect blend of authenticity and inspiration. Her insights are practical and presented in a manner that is engaging and entertaining. I know she renewed my perspective on what we have the ability to achieve in our organizations and our industry overall. While also providing an actual “how” to hit the ground running and apply what she shared.”
–Sam Smeltzer, CEO & Creative Director, HR Development
Giving Back: The Winning Wells
When you book Karin or David we build a clean water well in your honor.
Let’s Grow Leaders is dedicated to giving back to the world. Our philanthropic campaign, Winning Wells, provides local village with an ample supply of clean water.
“The content perfectly aligned with our strategic priorities while also providing practical tips to bring into everyday work-life.”