Doug Rauch, a legendary former president of Trader Joe’s, was instrumental in leading the company’s transformation from a 7/11 knockoff to what Fortune magazine called the “hottest retailer in the U.S.” In eye-opening presentations, he shares insights on building a great business based on culture, innovation, leadership, and teamwork. He shows leaders how to push for new and better ways to perform, and audiences walk away with knowledge of how to create a self-sustaining culture of innovation, build a brand in a competitive marketplace, and lead with a purpose.

Greg Wasson is the former CEO of Walgreens, the largest drugstore chain in the U.S. He transformed an iconic company and helped change an entire industry. Known for his willingness to take risks, he spearheaded a string of deals that moved the company into new markets, including the acquisition of Duane Reade and Alliance Boots – creating the world’s first global health and wellness company. He also delivered returns exceeding the S&P 500 and generated more free cash flow than the previous 98 combined. Wasson discusses leading a global business and healthcare.

As McDonald’s Corporation’s legendary vice chairman and CEO, Jim Skinner led a turnaround at the world’s largest food service company, leaving the chain with the best financial performance in its history. One of the architects of McDonald’s worldwide “Plan to Win” revitalization plan launched in 2003, he managed a successful shift in strategy that led to increased sales, reinvented menus, modernized restaurants, and innovative new offerings. Repeatedly hailed by media as the “CEO of the Year, Skinner addresses business strategy, turnaround stories, leadership, and managing change.

For almost 50 years, The Second City has been the training ground for a host of famous alumni including John Belushi, Mike Myers, Gilda Radner, Tina Fey, Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, and countless stars of stage and screen. Second City Communications works with corporate groups to create a fun, interactive and unconventional approach to training and entertainment.

Bert Jacobs is the co-founder and Chief Executive Optimist of The Life is good Company. A $100 million privately held business based in Boston, MA, Life is good® spreads positive vibes with its colorful collection of apparel and accessories. Jake, Life is good’s iconic hero with the contagious smile, teaches men, women and children that optimism is fun, healthy, and empowering. Bert has appeared on CNN’s Tips from the Top, CNBC’s Business Nation, and The Donny Deutch Show. Life is good has been featured in the New York Times, on the cover of Inc Magazine, and on NBC’s The Today Show.

MakerHealth CEO, Anna Young, works from a fundamental belief that, with the right tools, everyday people can use their ingenuity to create devices that heal. Applying years of global experience with the Maker Movement, Anna brings prototyping tools and makerspaces into hospitals enhance the natural problem-solving abilities of clinicians and patients. Anna is the co-founder of MakerNurse, an RWJF sponsored program to support inventive, frontline nurses. Anna’s roots come from MIT as researcher in the Little Devices Lab and lecturer in the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science. In 2015, Anna was recognized by LinkedIn as a "Top Health Innovator Under 35" and in 2016 received Fast Company’s "Most Creative People in Business."

How do you turn a t-shirt brand that’s sold from the trunk of a rusty car into a global, multi-million dollar business? Johnny Earle transformed Johnny Cupcakes into one of the world’s fastest growing independent businesses. Businessweek named him America’s No. 1 young entrepreneur, and he has been profiled by the New York Times, NPR, MTV, Forbes, Newsweek, the Boston Globe, and INC. By focusing on the customer experience (he wants buying a t-shirt to feel like your birthday), he created such a unique brand that consumers would (and do) line up around the block for his shirts.

Kevin O’Leary is a self-made millionaire and TV/News Personality. He is currently one of the main “Sharks” on the hit ABC Emmy Award winning reality show, Shark Tank, and is constantly featured as a business and economic expert across all cable and network news.

Stephanie is Owner & CEO of Asutra, where we're passionate about helping people take care of themselves on purpose so they can get the most out of life – what we call active self-care. Asutra offers magnesium-powered remedies for pain relief, sleep and mood, so you can care for yourself well. At Asutra, we’re proud to provide good jobs with career pathways at a living wage with benefits. Asutra is women-owned and women-led; 60% of our team are people of color; and 100% of our staff would recommend Asutra as a great place to work. Stephanie is an enthusiastic board member of Hope Chicago, which sends students and their parents to college debt-free; Very Asian Foundation, which amplifies AANHPI stories; and Naturally Chicago, which creates an ecosystem for natural products companies to thrive. Stephanie was honored to be named to Inc.’s Female Founders 200 list in 2023 and Beacon Award Entrepreneur of the Year in 2021. In her spare time, she’s an avid urban gardener who grows everything from tomatoes to lilacs.

With hilarious observations, clever wordplay, and just the right amount of snark, corporate comedian Greg Schwem proves there's always a place for comedy in the workplace. He's been called "America's favorite corporate funnyman" and "king of the hill" of the growing corporate comedy world.

Take two guys with chainsaws. Put them in tights, throw in a Garden Weasel, and what do you get? An amazing team called The Passing Zone, who will make you laugh and, you just might learn something about teamwork. These Guinness World Record holders custom design their show to drive home sales messages, corporate themes, and corporate missions.

As a motivational keynote speaker, author, and entrepreneur, Laura Gassner Otting helps innovators, idealists, and iconoclasts get “unstuck”, increase confidence, and achieve extraordinary results. Laura inspires change agents, entrepreneurs, investors, leaders, and donors to push past the doubt and indecision that keeps great ideas in limbo. She delivers strategic thinking, well-honed wisdom, and catalytic perspective informed by decades of navigating change across the start-up, non-profit, political, and philanthropic landscapes. Laura dares listeners to find their voice, and generate the confidence needed to tackle larger-than-life challenges, and ultimately leads them to seek new ways of leading, managing, and mentoring others. Excited by the audacity of The Big Idea and the larger-than-life goal you just can’t seem to shake, she's an instigator, a motivator, and a provocateur, and she’s never met a revolution she didn’t like.