Karin Hurt

Based on her book Courageous Cultures: How to Build teams of Micro-Innovators, Problem Solvers and Customer Advocates (Harper Collins)

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.

And you’ll leave with a mini-personal experiment and curated resources you can use right away to build one practical, courageous habit that will make all the difference.

Based on her groundbreaking research on collaboration and our SynergyStack® Team Collaboration System Missed deadlines. Misunderstandings. Meetings that solve nothing. These aren’t just frustrations—they’re momentum killers. Collaborate! turns them into opportunities for faster progress and better results.

Too often, collaboration gets talked about in big-picture terms—“communicate better,” “build trust,” “break down silos.” Inspiring? Sure. Actionable? Not really. Collaboration isn’t an abstract idea—it’s a set of repeatable habits backed by tools and best practices you can learn.

In this practical, highly experiential keynote, you’ll discover the proven habits of highly collaborative teams and the tools to put them into practice right away.

Imagine a team that doesn’t just want to work well together— they know how. That’s what happens when collaboration stops being an idea and starts being a habit.

Based on her book: Courageous Cultures: How to Build Teams of Micro-Innovators, Problem Solvers and Customer Advocates (Harper Collins) Future leaders face a unique challenge: you’re expected to contribute at a high level, influence outcomes, and show initiative—often without positional power. It can be tempting to stay quiet, wait your turn, or avoid the difficult conversations.

You might hold back from sharing an idea because you’re not the “final decision maker,” or skip giving feedback because you’re worried about how it will be received.

But when you stay silent, you miss opportunities to build trust, demonstrate leadership, and drive results that matter. And the longer you wait to lead courageously, the harder it becomes to shift perception.

Influential leadership isn’t reserved for those with a title. It’s built day by day—by speaking up, asking better questions, building connections, and navigating workplace conflict with confidenceand integrity.

Whether you’re an emerging leader or an individual contributor looking to amplify your impact, this session will equip you with the courage, tools, and phrases to lead now—not someday.

Based on her book: Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict: What to Say Next to De-Stress the Workday, Build Collaboration and Calm Difficult Customers (Harper Collins)

We all have them—those conversations you’d rather avoid. The tough feedback you’ve been putting off. The disagreement that keeps simmering. The request you need to make, but don’t want to hear “no.” Whether it’s with a colleague, a direct report, or your boss, these moments can leave you tense, overthinking every word, and bracing for impact.

Avoiding these conversations doesn’t make the problem go away—it usually makes it worse. And most “just be confident” advice won’t help when you’re sitting across from someone, emotions are high, and the stakes feel personal. You need specific techniques, practical tools, and powerful phrases you can count on to start strong, stay calm, and steer the conversation toward a productive outcome.

You’ll leave this interactive keynote with a game plan—complete with powerful phrases and practical tools—so the next time a conversation makes you want to run the other way, you’ll know exactly what to say and how to say it.