Jim Donald – the current co-chairman and former CEO of Albertsons, and the former CEO of Starbucks, Haggen Food & Pharmacy, and Extended Stay Hotels – focuses on innovation, quality, and service. He started his career as a grocer; he was handpicked by Sam Walton to build a supermarket presence for Wal-Mart. He helped Starbucks enjoy record growth and performance and increase its social responsibility commitment. At Extended Stay Hotels, Donald utilizing his reputation for turning around ailing companies. Named one of the “Top 25 CEOs in the World,” he addresses leadership, management, the power of one customer.

Widely respected for her unparalleled insights and analysis from the forefront of American politics, Anna Palmer is a trusted voice on the latest — and most accurate — news on congressional leadership, the lobbying industry, presidential campaigns, and the politics of governing for more than 15 years. She is the co-founder and CEO of Punchbowl News, a news community focused on power, people, and politics in Washington. From 2016 to 2020, Palmer was the co-author, along with Jake Sherman, of the top-rated POLITICO Playbook franchise, where they chronicled President Donald Trump’s first term and his relationship with top Congressional leaders. Under their leadership, the platform more than doubled in revenue and tripled its readership. Anna covers the world of Congress and politics, and has successfully chronicled the business of Washington insiders for years. Her stories take readers behind the scenes of the latest breaking news in Washington from lobbyists to the White House and everything in between.

Mark Bowden is the keynote speaker for organizations worldwide whose work depends upon winning the hearts and minds of others. Mark entertainingly trains any audience in the most cutting edge techniques to stand out, win trust and profit every time they speak. His keynote presentation takes everyone on an exciting and humorous journey to understand how, with the right body language “It’s often not what you say—but how you say it, that gets results!” Expert in human behaviour and body language, keynote speaker Mark Bowden is the creator of TRUTHPLANE®, a communication training company and unique methodology for anyone who has to communicate with impact to an audience. Mark’s highly entertaining keynote speeches and training seminars teach audiences around the world how to use the most influential verbal and nonverbal language to stand out, win trust and gain credibility every time they speak.

Bill Whitaker is an award-winning journalist and storyteller extraordinaire whose voice is synonymous with compelling in-depth coverage that helps audiences make sense of, and connect to, the major news stories of the day. Since 2014, Whitaker has served as a correspondent on the CBS news program 60 Minutes, tackling era-defining issues with his signature calm demeanor and inquisitive mind. In four decades as a cornerstone of CBS News’ coverage, Whitaker has reported on virtually all of the historic headlines that have reshaped society — both domestically and across the globe. Millions of people continue to tune in to hear his gripping perspectives, which capture the imagination and spark constructive discourse.

A senior leadership/board advisor, educator, executive coach, and bestselling author, David Nour is internationally recognized as the leading expert on applications of strategic relationships in profitable growth, sustained innovation, and lasting change. The author of eleven books, including bestsellers Relationship Economics® (Wiley), and Co-Create (St. Martin’s Press), as well as the forthcoming Curve Benders (Wiley, 2021), Nour serves as a trusted advisor to global clients and coaches corporate leaders. He is an adjunct professor at the Goizueta Business School at Emory University and was named to the Global Gurus Top 30 Leadership Professionals and the Thinkers 50 Radar Class of 2021 lists. A Forbes Leadership contributor on the Future of Work, and an Inc. contributor on Relationship Economics, Nour’s unique insights have been featured in a variety of prominent publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Fast Company, Huffington Post Business, Entrepreneur, and Knowledge@Wharton. He’s also the host of the popular Curve Benders podcast. Born in Iran, Nour immigrated to the U.S. as a teenager with $100, limited family ties and no fluency in English. He graduated from Georgia State University with a bachelor’s degree in business management and went on to earn an Executive MBA from the Goizueta Business School at Emory University. He resides in Atlanta, GA, with his family.

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.

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.

Dr. Lior Zoref is a researcher, advisor, TED speaker, and author of the best-selling book, Mindsharing – the art of crowd sourcing everything about the power of collective intelligence. His book was translated to many languages and was listed by Inc. magazine as one of the best books for entrepreneurs along with books by Richard Branson, Elon Musk, and Tony Hsieh. Dr. Zoref has been invited to speak at some of the world’s most innovative organizations, including Google, MIT Media Lab, Columbia University, The White House, Nike, Microsoft, and LinkedIn.

What happens when Washington, D.C.’s premiere, political satire group - the Capitol Steps - call it quits after nearly 40 years? Most folks would agree that it was a great run, and the story would end there. But an intrepid group of cast members and a co-writer would not go quietly into that good night. This band of fools reflected on a world without musical, political satire, and didn’t like what they saw. And just like that the Capitol Fools were born. While foolish enough to embark on this new journey, they were smart enough to not reinvent the wheel. Fast-paced, laugh out loud show…check. Equal opportunity offenders…check. Skewering both sides of the aisle…check. If a “Steps-style show” is wrong, they don’t want to be right. The Capitol Fools hold up a mirror to our crazy political culture, providing hilarious song parodies and foolish reflections that continue to inspire belly-laughter. Audiences will continue to see cast members from past seasons of the Capitol Steps performing all the beloved bits, the mind-boggling backward talking spoonerisms, break-neck costume changes, over-the-top impressions, and all-new song parodies reflecting the day’s news. They will give you a memory that will last a lunch time. The spirit, irreverence and D.N.A. of the Capitol Steps lives on with the Capitol Fools!

Internet pioneer, business expert, and best-selling author of five books, Tim Sanders advises Fortune 500 executives on leadership, marketing, and new media strategies to grow their business. Building on his belief that that happy employees and satisfied customers drive business, he focuses on how to build relationships with knowledge, networking, and compassion. Tim is one of the top-rated keynote speakers on the speaking and lecture circuits due to his expertise, passionate delivery, and extensive pre-event preparation process. His highly-customized speeches on leadership development, sales success and collaboration deliver take away value for audience members as well as reinforcing event themes.

John Wood is the founder and board chair of Room to Read. He started Room to Read after a fast-paced and distinguished career with Microsoft from 1991 to 1999. John continues to bring Room to Read a vision for a scalable solution to developing global educational problems with an intense focus on results and an ability to attract a world-class group of employees, volunteers, and funders. Today, John focuses full-time on long-term strategy, capital acquisition, public speaking, and media opportunities for the organization. John also teaches at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and New York University’s Stern School of Business and serves on the Advisory Board of the Clinton Global Initiative.

Molly Bloom is an inspirational keynote speaker, entrepreneur, and bestselling author of Molly’s Game. She is best known for her memoir, Molly’s Game, which was adapted into an award-winning film of the same name by Aaron Sorkin. Bloom’s memoir chronicles her journey from college student to LA waitress to building and operating the largest and most notorious private poker game in the world. Her games featured hundreds of millions of dollars and players like Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, A-Rod, and Ben Affleck. Bloom began her career as a world-class skier. While training as a pre-teen she was diagnosed with severe scoliosis and had to undergo surgery that the doctors said would end her athletic career. A year later, fully recovered, she was back on the slopes. She later joined the U.S. Ski Team and at 21 years old was ranked No. 3 in North America in moguls, but her Olympic dreams would go unrealized as she left the team to pursue other projects. This led her to what she thought would be a year sabbatical in LA. Bloom was finishing her degree in Political Science from the University of Colorado – Boulder, and was in the process of applying to top tier Law Schools, when her assistant job turned her into an accidental entrepreneur, running one of the most exclusive, high-stakes underground poker games in the world, pulling in as much as $4 million per year. What happened next is where her story truly begins. The film Molly’s Game, written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, stars Jessica Chastain (as Molly), Idris Elba, Kevin Costner, Michael Cera, Brian d’Arcy James, and Chris O’Dowd. Bloom has appeared on numerous shows and in media outlets such as Ellen, Vice, The Los Angeles Times, NPR, Vulture, and has been asked to speak at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women, for companies like Blackrock Financial, SiriusXM Radio, and will deliver the 2018 commencement speech at Colorado State University. Bloom is now focused on building WeWork for female entrepreneurs. For years