Philip Keil
Philip Keil opens the cockpit door for his audience. As a leader above the clouds, he speaks by daily experience about decision-making, accountability, teamwork and positive error culture. Philip Keil has reached tens of thousands of people in over 20 countries in Europe and Asia with his inspiring speeches and received several international awards.
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- English
Philip Keil's 2025 biography
Philip Keil: Pilot
In 2003, at the age of 22, Philip Keil is among the youngest airline pilots in Germany. He completed more than 9,000 flying hours with thousands of take-offs and landings on four continents. A routine flight in Africa with almost 200 people on bord turns into an immediate emergency. Philip Keil can control the situation and manages to land the airplane safely. Only days later, he is back in the cockpit.
Keynote Speaker
- Since 2014 Philip Keil treads the boards as keynote speaker all over Europe.
- Since 2017 he has ranked among the international ‘TOP100 Excellent Keynote Speakers’.
- In 2019 and 2020, Philip Keil was nominated as Germany’s ‘Keynote Speaker of the year’ for the Red Fox Award.
- In over 20 countries in Europe and Asia, he has reached tens of thousands of people with his keynotes.
Author
- In 2016, Philip Keil publishes his first audio book.
- In 2019, his book ‘You are the pilot!’ is launched. It is about confidence and reaching goals.
- In 2021, ‘You are the pilot!’ is published as audio book worldwide in more than 50 online stores and streaming platforms.
- In 2022, his third audio book ‘The inner compass’ follows. Topics: The power of intuition for important decisions.
Expert on TV
Since 2016, Philip Keil has been an aviation expert on TV. His expertise from decades as airline pilot and author makes him a much sought-after interview guest on TV, radio and for various podcast formats.
He has regular appearances for TV channels like ZDF, RTL, Pro 7, Sat.1, WELT and ntv.
Philip Keil's 2025 talks & topics
TEAMWORK - COMMUNICATION - EMPOWERMENT
Flying is all about teamwork. What is the secret of successful teams? What makes teams fail?
This award-winning keynote speech transfers the ‘Crew Resource Management’ of aviation into the business world.
- Courage to make ‘survivable’ mistakes: Be self-confident and take action
- How to strengthen responsibility: Clear roles instead of steep hierarchies
- The crew makes the difference: Reaching goals means reaching people
LEADERSHIP - ERROR CULTURE - CONFIDENCE
A wrong decision is better than no decision – in the ‘company cockpit,’ too. As a leader above the clouds, Philip Keil speaks authentically about positive error culture and what makes a good decision.
- You can’t pull off the road: Good decisions require a clear focus
- Confidence is the fuel for success: Growth outside the comfort zone
- Positive Error Culture: Don’t ask WHO, understand the WHY
MOTIVATION - CHANGE-MANAGEMENT - RESILIENCE
What role does the ‘inner compass’ play in our thinking and our actions? And what keeps us from following it? A thrilling motivational speech about comfort zones, hard landings and the courage to change perspective.
- Pilot or passenger? Accept challenges and grow with them
- The ‘inner compass’: Directory in times of change
- “We always did it like that”: When routines become chock blocks
EXPERIENCE PHILIP KEIL LIVE!
“Germany’s most famous pilot” (ERFOLG magazine) transfers exciting impulses from the cockpit into the business world. As a leader above the clouds he speaks by daily experience about:
- Teamwork on maximum flight level
- Leadership and decision-making
- Dealing with challenges
- Positive error culture
For his motivating keynote speeches Philip Keil received several awards, such as the nomination as keynote speaker of the year 2019 & 2020.
The german Handelsblatt states:
“As top-speaker and successful author he inspired tens of thousands of people across Europe”.
CRASH OR LANDING ON THE DOT?
The team makes the difference!
Flying is all about teamwork. But what is the secret of success of teams and what make teams fail? As a leader above the clouds, Philip Keil speaks by daily experience about leadership and communication in challenging situations. Who wants to leave comfort zones and empower ownership, must create a team culture of trust beyond rigid hierarchies.
This multiple awarded keynote speech transfers the “human factor” – concept of the aviation industry into the business world – exciting and fully applicable.
– Human factor instead of autopilot: leadership culture in uncertain times
– Self-responsibility: teams require clear roles, not rigid hierarchies
– Confidence is the fuel for success: teamwork on maximum flight leve
DECISION POINTS
Confident decision-making in turbulent times
Neither in the cockpit nor in life everything runs according our plans. No matter how good the plan is. In aviation these moments are called “decision points”. Philip Keil shows, how pilots make difficult decisions while adhering to a consequent positive error culture. Only if you dare to speak up freely to mistakes, you can avoid a dangerous chain of errors. Not a wrong decision leads to a crash, but not deciding – in the company cockpit alike!
– Dealing with change: Reaching goals means reaching people
– You can’t take the next exit: making good decisions with a clear focus
– Don’t ask WHO, understand the WHY: this is how positive error culture works
YOU ARE THE PILOT!
For your goals you require a precise compass
A thrilling motivational keynote speech with a clear message: Everyone is the pilot of his life! And flying you only learn by flying – not by watching, not by studying theory books. But by doing! What is the role of our “inner compass” for our thoughts and our actions? And what keeps us from following it?
Germany’s most famous pilot speaks about comfort zones, hard landings in life and the courage of making survivable mistakes. Maximum thrust for your success!
– Success factor resilience: growth happens outside the comfort zone
– Confidence results from being courageous to make survivable mistakes
– Our “inner compass”: clear course in a world of change