Worldwide Speakers Group Blog

Women Leaders Are Powerful Keynote Speakers: 3 Examples

Women business leaders and successful women in business have overcome hurdles which both business women and men can relate to, and therefore make excellent motivational speakers or keynote speakers.  Especially when overcoming gender bias roles, women business leaders can exemplify the leadership traits and qualities that propel them to become industry leaders.

Differentiating “women” as leaders is compelling because there are some industries that are traditionally male-dominated, and notable women leaders have overcome remarkable odds in reaching the top of their organizations.  Especially within technology, financial or defense sectors, women are the minority, so the experience of those exceptional women is a powerful statement that resonates.

Creating a leadership style for a woman has different characteristics than a man’s leadership style, in fact there have been studies that share that:

• Women leaders have to be more persuasive
• Women overcome adversity by adopting an “I’ll show you” approach as opposed to the traditional “I’ll tell you”
• Women typically demonstrate higher team building styles
• Women take risks and “draw outside the lines” to create a new rulebook

Notable women leaders such as Carly Fiorina, Sheila Bair, and Marty Evans are excellent representations of powerful women leaders.

1. Carly Fiorina started her career as a secretary and became the first woman to lead a Fortune 20 company - Hewlett Packard. Rising to the top of a technology company is not a simple feat for a woman in the male-dominated technology sector.  
2. Sheila Bair, former Chairman of the FDIC, is another powerful woman who can attract a diverse audience.  Bair led the FDIC through the stormy economy of the Great Recession, and as a speaker she clearly demonstrates that ‘can do’ attitude.  Not only is she a recognized authority on the financial industry in crisis, she is a woman leader who rose to a position of leadership within our national financial system, another male-dominated environment.
3. Marty Evans, the first female to command a U.S. naval station, is another excellent example of a powerful women leader in a male dominated environment.  At the time of her retirement, she was the highest ranking woman in the Navy. Marty Evans also had leadership roles at the Girl Scouts of America, the American Red Cross and was instrumental in the national response to hurricane Katrina.

Each of these exceptional women business leaders has a message that inspires an audience to overcome gender barriers or bias and to be a leader in every sense of the word.

5 Steps To Setting The Tone With A Speaker’s Keynote

Selecting a keynote speaker is one of the most critical aspects of planning a meeting.  Certainly, it’s fundamental to book the venue, schedule the sessions, plan the catering and think through the agenda, yet from the perspective of the attendee, the power of a keynote sets the tone for the entire event.

There are many ways to select a speaker and many categories of speakers from which to choose. For example, you can have a business keynote speaker who is a sports celebrity who focuses on motivation and the importance of training.  Or you could have a newscaster who discusses the tenacity needed to get the scoop under pressure and relates that to sales motivation, organizational inspiration or team performance.  

The trick to having the best keynote speaker is to take a comprehensive approach to your event and examine all the factors that will create a successful meeting.  Here are the 5 steps to setting an effective tone with a speaker’s keynote:

1. Thoroughly Explore Your Industry and Organization

What will appeal to your industry?  What is the latest news within your industry or organization?  What are the hot button issues? Who would be able to address the goals, people, culture, clients and competitive landscape?

2. Understand Your Audience.

Who is in your audience? What are the demographics, the mindset, and the expectations?  Most important, what do you want the ‘take away’ from the event to be?  This will set the tone for the type of speaker and the message you want delivered.

3. Identify the Message and Messenger.

Even within a specific subject area, there are a myriad of speakers addressing different aspects of that topic and one that handle the same aspects but in dramatically different ways.  There may be several business keynote speakers who could suit your audience – and many who would not.  The trick is to distill these speakers into a strategic business rationale and topic that will effectively deliver your message and fulfill your meeting objectives.

4. Consider Touchpoints Outside the Keynote.

Are there opportunities to have the speaker interact with the audience?  Would a cocktail reception with key sponsors be helpful, or small roundtable session with the speaker and your leadership?  Creatively interjecting the keynote speaker into a pre-event newsletter or post event article may also strategically reinforce the event’s messaging.

5. Speaker Management/Event Coordination.

When you work with a speaker, it’s important that all parties are on the same page and have shared expectations.  Clarity regarding time/place, roles and responsibilities is critical to a smoothly flowing keynote event.  Having all parties clear on what is to be presented in the keynote speech will assure that your speaker will deliver a powerful message to your audience and set the tone for a successful event.

Keynote Speaker: How To Hire An Inspirational Speaker

Keynote speaker presentations set the tone for any event. A rousing keynote speaker will leave the audience energized and enthused to attend the sessions.  This is important for sponsors as well as attendees because a motivated attendee will be more engaged with the exhibitors, additional sessions, and will encourage their associates to be more engaged.  This dynamic places an onus on the meeting planner to creatively procure a keynote speaker who will set the stage for success.

When selecting a motivational keynote speaker, the goal is to hire the best speaker, who will meet your meeting objectives and inspire an audience-- all within the budget.

Certainly there are many speakers to choose from.  Some will draw due to their celebrity status, and some because of their situation.  

Here are 5 questions you should ask when selecting a Keynote Speaker:

1. Does the message inspire action? Having an inspiring message that is easily understood and actionable is a hallmark of a great speaker.  Being a celebrity may or may not also entail having an engaging presentation.   Ask the speakers bureau for video or post event evaluations to learn more about the audience reaction to the speaker.
2. Does the speaker appeal to the audience?  Considerations like gender and style relative to the audience are important.   Having an appropriate speaker who the audience responds to is part science and part understanding the emotional response to the speaker before the first word is uttered.  
3. Is the message sincere?  Most speakers who are represented by a bureau have been vetted, but there is sometimes an opportunity to have a speaker who is not through a bureau or who represents him or herself.  If the speaker does not come across as sincere, or their message does not resonate or is dated, the audience may walk away with a poor impression of the hosting organization.
4. Does the speaker have impressive credentials or life experience? There are situations where a speaker may want to discuss a topic, but they lack the expertise, depth, or life experience to be deemed credible by the audience. Again, this is risky for the host organization.  Working with a speakers group, you are assured that the speaker is vetted as an expert on the topic.
5. How does the speaker relate to the theme and message for the event?  Matching the event theme and attendees’ expectations with an experienced keynote speaker who will dazzle the audience and motivate and inspire is an art.   Having a pulse on the speakers who are relevant and effective is fundamental to a well-attended and inspiring motivational keynote speaker.

Answering these questions is just the beginning.  There are many considerations, including audience demographics, expectations and who they may relate to.  It’s proven that certain audiences tend to favor one gender over another.  

Creating a scientific checklist approach enables the meeting planner to evaluate all of the important variables to select the best keynote speaker to fit the audience and the event.

Oh, What a Night!

WWSG recently celebrated its two-year anniversary with a packed house at our inaugural client appreciation/open house event in our spacious new global headquarters in Old Town Alexandria.  Sheila Bair, Carly Fiorina, Ben Sasse and Eleanor Clift were just a few of the exclusive and VIP speakers who joined the celebration, engaging guests in conversation as delicious food and drink were enjoyed by all.

It was standing room only in WWSG's expanded location as guests connected with old and new friends. 

Principals Bob Thomas and Dan Sims (above) welcomed everyone with amusing anecdotes and expressed great appreciation for their enthusiasm and support; below, Sheila Bair, Carly Fiorina, Ben Sasse (in background) and Frank Fiorina look on approvingly.

Eleanor Clift and Principal Dan Sims share a humorous moment...

 

...as do many other revelers at the event.  A delightful evening of food, fun and friends.

WWSG thanks ALL of its fabulous clients, speakers and advocates for their unwavering faith and support.  We look forward to welcoming everyone again as our guests at future WWSG events!

The World's Top Women Business Leaders

Forbes magazine recently published its annual World's 100 Most Powerful Women list, a ranking that spans countries, industries and spheres of influence. After ceding the top spot to Michelle Obama last year after a four-year reign, Germany's Angela Merkel again returns to the number one position for 2011. However, there are some definite surprises in this year's list including a number of fresh faces, savvy up-and-comers as well as some notable drop-offs.

Here is the complete list; full profile information for each woman can be found on Forbes' website.

Rank	Name	Age	Country	Category
1	Angela Merkel Chancellor	57	Germany	Politics
2	Hillary Clinton Secretary of State	63	United States	Politics
3	Dilma Rousseff President	63	Brazil	Politics
4	Indra Nooyi Chief Executive, PepsiCo	55	United States	Business
5	Sheryl Sandberg COO, Facebook	42	United States	Business
6	Melinda Gates Cofounder, Cochair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation	47	United States	Non-Profit
7	Sonia Gandhi President	64	India	Politics
8	Michelle Obama First Lady	47	United States	Politics
9	Christine Lagarde Managing Director, International Monetary Fund	55	France	Non-Profit
10	Irene Rosenfeld CEO, Kraft Foods	58	United States	Business
11	Lady Gaga Entertainer	25	United States	Celebrity/Lifestyle
12	Jill Abramson Executive Editor, NY Times	57	United States	Media
13	Kathleen Sebelius Secretary of Health and Human Services	63	United States	Politics
14	Oprah Winfrey Media Personality	57	United States	Media
15	Janet Napolitano Secretary of Homeland Security	53	United States	Politics
16	Susan Wojcicki SVP, Advertising, Google	43	United States	Business
17	Cristina Fernandez President	58	Argentina	Politics
18	Beyoncé Knowles Entertainer, Designer	29	United States	Celebrity/Lifestyle
19	Georgina Rinehart Mining Tycoon	57	Australia	Billionaire
20	Cher Wang Cofounder, Chair, HTC; VIA Technologies	52	Taiwan	Business
21	Margaret Hamburg Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration	56	United States	Politics
22	Michele Bachmann Presidential Candidate	55	United States	Politics
23	Julia Gillard Prime Minister	49	Australia	Politics
24	Mary Schapiro Chair, Securities and Exchange Commission	56	United States	Politics
25	Anne Sweeney Co-Chair of Disney Media Networks; President, Disney-ABC Television Group	53	United States	Business
26	Aung San Suu Kyi General Secretary, National League For Democracy	66	Myanmar	Politics
27	Ursula Burns CEO, Xerox	52	United States	Business
28	Amy Pascal Co-Chair, Sony Pictures	53	United States	Business
29	Angelina Jolie Actress, Humanitarian	36	United States	Celebrity/Lifestyle
30	Josette Sheeran Executive Director, UN World Food Programme	57	United States	Non-Profit
31	Arianna Huffington Editor-In-Chief, AOL Huffington Post Media Group	61	United States	Media
32	Gail Kelly CEO, Westpac Group	55	Australia	Business
33	Chan Laiwa & family Chair, Fu Wah International Group	70	China	Billionaire
34	Sarah Palin Political Commentator	47	United States	Celebrity/Lifestyle
35	Cynthia Carroll CEO, Anglo American	54	United States	Business
36	Helene Gayle CEO, CARE USA	56	United States	Non-Profit
37	Carol Bartz CEO, Yahoo!	63	United States	Business
38	Ellen Kullman CEO, Dupont	55	United States	Business
39	Jin Sook Chang Cofounder, Chief Merchandising Officer, Forever 21	48	United States	Business
40	Safra Catz President, Oracle	49	United States	Business
41	Angela Braly CEO, Wellpoint	50	United States	Business
42	Marissa Mayer VP, Local, Maps & Location Services, Google	36	United States	Business
43	Chanda Kochhar CEO, ICICI Bank	49	India	Business
44	Christiane Amanpour News Achor, This Week	53	United States	Media
45	Patricia Woertz CEO, Archer Daniels Midland	58	United States	Business
46	Lynn Laverty Elsenhans CEO, Sunoco	55	United States	Business
47	Diane Sawyer News Anchor, World News	65	United States	Media
48	Zhang Xin & family Cofounder, CEO, SOHO China	46	China	Business
49	Queen Elizabeth II Monarch	85	United Kingdom	Politics
50	Helen Clark Administrator, UN Development Programme	61	New Zealand	Non-Profit
51	Helen Boaden Director, BBC News Group	55	United Kingdom	Media
52	Nancy Pelosi Democratic Leader, House of Representatives	71	United States	Politics
53	Queen Rania Al Abdullah Monarch	41	Jordan	Politics
54	Bonnie Hammer Chairman, Cable Entertainment and Cable Studios, NBCU	61	United States	Business
55	Ellen DeGeneres Talk Show Host	53	United States	Celebrity/Lifestyle
56	Katie Jacobs Stanton VP, International Strategy, Twitter	41	United States	Business
57	Shari Arison Heiress, Philanthropist	53	Israel	Billionaire
58	Angela Ahrendts CEO, Burberry	51	United States	Business
59	Yingluck Shinawatra Prime Minister	44	Thailand	Politics
60	Gisele Bündchen Supermodel, Environmentalist	31	Brazil	Celebrity/Lifestyle
61	Joanne (J.K.) Rowling Author	46	United Kingdom	Celebrity/Lifestyle
62	Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf President	72	Liberia	Politics
63	Lubna S. Olayan CEO, Olayan Financing Company	56	Saudi Arabia	Business
64	Andrea Jung CEO, Avon	53	United States	Business
65	Sri Mulyani Indrawati Managing Director, World Bank	49	Indonesia	Non-Profit
66	Ann Curry Coanchor, TODAY show	54	United States	Media
67	Sallie Krawcheck President, Global Wealth and Investment Management, Bank of America	46	United States	Business
68	Margaret Chan Director-General, World Health Organization	64	China	Non-Profit
69	Anna Wintour Editor-in-Chief, Vogue	61	United States	Media
70	Abigail Johnson President, Fidelity Investments	49	United States	Business
71	Judith Rodin President, The Rockefeller Foundation	66	United States	Non-Profit
72	Ho Ching CEO, Temasek Holdings	58	Singapore	Business
73	Carol Meyrowitz CEO, TJX Companies	57	United States	Business
74	Mary Callahan Erdoes CEO, J.P. Morgan Asset Management	44	United States	Business
75	Greta Van Susteren Host, On the Record	57	United States	Media
76	Mary Barra SVP, Global Product Development, General Motors	49	United States	Business
77	Ana Patricia Botin CEO, Santander UK	50	Spain	Business
78	Guler Sabanci & family Chair, Sabanci Holding	56	Turkey	Business
79	Miuccia Prada Chair, Head Designer, Prada Group	62	Italy	Business
80	Denise Morrison CEO, Campbell Soup Company	57	United States	Business
81	Tina Brown Editor-in-Chief, The Daily Beast, Newsweek	57	United States	Media
82	Virginia Rometty SVP, Group Executive Sales, Marketing and Strategy , IBM	53	United States	Business
83	Drew Gilpin Faust President, Harvard University	63	United States	Non-Profit
84	Sheri McCoy Vice Chair Executive Committee, Johnson & Johnson	52	United States	Business
85	Alice Walton Heiress, Art Patron	61	United States	Billionaire
86	Laura Chinchilla President	52	Costa Rica	Politics
87	Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala Finance Minister	57	Nigeria	Politics
88	Sue Naegle President, HBO Entertainment	42	United States	Business
89	Mindy Grossman CEO, HSN	53	United States	Business
90	Ruth Porat CFO, Morgan Stanley	53	United States	Business
91	Diane Von Furstenberg CEO, Diane Von Furstenberg Studio	64	United States	Business
92	Jan Fields President, McDonald's USA	56	United States	Business
93	Maria Ramos Group CEO, Absa Group Banks	52	South Africa	Business
94	Marjorie Scardino CEO, Pearson	64	United States	Business
95	Risa Lavizzo-Mourey CEO, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation	56	United States	Non-Profit
96	Beth Mooney CEO, KeyCorp	56	United States	Business
97	Nonkululeko Nyembezi-Heita CEO, ArcelorMittal South Africa	52	South Africa	Business
98	Dominique Senequier CEO, AXA Private Equity	58	France	Business
99	Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw Founder, Chair, Biocon	58	India	Business
100	Beth Brooke Global Vice Chair, Ernst & Young	52	United States	Business