Peak Performance

Why organisations work with Mike Horn The scale, continuity and repetition of Horn’s expeditions – solo, human-powered, across polar regions, equatorial oceans, mountain ranges and both poles over thirty years – gives him a compounding body of tested evidence that no single-event adventurer can match. His insight is not drawn from one defining story but from decades of escalating exposure to the same high-stakes conditions. His track record with elite competitive teams is documented and attributable. At the request of coach Gary Kirsten, he conducted performance sessions with the Indian Cricket Team ahead of their 2011 Cricket World Cup win. He worked with the German national football squad in preparation for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which they won. These outcomes give organisations a concrete reference point beyond speaking testimonials. His published work – including «Conquering the Impossible» (St. Martin’s Press, 2007) – sets out the principles he has derived from expedition experience as structured frameworks, not only as anecdote. Organisations receive insight they can apply, not only a story they can admire. His degree in Human Movement Science from Stellenbosch University grounds his observations in performance physiology and behavioural science. This distinguishes his insight from standard adventure motivation and makes it analytically durable for leadership development programmes with real accountability requirements. Horn is still actively exploring. His current «What’s Left» expedition is ongoing, meaning his perspective remains one that is still being tested in the field – not retrospectively assembled from a career that has ended. Biography highlights Solo equatorial circumnavigation without motorised transport, 1999-2000; 2001 Laureus World Alternative Sportsperson of the Year First solo, non-motorised traversal of the 20,000 km Arctic Circle («Arktos»), 2002-2004 First winter crossing of the North Pole in total darkness, with Børge Ousland, 2006 World’s longest solo, unassisted crossing of Antarctica (5,100 km in 57 days by ski-kite), 2017 Performance advisor to the Indian Cricket Team before their 2011 Cricket World Cup win, and to the German national football squad before their 2014 FIFA World Cup win Author of «Conquering the Impossible» (St. Martin’s Press, 2007) and «Latitude Zero» (2001); Laureus World Sports Academy member Biography Mike Horn’s career as an explorer spans thirty years and every major hostile environment on Earth – polar oceans, equatorial jungle, high-altitude mountain faces above 8,000 metres. These are not settings where leadership theory is applied in safety. The decisions made in them carry physical consequences, and the team dynamics that determine survival are the same dynamics that determine whether organisations hold together under real pressure. His expedition record is defined by deliberate escalation. He completed the first solo equatorial circumnavigation without motorised transport (1999-2000), then the first non-motorised traversal of the 20,000 km Arctic Circle. With Norwegian explorer Børge Ousland, he made the first winter crossing of the North Pole in total darkness in 2006. In 2017, he completed the longest solo, unassisted crossing of Antarctica at 5,100 km. The logic across all of it is consistent: remove the safety nets, increase the stakes, and discover what actually works. At the request of coach Gary Kirsten, Horn ran performance sessions with the Indian Cricket Team ahead of their 2011 Cricket World Cup win. He worked with the German national football squad in preparation for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which they also won. These engagements addressed team cohesion, pressure tolerance and decision-making under conditions of uncertainty – the same conditions his expeditions demand. Horn holds a degree in Human Movement Science from Stellenbosch University, grounding his observations in performance physiology rather than raw adventure narrative. He is a member of the Laureus World Sports Academy and the 2001 Laureus World Alternative Sportsperson of the Year. His book «Conquering the Impossible» (St. Martin’s Press, 2007) translates expedition experience into applicable frameworks. For organisations building leadership capability for genuinely difficult conditions, his perspective comes with thirty years of tested evidence. Key speaking topics Leadership under sustained pressure Decision-making in high-stakes, low-information conditions Team cohesion and trust in hostile environments Resilience and mental endurance Risk management and performance under uncertainty Human performance at physical and psychological limits Environmental responsibility and sustainability Ideal for Senior leadership teams preparing for or navigating periods of significant organisational stress or strategic transition CHROs and L&D directors designing executive development programmes with real performance accountability High-performance sport organisations, elite teams and coaching structures focused on competitive readiness Boards and executive committees in high-risk sectors: energy, defence, deep-sea operations, financial services Audience outcomes A clearer model of how decision quality and team cohesion hold – or degrade – under sustained pressure, drawn from environments where the consequences of each are unambiguous Practical insight into the behaviours that distinguish high-performing teams when conditions deteriorate: communication discipline, risk calibration and mutual accountability under strain A framework for distinguishing trained resilience from assumed resilience, and the leadership conditions required to develop the first Direct exposure to case studies where decisions made under incomplete information had irreversible physical consequences, making leadership dynamics visible in their most unambiguous form A recalibrated understanding of what individuals and teams are capable of when development genuinely tests, rather than simulates, pressure

Why organisations work with Mike Forde His vantage point is inside the building. As Director of Football Operations at Chelsea FC, he ran recruitment, contracts, sport science and team operations across the club’s most successful era: the Champions League, the Europa League, the Premier League and three FA Cups inside six years. Few advisors work credibly across the EPL and the major US leagues. Sportsology, the firm he founded in 2014, has long-running client relationships with the Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons, Brooklyn Nets and San Antonio Spurs alongside European football clubs. He has been the architect of senior appointments that have shaped franchises. The Brooklyn Nets hired him in 2016 to lead their general manager search and he placed Sean Marks, who rebuilt the roster around Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. The Sacramento Kings retained him for the same purpose in 2020. His co-authored book Quiet Leadership (Portfolio Penguin, 2016), written with Carlo Ancelotti and Chris Brady, gives him a developed framework on leading talented egos. It has sold over 100,000 copies and is read well outside professional sport. Biography highlights Founder and Executive Chairman of Sportsology Group, an advisory firm based in New York and London with clients across European football, the NFL, NBA and MLB Director of Football Operations and Executive Club Director at Chelsea FC, 2007 to 2013, the most successful era in the club’s history Performance Director at Bolton Wanderers FC, 1999 to 2007 Co-author of Quiet Leadership: Winning Hearts, Minds and Matches with Carlo Ancelotti and Chris Brady (Portfolio Penguin, 2016) Led the general manager searches for the Brooklyn Nets (placing Sean Marks in 2016) and the Sacramento Kings (2020) BSc Sport Science, Liverpool John Moores University; MSc Psychology and Sport, San Diego State University Biography Chelsea FC won everything in sight between 2007 and 2013: the Champions League, the Europa League, the Premier League and three FA Cups. Mike Forde sat inside the building for that entire run as Director of Football Operations and Executive Club Director. He had spent the previous seven years at Bolton Wanderers FC as Performance Director. The Chelsea role professionalised that work at scale: recruitment, contracts, sport science, performance analysis and team operations under public pressure. He founded Sportsology Group in 2014 to do similar work outside one club. The firm now operates from New York and London, advising franchise owners, leagues and institutional capital across European football, the NFL, NBA and MLB. Sportsology has worked with the Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons, Brooklyn Nets, San Antonio Spurs and LA Rams. The firm also runs senior leadership searches: Forde placed Sean Marks at the Brooklyn Nets in 2016 and was retained by the Sacramento Kings in 2020. His co-authored book Quiet Leadership (Portfolio Penguin, 2016) sets out the methods Carlo Ancelotti used to lead talented egos at AC Milan, Chelsea, PSG and Real Madrid. It has sold over 100,000 copies and is cited regularly by senior managers far outside professional sport. The Ringer profiled Forde in 2021 as the consultant NBA owners call when a general manager search begins. Key speaking topics High performance team culture Talent identification and development Leadership of high ego performers Operating systems behind sustained winning Lessons from elite sport for corporate leaders Senior executive search and assessment Multi cultural team management Ideal for CHROs, CPOs and heads of talent rebuilding the systems behind spotting and keeping high performers CEOs and senior leadership teams setting cultural standards that outlast personnel change Senior partner and managing director audiences in professional and financial services firms Sales leadership and customer facing kickoff events focused on team performance Audience outcomes A working vocabulary for what separates winning teams from the rest, drawn from clubs that win under public scrutiny Direct examples of how Carlo Ancelotti, Sir Dave Brailsford and other elite sport leaders manage difficult egos and protect culture through change A sharper diagnosis of where their own talent and culture systems are weakest, with reference points from the NFL, NBA and European football Tools they can apply directly to hiring decisions and talent reviews

Meet Mike Abrashoff Mike Abrashoff was the most-junior officer in the Pacific Fleet when he took command of the near-worst performing ship. Twelve months later, the USS Benfold was the best ship in the entire Navy – using the same crew. The story of that stunning transformation has lessons for every organization: leadership matters – and culture is everything. Mike’s written four books – his first, It’s Your Ship, has sold over 1.5 million copies. His Leadership Roadmap offers clear, battle-tested, and actionable steps. Mike shows people at every level of the organization how to engage and take incremental steps toward change that can make a dramatic difference at work. Mike is clear, “I didn’t turn the ship around – my crew did that. What I did was to create an environment where they felt safe, empowered and supported. When you do that, anything is possible.” In many ways, what Mike was able to do with the USS Benfold was an extreme example of the same problems facing many organizations today. That’s why dozens of publications including The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, and Fast Company have cited Mike’s story as an inspiring lesson for business. Leaders especially identify with Mike’s being accountable for the results in an environment where he couldn’t make the rules. “When my crew came to me with a problem, I’d say ‘It’s your ship – how would you fix it?’.” Mike focused on the one thing he could influence: his crew’s attitude, because culture is the ultimate competitive weapon for any organization. Mike’s established a set of management principles that he calls The Leadership Roadmap. At the core of his leadership approach on Benfold was a process of replacing command and control with commitment and cohesion, and engaging the hearts, minds, and loyalties of workers with conviction and humility. “The most important thing that a captain can do is to see the ship through the eyes of the crew. The idea is to empower every individual to share the responsibility of achieving excellence.” By every measure, these principles achieved breakthrough results: turnover decreased to an unprecedented 1%; the rate of promotions tripled; and the crew slashed operating expenses by 25%. Regarded as the finest ship in the Pacific Fleet, Benfold won the prestigious Spokane Trophy for having the highest degree of combat readiness. This remarkable turnaround was accomplished by the very same crew that had performed so poorly just months before. Mike is author of four books. His first, It’s Your Ship, has a timeless message: don’t use outside forces that stand in your way as excuses – control the things you can influence and amazing results will happen. His next books, It’s Our Ship and Get Your Ship Together, showed how these principles have been put into action by business leaders in their own organizations. Mike’s latest book, Ship Happens (co-authored with Stacey Cunningham), serves as a guide for leaders, detailing his strategies for transforming USS Benfold into the top-performing ship. A popular keynote speaker for audiences looking to ramp up organizational performance, Mike has spoken to every industry and kind of audience – from board retreats to front line personnel; from sales groups to universities; from Fortune 500s to startups. He inspires audiences to rethink their beliefs about leadership and organizational culture and tailors the message to focus on engagement, execution, change, safety, diversity, leadership, teamwork, innovation, accountability and more. Prior to commanding USS Benfold, Mike served as the Military Assistant to Secretary of Defense William J. Perry. He also helped draft the air defense plan for naval forces in the Persian Gulf in 1990, coinciding with Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait; and served as the executive officer of the Cruiser Shiloh, where he deployed to the Persian Gulf in support of United Nations sanctions against Iraq. Mike Abrashoff is the founder of Aegis Performance Group, a consulting firm which works with and supports leaders as they address leadership, talent and performance challenges within their organizations. Mike and his team prompt leaders at all levels to re-imagine their leadership thinking and create new ways to elevate individual, team and organizational performance.

Key speaking topics Performance and high performance culture Growth mindset and learning from failure Cognitive diversity and decision-making Organisational culture and continuous improvement Innovation and problem solving Lessons from elite sport for business performance Leadership and team learning Ideal for Senior leaders responsible for organisational culture and performance Executive teams managing complex decision-making environments Organisations focused on innovation and continuous improvement Education and learning-focused organisations Audience outcomes Understanding of how learning cultures improve performance Insight into the role of cognitive diversity in solving complex problems Practical perspectives on learning from mistakes and failure Frameworks for strengthening organisational mindset and culture Lessons from elite sport applied to leadership and teamwork Why organisations work with Matthew Syed Combines experience from elite sport, journalism and organisational consulting to examine performance and learning. Provides evidence-based perspectives on mindset, culture and decision-making. Explores how cognitive diversity improves problem solving in complex organisations. Connects insights from sport, psychology and organisational practice to leadership and team performance. Biography Matthew Syed is widely recognised for his work on performance, learning and organisational culture, helping organisations understand how mindset, decision-making and collaboration influence results. Through his writing, broadcasting and consulting work, he explores how teams and institutions can improve performance by embracing learning, diversity of thinking and continuous improvement. He is the author of seven published books spanning both adult and younger audiences, including Bounce, Black Box Thinking, Rebel Ideas, The Greatest, What Do You Think?, You Are Awesome and Dare to Be You. His work examines how individuals and organisations develop high-performance cultures, learn from failure and apply cognitive diversity to solve complex problems. Alongside his writing, Matthew is a columnist for The Times and The Sunday Times and presents the BBC Radio 4 programme Sideways. Through his journalism and broadcasting, he explores how ideas from psychology, sport and organisational practice can inform better decision-making and leadership in complex environments. Before his career in journalism and authorship, Matthew was a professional table tennis player. He was the top-ranked player in England for nearly a decade, represented Great Britain at the Olympic Games and won the men’s singles title at the Commonwealth Championships three times. He is also the co-founder of Matthew Syed Consulting, which works with organisations on mindset, culture and performance. In addition to his work with businesses and institutions, he has supported the education sector and is a co-founder and trustee of Greenhouse Sports, and an ambassador for the PiXL educational foundation.

Why organisations work with Matt Dawson A direct, first-person account of the 2003 Rugby World Cup final, including the pass that set up Wilkinson’s drop goal, used as material for what shared accountability looks like in a single moment. Twenty years inside one of the most-watched sports panel shows on British television, which translates into a presenter and host who can carry a corporate room without scripting. Lessons on team culture grounded in named clubs and named coaches: Northampton Saints, London Wasps, Sir Clive Woodward’s England squad, not generic sports analogy. A second career arc as a broadcaster and Lyme disease advocate, giving him credible material on resilience, identity after performance, and leading a public conversation on health. Biography highlights Member of the England squad that won the 2003 Rugby World Cup; assist for Jonny Wilkinson’s winning drop goal. 77 England caps, nine as captain; three British and Irish Lions tours. MBE for services to rugby. Team captain on BBC’s “A Question of Sport” for two decades. Winner of BBC Celebrity MasterChef; finalist on Strictly Come Dancing. Author of “Nine Lives” (HarperCollins, 2004). Biography The 2003 Rugby World Cup final in Sydney came down to a single phase of play with seconds left. The scrum-half made an unscripted break, took the ruck deep into Australian territory, then fed the ball to the fly-half for the winning drop goal. That scrum-half was Matt Dawson, and the moment is taught in coaching rooms as a study in shared accountability under pressure. Across 77 caps for England and three British and Irish Lions tours, Dawson played at the centre of a generation of English rugby that professionalised the sport’s performance culture. He played for Northampton Saints and London Wasps, won a Premiership title in his first season at Wasps, and was awarded an MBE for services to the game. His autobiography “Nine Lives”, published by HarperCollins in 2004, gives an unusually candid first-hand account of the dressing-room dynamics that produced the World Cup result. Since retiring he has held one of the most consistent presences in British broadcasting, as a team captain on BBC’s “A Question of Sport” since 2004 and as a rugby pundit and presenter on BBC Radio 5 Live. He won Celebrity MasterChef in 2006 and reached the final of Strictly Come Dancing, work that gave him the on-camera range that distinguishes him from most former-athlete speakers. In 2016, after a tick bite in a London park, Dawson was diagnosed with Lyme disease and underwent two heart surgeries. He has since become one of the most visible UK voices on tick-borne disease awareness, partnering with The Big Tick Project and using national platforms to push the issue into public health conversation. Key speaking topics Teamwork and team culture Leadership under pressure Winning mentality Performance in elite environments Resilience and recovery Broadcast hosting and event facilitation Ideal for Sales kick-offs and annual conferences seeking a credible team-performance keynote Awards ceremonies, gala dinners and client hospitality requiring an experienced host or after-dinner speaker Leadership offsites that want a sport-to-business translation grounded in a named, verifiable team result Health, insurance and public-sector audiences engaging with patient advocacy and tick-borne disease awareness Audience outcomes A specific, lived account of how an elite team prepares for a single decisive moment. A clear sense of what shared accountability looks like in practice, anchored in named teammates and a named result. Concrete language for talking about culture, standards and trust without resorting to abstraction. A change in register: humour and warmth from a broadcaster who has hosted live television for two decades.

Why organisations work with Mark Pollock He hands leaders a decision framework (“facts, acceptance, hope”) they can actually use mid-crisis, tested under conditions where poor judgement carries permanent consequences. His collaboration work is credible because he has done it at scale, catalysing over $100 million of multi-party scientific collaboration with organisations including UCLA, Ekso Bionics and Onward Medical, the company now producing a clinical breakthrough in spinal cord injury treatment. Where most speakers on resilience rely on metaphor, his frameworks have been tested in polar expeditions and in the slow work of brokering scientific collaboration across institutions. His 2018 TED talk with Simone George has over 1.5 million views and has been translated into 12 languages, which means most senior audiences arrive with a shared reference point the keynote can build on. The senior endorsements are unusually specific: Satya Nadella has written publicly about him, and Bank of Ireland’s Group CEO positioned his contribution to the CEO Council as a leadership lesson drawn from hard practice. Biography highlights First blind person to race to the South Pole, completing the 43-day Amundsen Omega 3 South Pole Race alongside Simon O’Donnell and Inge Solheim in January 2009. First person with chronic complete paralysis to voluntarily take steps in a robotic exoskeleton, working with UCLA’s Prof. Reggie Edgerton on spinal cord stimulation research published by the IEEE. TED2018 speaker with Simone George, “A Love Letter to Realism in a Time of Grief”; over 1.5 million views in its first six months; translated into 12 languages. Author of Making It Happen; subject of the documentaries Blind Man Walking and Unbreakable: The Mark Pollock Story. Chairman of Collaborative Cures and founder of the Run in the Dark global running series, which drew over 250,000 participants across all seven continents between 2011 and 2024. World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and former member of the Global Futures Council on Human Enhancement; honorary doctorates from Queen’s University Belfast and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland; currently pursuing a Professional Doctorate in Elite Performance (Sport) at Dublin City University. Biography Most frameworks for resilience were developed in environments where the stakes are low and the challenges are chosen. That is not where leaders need them. Mark Pollock’s 2018 TED talk with Simone George, “A Love Letter to Realism in a Time of Grief,” addresses the other category: the imposed challenge, where optimism alone becomes a liability and a team still has to make sound decisions. The talk has more than 1.5 million views and has been translated into 12 languages. The credibility comes from two tested sources. In January 2009, Pollock became the first blind person to race to the South Pole, a 43-day expedition across Antarctica in temperatures down to minus 50. In 2010 he fell from an upstairs window, broke his back, and has lived with paralysis since. The decade that followed took a distinctive shape. Pollock catalysed multi-party scientific collaboration worth over $100 million, connecting scientists, investors, technologists and regulators working on spinal cord injury. He became the first person with chronic complete paralysis to voluntarily take steps in a robotic exoskeleton, working with UCLA’s Prof. Reggie Edgerton. The company commercialising that research, Onward Medical, has since delivered the field’s most significant clinical breakthrough. Organisations like Microsoft, Google, GSK, EY and Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One keep booking him. Senior audiences leave with two concrete frameworks: “competitor, realist, collaborator” for maintaining team conviction, and “facts, acceptance, hope” for sound judgement under pressure. Bank of Ireland’s Group CEO framed Pollock’s CEO Council session as a leadership lesson. Satya Nadella has written publicly about him. Key speaking topics Resilience under imposed pressure Decision-making in crisis Elite performance and mindset Cross-institutional collaboration Leadership in uncertainty Human and machine collaboration Adversity and opportunity Ideal for CEO and executive teams during major operational or strategic disruption Chief People Officers and transformation leads rebuilding team confidence during prolonged change programmes Leadership conferences and global off-sites that need a credible account of decision-making in crisis Sales and commercial leadership teams under sustained targets and multi-market complexity Audience outcomes A decision framework (“facts, acceptance, hope”) audiences can apply in real operational crises, with worked examples from extreme environments and from scientific collaboration. A mental model (“competitor, realist, collaborator”) for deciding how a team positions itself when the challenge is imposed. Concrete examples of how high-performance teams hold together across disciplines and geographies, drawn from Pollock’s multi-million-dollar scientific partnerships. A sharper account of what resilience actually requires when the situation is imposed.

Why organisations work with Mark Gallagher Fifteen years on the management boards of Jordan Grand Prix and Red Bull Racing, plus leadership of Cosworth’s F1 engine business. He has actually run the functions he describes. Author of The Business of Winning (Kogan Page) and co-author of The Future Business Formula with Sullivan & Stanley’s Adrian Stalham. His frameworks exist in print, with a track record in front of senior audiences since 1998. Direct experience on FIA technical working groups covering safety and sustainability, including the development of F1’s 2014 hybrid power unit. When he talks about decarbonisation or safety culture, he is describing rules he helped write. Close working relationships with current F1 drivers and teams through Performance Insights and Status Grand Prix, the A1 Grand Prix World Cup-winning outfit he co-owns. The paddock material he draws on is current. Biography highlights Former management board member of Jordan Grand Prix (1998 onwards) and senior figure in the commercial build-out of what became Red Bull Racing Former head of Cosworth’s Formula 1 engine business, which supplied roughly one-third of the grid under his leadership Founder and Managing Director of Performance Insights, his F1 consulting firm, and co-founder of Status Grand Prix, winner of the 2009 A1 Grand Prix World Cup of Motorsport Author of The Business of Winning (Kogan Page, 2014; 2nd edition 2021) and co-author of The Future Business Formula (Rethink Press, 2023) Member of FIA technical working groups on safety and sustainability, including the development of F1’s 2014 hybrid power-unit regulations Media contributor to BBC, Sky Sports, ESPN, CNN, Channel 4 News and Al Jazeera; columnist for GP Racing Magazine; lecturer at Cranfield University Biography Formula 1 is one of the few industries where an operational failure on Sunday becomes a balance-sheet issue by Monday. Regulations shift every season. Deadlines cannot be moved. Mistakes are broadcast to hundreds of millions, and the competitive gap between first and last is measured in hundredths of a second. That is the environment Mark Gallagher spent forty years inside. He sat on the management board of Jordan Grand Prix through its most competitive era, helped build the commercial arm of what became Red Bull Racing, and later ran Cosworth’s F1 engine business as it supplied around a third of the grid. His consultancy, Performance Insights, works with F1 teams and commercial partners today. His books give the method a shape outside the paddock. The Business of Winning, published by Kogan Page, sets out his lessons on leadership, safety, performance management and communication. The Future Business Formula, co-written with Adrian Stalham of the change consultancy Sullivan & Stanley, translates F1’s operating principles into twelve design rules for organisations built to change at speed. Mika Häkkinen wrote the foreword. He has also served on FIA technical working groups on safety and sustainability, including the shift to hybrid power units in 2014, and lectures at Cranfield University. For a senior audience, the value is specific: a practitioner who has run the commercial, engineering and regulatory sides of one of the world’s most publicly scrutinised high-performance businesses, and can describe what each of those jobs actually demanded. Key speaking topics High-performance team culture in elite sport Leadership under non-negotiable deadlines Data, telemetry and decision-making at the operational edge Safety, risk management and regulatory change Sustainability and the energy transition in global sport Technology partnerships and digital transformation Change management in regulated industries Ideal for Senior leadership teams, boards and C-suite audiences responsible for high-stakes operational performance Engineering, manufacturing and technology organisations facing regulatory change or digital transformation Commercial, sponsorship and partnership teams working across technology-heavy sectors Safety, risk and sustainability leaders looking for a real-world reference point on culture and governance Audience outcomes A working sense of how F1 teams hit immovable deadlines without compromising safety or commercial discipline Specific examples of how telemetry, simulation and real-time analytics translate into faster decisions at the operational edge A credible reference point for treating safety culture as a performance lever inside the business Examples and language from elite motorsport that senior leaders can carry into their own strategy and change conversations

Why organisations work with Mark Foster A first-person performance argument for inclusion. Foster competed at five Olympics while hiding that he was gay; his account of what that cost him is harder to dismiss than any case study. Twenty-three years of elite-level pattern recognition on what separates athletes who reach a final from those who win it, drawn from a career that produced six World Championship golds and eight world records. Credibility with broadcast audiences. As a BBC Sport analyst across four Olympics and four Commonwealth Games, he is comfortable in front of senior rooms, on stage with a host, and in moderated panel formats. A flag-bearer story that is not the usual one. Foster led Team GB into the Beijing 2008 opening ceremony, the first British swimmer to do so since 1964, and uses it to talk about visibility and what representation actually does for the people watching. Biography highlights Five-time Olympian: Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Beijing 2008 Six World Championship golds, eleven European titles, two Commonwealth titles, eight world records across a 23-year career Flag bearer for Great Britain at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games opening ceremony BBC Sport swimming analyst across the London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics, alongside Clare Balding and Rebecca Adlington Honorary Doctor of Health Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University (2016) Patron of The Anaphylaxis Campaign and ambassador for SportsAid UK Autobiography, My Double Life, scheduled for 2026 publication Biography Most performance cultures are built around what people produce, not around what people are carrying while they produce it. The gap between the two is where output quietly gets lost. Foster’s contribution is to make that gap legible to a corporate audience using the only evidence harder to argue with than data: a 23-year career he competed through while hiding who he was. The competitive record stands on its own. Six World Championship golds, eleven European titles, two Commonwealth titles, eight world records, and selection for five Olympic Games between Seoul 1988 and Beijing 2008. He carried the Union Flag at the Beijing opening ceremony, the first British swimmer to lead the team in since Anita Lonsbrough in 1964. What he has said publicly since 2017, and what his autobiography My Double Life addresses in full, is the part of that career that did not appear in the results. Foster competed at the highest level while closeted, and has been specific about the energy that consumed and the performance margin it cost. For a senior leader thinking about inclusion as a productivity question rather than a values one, that is a useful first-hand source. His broadcast work keeps him sharp on stage. Foster has been a BBC Sport swimming analyst across four Olympics and four Commonwealth Games, regularly on air with Clare Balding and Rebecca Adlington, and Anglia Ruskin University awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2016 in recognition of the contribution. Key speaking topics Inclusive performance cultures Visibility and representation in high-performance environments Resilience across a long career Goal-setting and reinvention Olympic-level preparation and mindset Working under pressure Coming out at work Ideal for CHROs and DEI leads building the business case for inclusion in performance terms Senior leadership offsites where the brief is performance under sustained pressure Employee Resource Groups and Pride networks looking for an external voice with sporting credibility Awards dinners, conferences and broadcast-style panels needing a confident on-stage presenter Audience outcomes A clearer picture of how concealment at work shows up in output, and what it actually costs A practical view of what twenty-three years of competing taught him about setbacks, plateaus and second acts A sharper sense of why representation at senior levels matters, told from the person being represented A reframing of resilience as something built across a career, not summoned in a moment

Why organisations work with Les Hewitt A coaching method that has been deployed inside more than 300 companies, including Wells Fargo, RBC, FedEx, RE/MAX and the Million Dollar Round Table, with a focus on sales-led and franchise organisations rather than abstract leadership theory. Co-authorship of The Power of Focus with Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen, a book that has sold more than 825,000 copies in North America and given Hewitt a recognisable thesis his audiences have often already encountered. Three decades of building and running The Power of Focus coaching program, including more than 900 delivered workshops, so the content is operating practice and not a recycled keynote. A clear diagnostic for why senior teams underperform: unclear future targets, leaders not protecting their top objectives, weak internal communication, and habits that quietly cost productivity. Built specifically for sales leaders, owner-operators and franchise networks, audiences that are usually underserved by leadership-development speakers pitched at corporate HQ. Biography highlights Co-author with Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen of The Power of Focus, an international bestseller translated into more than 20 languages. Founder of The Power of Focus Coaching Program, used by more than 300 companies across North America, the UK, Ireland, Australia, the Gulf, Singapore and Russia. Named clients include Wells Fargo, Royal Bank of Canada, FedEx, Cameron Inc., Nexen Energy, RE/MAX, Royal LePage, Investors Group and the Million Dollar Round Table. Author of further titles in the series, including The Power of Focus for Women, The Power of Faithful Focus and The Power of Focus for College Students. Built and ran Achievers Canada, the seminar business that delivered more than 450 leadership and sales programs before evolving into the current coaching practice. Originally from Belfast; rose to top salesperson in an international network marketing company before moving into coaching and authorship. Biography Most senior teams are not failing on strategy. They are failing on follow-through. Targets get diluted by competing demands, the highest-value work slips down the calendar, and the habits that quietly govern productivity go unexamined. Hewitt has spent more than thirty years building a coaching practice around that gap. The Power of Focus, the book he co-authored with Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen, was the first articulation of his method outside the workshop room. It became a long-running international bestseller, has been translated into more than twenty languages, and seeded the coaching program that now carries the same name. The book gave him a public thesis. The coaching business gave him the operating evidence behind it. That coaching business has been deployed inside more than 300 organisations, including Wells Fargo, Royal Bank of Canada, FedEx, RE/MAX, Royal LePage, Cameron Inc. and the Million Dollar Round Table. The work concentrates on a specific cohort: sales-led and franchise organisations where individual leader habits and team focus translate directly into commercial results. More than 900 workshops have been delivered, so the material is tested under load. Hewitt’s distinctive value is the combination of a recognisable book and a long working catalogue of what actually changes inside companies when leaders narrow their targets and protect their top priorities. Audiences leave with concrete habits and language to install on Monday, not a framework to file away. Key speaking topics Focus and follow-through for senior leaders Goal clarity and execution discipline Productivity habits in sales-led organisations Leadership effectiveness and self-management High-performance team behaviour Ideal for CEOs and owner-operators of mid-market and growth-stage businesses Sales leaders, franchise principals and broker networks Senior leadership teams running annual planning and offsite resets Member organisations such as MDRT, RE/MAX, Royal LePage and similar producer networks Audience outcomes A clearer set of personal and team targets, written down and prioritised before they leave the room. Specific habits to protect the highest-value hours of the working week. A common language for accountability that the team can keep using after the event. Practical tactics drawn from sales and entrepreneurial environments rather than abstract leadership theory.

Lawrence Dallaglio OBE is a celebrated former rugby union player, known for his leadership and pivotal role in England’s 2003 Rugby World Cup victory. Off the field, Lawrence has established himself as a successful broadcaster, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, leveraging his experiences to inspire and motivate others. Rugby career Lawrence’s rugby career is marked by his exceptional performance and leadership. As a key player for both Wasps and the England national team, he earned 85 caps for England and played a central role in their 2003 World Cup win. His club career with Wasps saw him secure numerous titles, including three Premiership trophies and two Heineken Cups. Lawrence’s impact on the sport extends beyond his playing days, as he continues to be a prominent figure in rugby commentary and analysis. Philanthropy and business ventures Post-retirement, Lawrence founded the Dallaglio RugbyWorks charity, dedicated to helping disadvantaged young people through the sport of rugby. His entrepreneurial spirit is also evident in his various business ventures, including launching a range of pasta sauces and engaging in several media projects. Lawrence’s commitment to giving back and his success in diverse fields underscore his multifaceted talents and dedication. Lawrence Dallaglio continues to inspire audiences with his compelling stories and valuable insights. His presentations are not only motivational but also provide practical strategies for achieving success in various aspects of life.

Key speaking topics Brand leadership and marketing strategy Creative leadership Innovation and creativity in business Global advertising and communications High-performance culture Leadership in complex markets Ideal for CEOs and senior leadership teams Marketing and brand executives Advertising and communications professionals Organisations seeking high-performance culture insights Audience outcomes Clear perspectives on building brands beyond functional differentiation Practical insights into creative leadership at scale Lessons from global advertising and communications leadership Frameworks linking brand strength to business performance Why organisations work with Kevin Roberts Direct experience leading a global advertising network. Proven track record in brand strategy and creative leadership. Published author on brand building and leadership. Experience spanning business, academia, and sports governance. Biography Kevin Roberts is a former CEO Worldwide of Saatchi & Saatchi who led one of the world’s most recognised global advertising networks and helped shape brand strategy at scale. His leadership experience spans international markets, global clients, and complex commercial environments, making him a sought-after voice on brand building, creativity, and business performance. During his tenure at Saatchi & Saatchi, and through subsequent chair roles within the organisation and its parent group, he operated at the centre of global communications strategy. His perspective combines board-level decision-making with hands-on experience in driving brand relevance and competitive positioning across industries. Roberts is the author of Lovemarks: The Future Beyond Brands and 64 Shots: Leadership in a Crazy World, and co-author of Peak Performance: Business Lessons from the World’s Top Sporting Organizations. His published work explores the connection between emotional engagement, leadership, and sustained business success. His contribution to business and the wider community was recognised with appointment as a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit. He has also held honorary professorships in creative leadership, innovation, and leadership at leading universities in the UK and New Zealand, reflecting the practical and academic relevance of his work. Alongside his corporate career, Roberts has held governance roles in international rugby, including board-level and chair positions, further strengthening his insight into high-performance cultures and leadership under pressure. For organisations seeking clarity on brand differentiation, creative leadership, and the commercial impact of marketing at global scale, Kevin Roberts brings senior executive experience, published thought leadership, and cross-sector governance expertise.

Why organisations work with Kevin Gaskell He has led verifiable turnarounds at three named global brands – Porsche GB from near-bankruptcy to the UK’s most profitable car company, BMW GB to four years of record growth and 500% profitability improvement, and Lamborghini GB – which means his frameworks are grounded in a documented, repeated track record, not a single case. His book Catching Giants (Business Book Awards 2023 finalist) makes a specific, testable argument: that resource-constrained teams with clarity of goal and high belief can consistently outperform better-resourced opponents. Organisations working through transformation can put that directly to use. His portfolio of 15+ businesses across technology, data, and manufacturing – including taking Fairline Boats from ten years of losses to profit within 14 months – shows the same turnaround approach applied across sectors, which makes it credible to audiences outside automotive. The world-record Atlantic and Pacific rowing expeditions are not decorative biography. They are tested case material on exactly the leadership dynamics he teaches: small teams, constrained resources, extreme conditions, and the challenge of sustaining belief and performance when the goal feels unreachable. He has delivered keynotes and masterclasses in over 50 countries for clients including Google, Oracle, JP Morgan, P&G, and Airbus – a range that tests his frameworks against diverse industries, organisation sizes, and cultures. Biography highlights MD of Porsche GB: took the business from near-bankruptcy and bottom of UK customer satisfaction rankings to most profitable car company in the UK within five years MD of BMW GB: four years of record growth, 70% sales increase, 500% improvement in profitability MD of Lamborghini GB; CEO of Fairline Boats, leading the business from ten years of losses to profit within 14 months Founder, chairman, and investor across 15+ businesses in technology, data, manufacturing, and professional services; portfolio has created over £3 billion in shareholder value Author of Catching Giants (Right Book Press, 2022), shortlisted for the Business Book Awards 2023 Guinness World Record holder as part of the Ocean 5 team, fastest five-person Atlantic row (2020); world record Pacific row (2025); expeditions to both the North and South Poles Keynote and masterclass clients include Google, Oracle, JP Morgan, P&G, Airbus, and Accenture; delivered in over 50 countries Recognised as one of the UK’s Top 40 Managers under 40 Biography Turning round a failing business is one of the most demanding tests of leadership because it requires people to change their behaviour before there is any evidence the change will work. Kevin Gaskell has done that three times – at Porsche GB, BMW GB, and Lamborghini GB – and the mechanism in each case was the same: rebuilding team belief in a new direction ahead of any visible result. Appointed MD of Porsche GB at 32, he inherited a company close to bankruptcy and ranked at the bottom of UK customer satisfaction tables. Within five years it was the most profitable car company in the UK. At BMW GB, he led four years of record growth, including a 500% improvement in profitability. At Lamborghini GB, the same approach – refocusing the team on a clear goal, rebuilding culture from the inside – produced comparable results. Across these three brands, the pattern was never primarily about strategy. It was about belief. That same discipline has been applied outside automotive. At Fairline Boats, a business carrying ten years of losses was returned to profit within 14 months. Across a wider portfolio of technology, data, and manufacturing businesses, his teams have created more than £3 billion in shareholder value. His book Catching Giants, shortlisted for the Business Book Awards in 2023, formalises the core argument: that teams with limited resources and a clear goal, led well, can outperform better-equipped competition consistently. The expedition record – both poles, world-record Atlantic and Pacific rows – provides a parallel body of case material on the same dynamics. Small teams, constrained resources, extreme conditions, and the central leadership question: how do you sustain the belief and cohesion needed to reach an objective that looks, for most of the journey, unreachable. Key speaking topics Business turnaround and performance recovery High-performance team leadership Organisational culture as a performance lever Leading through disruption and uncertainty Brand building and repositioning Resilience and performance under pressure Entrepreneurship and business building Ideal for CEOs, MDs, and executive teams in businesses facing stalled performance, competitive disruption, or active turnaround Senior leadership teams initiating or sustaining large-scale transformation programmes Board-level and C-suite audiences exploring the human and cultural dynamics of sustained organisational performance Commercial and operations leaders responsible for driving step-change performance in established organisations Audience outcomes A specific framework for diagnosing why performance has stalled and what leadership change is needed to address it Practical tools for building team belief and shared purpose around an ambitious goal Case-based understanding of how cultural change typically precedes financial performance recovery in turnaround situations A working model for connecting leadership behaviour to commercial outcomes, drawn from multiple named business examples Perspective on sustaining high performance and decision quality under conditions of extreme pressure and limited resource