Keynotes to DRIVE EXCELLENCE, engagement, and resilience.
A FEW OF THE 700+ STAGES I HAVE SPOKEN ON
CHRIS in ACTION
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MY SIGNATURE KEYNOTES
Great Culture Begins at the Table: How Human Connection Fuels Team Connection and Business Growth
In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, leaders are up against unprecedented challenges. AI is transforming industries, reshaping job roles, and automating once-essential tasks. The workforce is navigating uncertainty, burnout, and shifting expectations about what it means to feel engaged and valued.
Yet, amid this disruption, one truth remains: human connection is the ultimate competitive advantage.
According to Workday’s AI Skills Revolution report, 81% of employees recognize AI is changing the skills required for their jobs, with the biggest demand now placed on uniquely human capabilities. However, a disconnect remains: while 82% of employees believe human connection will become even more crucial as AI usage grows, only 65% of managers agree. This gap presents a critical opportunity for leaders to step up—not just as strategists, but as connectors, bridge-builders, and culture-shapers.
In this powerful keynote, Chris Schembra unpacks the essential human skills that define modern leadership: relationship-building, emotional intelligence, resilience, and gratitude. Drawing from his experience working with Fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurs, and high-performing teams, Chris introduces a practical, actionable framework for leading with authenticity, adaptability, and impact.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
Harness the Human Advantage – Why connection, emotional intelligence, and ethical leadership are the most in-demand skills of the future.
Lead with Resilience – How to navigate uncertainty, turn adversity into opportunity, and inspire teams with a mindset of growth and adaptability.
Build High-Trust Teams – The science of gratitude and how it strengthens collaboration, innovation, and long-term success.
Close the Leadership Gap – Address the disconnect between employees and management when it comes to fostering human connection in an AI-driven workplace.
The PASTA Framework: A five-step model to cultivate awareness, curiosity, adaptability, action, and gratitude.
Leadership is no longer just about managing people—it’s about inspiring movements, creating belonging, and unlocking human potential. This keynote will leave attendees energized, equipped, and ready to lead in a world that demands more human-centered leadership.
The future of leadership isn’t just about strategy—it’s about connection.
Gratitude: The cornerstone of excellence, leadership, and strong communication.
In a world where leadership often translates to quicker decisions, larger initiatives, and greater pressures, it's easy to overlook the core elements that sustain long-term success. Leaders are struggling not just to excel but to meaningfully connect in ways that promote sustainable excellence.
The typical response to mounting pressures is to accelerate efforts—more output, more innovation, more speed. But might true excellence stem from a deeper, often neglected source? What if the pathway to outstanding achievement lies in the quiet power of gratitude?
This keynote explores how gratitude isn't just about giving thanks—it's a strategic advantage that can redefine leadership and organizational success. We'll delve into how historical figures like Paul Revere and modern innovators like Toyota have achieved remarkable excellence by embedding gratitude into their leadership ethos. Learn how these principles can foster a culture of continuous improvement, deeper engagement, and superior performance.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
Embrace Slow Listening: When leaders create space and time to slow down, they prioritize understanding, empathy, learning, and genuine connections. Slow listeners make great innovators. They connect disparate ideas and bring into the world solutions only they are deeply qualified to bring.
Generosity in Service: We tell the story of Paul Revere, the super connector that risked his life on Aril 18th, 1775 to spread the message that the war was coming. The greatest leaders build networks of weak ties, acting as information brokers, catalysts, and connectors, fostering change and uniting diverse groups within their organizations in meaningful ways. We have to be prepared to be strong and to be the navigator of change, because we are the glue that holds a lot of the things together for this.
Focusing on Continuous Improvement: Rather than aiming for grand slams, great leaders concentrate on making consistent, incremental innovations. We need to adapt fast, making small, smart changes for better results. We introduce the story of how Toyota's kaizen philosophy took American car manufacturing by storm in 1986, emphasizing continuous improvement, waste reduction, and team engagement.
Pursuing Purpose with Focus: Great leaders dedicate their efforts to meaningful causes inside and outside of the organization, prioritizing focus on what drives value, vs trying to do everything at once. As the old Russian proverb says, "You can't chase two rabbits at the same time; they'll both get away." Focus equals growth.
Gratitude grounds us slowly in the present, and fosters the connection, focus, and celebration of small victories essential for continuous improvement and excellence.
LETS GO!
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MY OFFICIAL SPEAKER BIO
Chris Schembra is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Gratitude Through Hard Times and Gratitude and Pasta. USA Today calls him their "Gratitude Guru" and he's a Founding Member of Rolling Stone Magazine's Culture Council.
He is the Founder and Chief Question Asker of the 7:47 Gratitude Experience™ — an evidence-based framework used to strengthen client and team relationships in profound ways and has used the principles of gratitude to spark over 500,000 relationships within the workplace.
As a viral marketer, his gratitude campaign giving tribute and thanks to Veterans earned over 36 million views, 1.2 million shares, and 2 Emmy Awards. His success has been highlighted in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Forbes, Inc, Entrepreneur, Bravo TV, Fox News Channel, Variety, and hundreds of other media outlets.
