Mark Penn’s career spans 40 years in market-research, advertising, public relations, polling, and consulting, and he has advised top world leaders, led companies, and written best-selling books. Currently, Penn is the president and managing partner of The Stagwell Group, a private equity fund that invests in marketing services companies and reinvents the traditional holding company model. Before founding The Stagwell Group, he served in senior executive positions at Microsoft, where as executive vice president and chief strategy officer, he was responsible for working on core strategic issues across the company, blending data-analytics with creativity to help set the company on a new course.

Jim VandeHei is a media entrepreneur and expert on American politics. He is the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Axios, a new media company delivering news and insights on politics, business, media and tech. The company, whose name means “worthy” in Greek, specializes in high-quality news and analysis easily shared among the country's most influential readers and across social platforms.

Jon Steinberg is the founder and CEO of Cheddar, a new video media company sitting at the intersection of business news and culture. He was named to Ad Age’s 2015 40 under 40. He was most recently the Chief Executive Officer of DailyMail.com North America. Steinberg grew U.S. revenue 45% while at Daily Mail and doubled direct advertising revenue. He joined DailyMail.com from BuzzFeed where he was President & Chief Operating Officer, responsible for business management, company operations, finance, and social advertising operations. Under his leadership, BuzzFeed became a global and profitable social advertising business working with over half of the top 100 brands. He grew the company from 15 employees to over 500. Steinberg was previously Strategic Partner Development Manager on Google’s SMB (small medium business) partnerships team.

Jeff Kreisler is a best-selling author and financial columnist whose prized insights on the intersection of behavioral science and money have been featured by TEDx, MSNBC, CNN, SiriusXM, and more. Jeff’s research on how human behavior drives spending and saving habits, economic ebbs and flows, and the future of our markets led to his best-selling book Dollars and Sense: How We Misthink Money and How to Spend Smarter. The work was named a “Best Book of the Year” by Business Insider, Audible, Huffington Post, and The Washington Post. It was also named the “#1 Book Every FinTech Professional Should Read in 2018” by the global fintech company Strands. Jeff is currently the Head of Behavioral Science at JP Morgan Chase, where he is leading financial decision-making thought leadership and innovation efforts.

A self-described “Lincoln Republican,” Michael S. Steele earned a place in history in 2003 when he was elected Lieutenant Governor of Maryland, becoming the first African American elected to statewide office in the state. Subsequently, Michael was elected Chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC) in January 2009, becoming the first African American to hold that post in the Party’s history. As Chairman, Steele set a new direction for the Republican Party; actively challenging the Party to engage citizens across America and empowering state and local Republican organizations. Steele’s ability as a communicator and commentator has been showcased through his current role as a political analyst for MSNBC. He has appeared on Meet the Press, Face the Nation, HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher, Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, and The Daily Show. In addition to his work in television, Steele can be heard each week on his radio program, Steele & Ungaron, on the POTUS Channel on SiriusXM. His writings on law, business, and politics have appeared in The Grio.com, The Root.com, BET.com, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times, Politico.com, Townhall.com, The Journal of International Security Affairs, and Catholic University Law Review, among others. Steele is the author of the book, Right Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama Agenda, which is a call to arms for grassroots America where he argues for a return to core conservative principles and the launching of an uncompromising campaign for limited government and he is the co-author of the book, The Recovering Politician’s Twelve Step Program to Survive Crisis.

A lifelong entrepreneur, key strategist, presidential confidante, party chairman, best-selling author, and the 72nd Governor of Virginia, Terry McAuliffe has played an incalculable role in 21st Century American politics. Today, he serves as a Distinguished Visting Professor at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University and a Visiting Fellow at Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy. His dynamic presentations never fail to deliver his trademark charisma and optimism, and he entertains crowds while demonstrating why he’s considered one of the keenest political minds in America.

Michael Parrish DuDell is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and the best-selling author of Shark Tank Jump Start Your Business and Shark Tank Secrets to Success—the official business books from ABC’s hit show, Shark Tank. Ranked as one of the top three most popular business authors by Amazon.com and named “one of nation’s leading Millennial voices” by IBM, Michael is a recognized industry expert and commentator who’s regularly featured across numerous media outlets, including CNN, CNBC, Fox News, Fox Business News, Bloomberg TV, and many more. He's also the host of The Next Crop—an interview web series that showcases the next generation of business and media influencers. An award-winning international keynote speaker, Michael delivers high-energy workshops and interactive presentations designed to help businesses and leaders build future-focused organizations and connect with a new generation of consumer. He has guest lectured at such renowned universities as MIT and Columbia and collaborated with some of the world’s most influential brands, including Kraft, Visa, Disney, L’Oreal, and American Express.

David Nico, PhD, is a passionate advocate for health and wholeness, a top peak performance strategist, a media personality, and best-selling author of the upcoming Dr. Healthnut Series books. As a leadership and well-being expert, keynote speaker, and certified wellness coach, his passion is to help leaders live well so they can model vitality, inspire vision, and create a legacy. A talented and versatile speaker, David captures and speaks to the heart of your event and he will invest quality time to make the most impact for your audience. His desire is for participants to not only learn valuable insights, but walk away with transformational action steps.

Marti Mongiello is a former White House Chef, Private Investigator, Security Expert, Executive Chef, and a GM of the Camp David Resort and Conference Center working with the past five Presidents for 25 years, from H.W. Bush through Trump. He is a disabled and injured military veteran with a 30-year US Navy retired certificate serving in wars across three continents. Marti served as a butler, housekeeper, military aide, and bartender carrying the proverbial, "chalice for his/her majesty to drink from," having been trained by the CIA, USMC, Navy, and Army in specialized courses for nuclear, chemical, and biological attack manning the underground bunker of Orange One as well as bribery and poisoning. When he first received his Top Secret, Yankee White, SCI clearance, he was in the nuclear submarine fleet and had been identified as a polyhistor and polymath. He has an MBA degree and a second Master's from Lenoir-Rhyne University as a Master Certified Food Executive (MCFE). He attained his Bachelor's from the Art Institute, Summa Cum Laude.

One of the world’s leading interviewers, Nina Easton helps CEOs, global leaders, and cultural icons communicate their vision and stories on stage. With deep economic and political sophistication, she engages speakers and audiences to produce far-sighted conversations on how to navigate today’s hyper-speed, disruptive landscape. Her broad portfolio crosses business sectors–from finance and insurance to high-tech and energy–as well as U.S. and geopolitics.

Tom Rogers is the Founder of CNBC, first President of NBC Cable, former and longest serving CEO of TiVo, as well as Chairman and CEO of PRIMEDIA, Inc., owner of 400 media properties including New York Magazine, and serves as the current Executive Chairman WinView, Inc., a sports gaming/gambling company. With a career that has operated at the nexus of media, technology, advertising, and public policy for more than two decades, Tom has a distinctive blend of operational leadership and corporate strategy experience across multiple facets of the industry. Building on his vast experience in running traditional media and new media companies, and in creating innovative business models for companies facing new challenges, Tom has pioneered the way consumers watch and access home entertainment.

Currently, David has taken over as Beijing Bureau Chief for The Economist. David was the Washington bureau chief and "Lexington" columnist of The Economist from 2012 to 2018. Before that he was UK political editor and "Bagehot" columnist of The Economist and before that he was EU correspondent and "Charlemagne" columnist of The Economist. No other journalist at the magazine has written all three of those columns. The postings have given David a front-row seat as economic woes and populist political forces have upended the global world order that some had thought was settled. Over the years David has interviewed heads of state, heads of government, cabinet secretaries, and countless elected politicians and newsmakers, and reported from more than 50 countries.