Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen are two of the nation’s most influential journalists. For years, they worked together building the nationally renowned digital media company POLITICO, transforming it from a newcomer on Captiol Hill to the website and accompanying newsletter that all of Washington considered a “must-read.” Now, they are co-founders of disruptive media company Axios, delivering quick, punchy news and insights on politics, business, media, and technology to a smart and highly-engaged audience. The company has already proved a disruptive force in the digital media space, specializing in high-quality news and analysis easily shared across social platforms by the country’s influential readers.

Colin Coggins and Garrett Brown are agents of change who are known for their surprising and entertaining approaches to purpose-driven leadership and igniting culture shifts that reposition organizations to scale growth and make a profound impact in their teams, and with their customers. At the foundation of Colin and Garrett’s philosophy is the idea that the most successful leaders and teams are the ones who are able to evolve transactional encounters into transformational experiences where connections are made, solutions are created, and value is felt. After decades of collective experience as sales professionals, leaders, and executives, Colin and Garrett’s paths crossed at enterprise software company Bitium, where they played key roles in growing the business from relative obscurity to a prominent acquisition by Google. They now serve as adjunct professors of entrepreneurship at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business, where they teach the hugely popular, first-of-its-kind class, “Sales Mindset for Entrepreneurs.”

A legendary presence behind one of America’s most beloved television shows, Lindsay Shookus is an Emmy award-winning producer who, for 20 years, worked as a veteran producer for “Saturday Night Live.” During her tenure, as producer and head of the talent department, Shookus was responsible for engineering the show’s success from booking celebrity hosts and musical guests and creating comfort and connections between them and the cast, to scouting rising stars to join the show’s ranks. She played a pivotal role in launching the careers of household names, including Kristin Wiig and Kate McKinnon — cementing her reputation for having a sharp eye for talent within the entertainment industry. She points to her own experiences to lead an on-stage masterclass on personal transformation, building connections, and embracing life’s obstacles on the road to overcoming them.

Reggie Rivers is a renaissance man whose talents and achievements have spanned many different disciplines. He’s a former NFL running back, a media personality, a business owner, an author and a motivational speaker, master of ceremonies, and auctioneer. He entered the NFL as a classic underdog—an undrafted rookie free agent and a longshot to make a team. But he managed to win a roster spot with the Denver Broncos and stayed with the team for six seasons. In speeches, Reggie shares the lessons he’s learned from the NFL that translate perfectly to the business world and enable peak performance. His message will reinforce the ideas that organizations are already preaching to their teams – providing that “aha” moment by presenting these strategies in the context of football.

Childhood best friends, Nick Friedman and Omar Soliman, were just twenty-two when they co-founded the now iconic junk removal and moving company, College Hunks Hauling Junk. Starting as an idea to earn some extra money over college break in a beat-up cargo van, the duo has grown College Hunks into a $300 million national franchise with more than 100 locations – truly demonstrating what it means to be both bold risk takers and modern leaders. The company and founders have been widely recognized and acclaimed for their world-class culture and service, as well as their progressive approach to doing business in the 21st century. Through lessons-learned from their monumental business growth, the pair discuss what it means to create a purpose-driven, customer-centric organization, while also sharing their secrets to success: patience, persistence, and standing out in a crowded landscape. Building their company around visionary leadership, Friedman and Soliman showcase how to craft a world-class organization by developing an entrepreneurial culture of strong, reliable teams.

For years, Miguel Cervantes was the actor behind the most visible role in the world of the performing arts. Following his standout performances as Alexander Hamilton in the Chicago run of Hamilton: An American Musical, he was hand-picked by the show’s creator and original Alexander Hamilton actor Lin-Manuel Miranda to play the role of the title character in the Broadway run of the universally beloved production in 2020. He would stay in the role until 2024. Cervantes’ ascent to the stratosphere of theatrical excellence embodies the essence of creativity, resilience, and unwavering dedication to one’s purpose. He overcame setbacks and unthinkable personal tragedy to capture imaginations with his spellbinding portrayal of Alexander Hamilton and cement his legacy as one of the great performers of our time. He taps into the magic of story and performance to inspire audiences to write their own unique script to success.

Tessa Todd Morgan is a mindfulness expert, personal growth coach and accredited trainer in Emotional Intelligence. As the Founder and CEO of TRIESSENCE, Tessa has coached hundreds of individuals and organizations to achieve a balance of physical, mental and spiritual wellness. In 2003, Tessa began in the professional speaking industry, and was privileged to work with famous keynote speakers and celebrities such as Dr. Oz, Geena Davis, Sir Ken Robinson and Suze Orman. Today, she speaks, trains and consults professionally, coaching contributors to become leaders, and helping leaders to become steadfast, calming influencers in stressful corporate environments. In her programs, Tessa leads people to recognize the invisible barriers that exist between them and their goals, and helps them to develop strategies for achieving those goals by recognizing and neutralizing various forms of stress using personal growth, optimism and mindfulness techniques.

A leader and confidence creator who is driving change in the workplace and creating more equitable and inclusive workplaces for all, Meggie Palmer is on a mission to help organizations in every industry recruit, retain, and develop top talent from diverse backgrounds through PepTalkHer, the consultancy she founded and leads as CEO. What began as a side hustle for Palmer has evolved into a thriving global business and movement with a strong community of 60,000 aspirational professionals from all walks of life who are breaking glass ceilings and leading organizations into the future.

With an unparalleled career that has consistently transcended the boundaries of music, culture and thought leadership, Freddie Ravel toured with Brazilian master Sergio Mendes, directed the legendary band that bridged black and white America - Earth, Wind and Fire, performed on the silver screen with the Queen of Pop - Madonna, rocked stadiums with Afro-Latin-Blues-Rock icon Carlos Santana, performed the Grammys with Prince, cut tracks with Kanye and led the teams behind J. Lo, Jimmy Kimmel and Lady GaGa to become the “Expert’s Expert” on multi-generational integration. As an author, Freddie’s published works with Deepak Chopra on how music and thought cannot exist without silence illuminated that the “pause between the notes” is essential for effective communication. Highlighting the power of listening - whether to clients, colleagues or the signals that nature sends us - would lead to an invitation from the family of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to be a featured author alongside Maya Angelou, Stevie Wonder, Muhammad Ali and Robert Kennedy Jr. in the book, Open My Eyes, Open My Soul. Freddie would later be dubbed the “Keynote Maestro” by the City of Los Angeles for his groundbreaking Life In Tune™ system to “renew the national and international economy.” In constant demand to bring audiences in tune around the world, his clients include IBM, Toyota, NASA, Apple, Blue Cross Health, Google and Prudential Financial Services who call his “ideal balance of Entertainment and Content” essential for businesses and entrepreneurs to transform from dissonance to harmony.

Bert and John Jacobs are co-founders of the $100 million lifestyle brand Life is Good. When they started the company in 1994, they had $78 in their pockets, lived out of their van, and sold t-shirts on the streets of Boston. Was this their way of avoiding the “real world”? You betcha. Did it turn into something much bigger? Absolutely.

Cris Collinsworth is a former American college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League A second-round pick in the 1981 NFL Draft, he played his entire professional career for the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL. Collinsworth now works as an Emmy Award-winning television sportscaster for NBC, Showtime, and the NFL Network.