September 12-14, 2018
Buffalo, New York
2018 Speakers
More Speakers Coming Soon
Greatness Lies Within...
Overcoming Ego
Ryan Holiday
Keynote Speaker
Many of us insist that the main impediment to a full, successful life is the outside world. When in fact, Ryan Holiday insists, the most common enemy lies within: our ego. Early in our careers, it impedes learning and the cultivation of talent. With success, it can blind us to our faults and sow future problems. In failure, it magnifies each blow and makes recovery more difficult. And even the most successful companies can be torn apart by destructive egos—the disease of ‘me’. At every stage, ego holds us back.
Greatness Lies Within...
Who You Really Are
Yancey Strickler
Keynote Speaker
Grads entering the workforce today know turbulence. They also know anxiety. The financial collapse still haunts the economy. Disruptive technologies—especially A.I. and robotics—threaten all jobs. Climate change and rising political unrest means there’s no promise of an easy life. So, as a young writer, Yancey Strickler also faced the great unknown. When the idea for Kickstarter was hatched, he had no business training (even buying a white board was a novelty!). He was of course wary. But his eventual success stands not as a freak stroke of fortune, but a testament to what can be achieved with passion, dedication, and a belief in making the world a better place.
Greatness Lies Within...
Tenacity
Jim Kelly
Keynote Speaker
Jim Kelly is a Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback whose hallmark as a player was his toughness on the field. Jim speaks about the power of the four F’s – Faith, Friends, Family and Fans and what is really means to be “Kelly Tough.”
Greatness Lies Within...
Resilience
Rhonda Kallman
Keynote Speaker
Some of the accomplishments I’m most proud of is being recognized by the Brewer’s Association as “the pioneering woman in the beer industry” thus leading the way for other women to take their rightful place in a traditionally male-dominated industry. Being featured in INC Magazine’s “25 Entrepreneurs We Love (and what makes them great)" along with other luminaries like Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Larry Page/Sergey Brin to name a few was an honor. And, receiving the “Maverick Award” from Beer Business Daily and Draft Magazine Top 10 Innovators award were career highlights.
Greatness Lies Within...
Our Weaknesses
Dave Rendall
Master of Ceremonies
During the last fifteen years, David Rendall has spoken to audiences on every inhabited continent. His clients include the US Air Force, Australian Government, and Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, AT&T, United Health Group, Fannie Mae, and State Farm.
Greatness Lies Within...
Our Physiology
Christina Harbridge
Keynote Speaker
Christina Harbridge’s behavior change philosophy is the product of her many eclectic life experiences. She has co-authored software, built a company that hit national revenue success, practiced acrobatic swing dancing, been a NASA test subject, and collaborated to design/weld several large-scale metal sculptures currently on display in San Francisco, Austin, and Toronto.
Greatness Lies Within...
The Unexpected
Derreck Kayongo
Keynote Speaker
Derreck Kayongo is a renowned expert in environmental sustainability and global health, as the founder of the Global Soap Project which takes donated, melted, purified and reprocessed hotel soap and redistributes it to vulnerable populations around the world.
Greatness Lies Within...
Failure
Megan Bruneau
Keynote Speaker
Megan Bruneau, M.A. is a therapist, executive coach, writer, speaker, and host of the former Forbes podcast, The Failure Factor: Stories of Career Perseverance. Megan specializes in helping people understand and transcend psychological obstacles, and transform "failure" and challenge into resilience and purpose.
Greatness Lies Within...
Intention
Brian Kight
Keynote Speaker
The biggest variable in every organization is behavior, not circumstances. Event+Response=Outcome is the physics of discipline-driven behavior. Your job is to be exceptional at it.
Greatness Lies Within...
Listening
Eric Maddox
Keynote Speaker
Upon graduating from the University of Oklahoma in May 1994, Eric Maddox joined the U.S. Army as an infantry paratrooper for the 82nd Airborne Division. After spending three years as an infantry paratrooper with a Ranger tab, Eric reenlisted as an interrogator and Chinese Mandarin linguist. Since 9/11, Eric has conducted over 2,700 interrogations while deploying eight times in support of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) to include
Greatness Lies Within...
The Moment
Dan Quiggle
Keynote Speaker
Dan Quiggle is a serial entrepreneur, marquee leadership speaker, and passionate about inspiring leaders at all levels in their practical pursuit of extraordinary leadership.
Greatness Lies Within...
Upcoming Generations
Frank Ciccia
Keynote Speaker
Frank has worked in a variety of settings ranging from higher education, for profit corporations, and not for profit organizations. He is the founder and CEO of Illuminare Group INC, a Leadership and Organizational Development Consultancy located in Buffalo, New York. His major areas of expertise are Leadership and Organizational Development, developing and deploying human capital strategies, and Executive Coaching.