The author of The Starbucks Experience, Joseph Michelli discusses how successful organizations are able to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. Sharing lessons with corporate leaders about ownership, execution, and embracing resistance, Michelli offers a fresh look at how to create a culture of employee empowerment.

After graduating from Harvard Business School, Neil Pasricha spent a decade as Director of Leadership at Walmart, the world’s largest company. While there he wrote the 50-million-hit, award-winning blog 1000 Awesome Things and the New York Times bestsellers The Book of Awesome and The Happiness Equation which have been on international bestseller lists for over 200 weeks and sold over a million copies. Neil’s research and books on happiness, mindset, and human potential have received attention from Harvard Business Review, The New Yorker, The Sunday Times, CNN, and BBC. Onstage his style is an endangered species: an incredibly rare blend of raw, hilarious, and heartwarming. His high-energy, takeaway-laden, application-not-motivation speeches are often voted tops at any conference or event.

Rita Clifton is the former chief executive and Chairman of Interbrand, the world’s leading brand consultancy, and has been referred to as the “doyenne of branding” according to Campaign magazine and a “brand guru” according to the Financial Times. She vastly experienced and respected in the advertising industry, having worked at Saatchi & Saatchi for 12 years, becoming Vice Chairman and Executive Planning Director in 1995. She also joined Interbrand as Chief Executive in 1997, becoming chairman in 2002. Clifton speaks on leadership, corporate reputation, and communicating sustainably as well as all aspects of branding and marketing.

Dr. Gary Bradt is an author, clinical psychologist, leadership consultant, C-Suite executive coach. Challenging his audiences to become change leaders, Dr. Bradt shares timeless leadership principles that get results. Bradt encourages executives to move beyond the chaos of disruption, fear, and uncertainty that change often creates, and look for the golden ring of opportunity.

Jimmy Tingle has worked his way up the stand-up comedy ladder from open mics and street performer to commentator/humorist on “60 Minutes II” and commencement speaker at the Hallowed Halls of Harvard. He now stands among the top social and political humorists of his generation as he aspires to make audiences of all backgrounds and political persuasions see the humor in their daily lives.

Danny Vargas has created opportunities, overcome challenges, and beaten the odds all his life. As founder and president of VARCom Solutions, a D.C. area-based marketing and public relations firm, he has made a mark not only in business but in the community as well.

With a career devoted to understanding how humans make risk decisions, Andy Ellis is a seasoned technology executive with deep expertise in security. An advisor to several cyber security startups, including Orca, Vulcan, and Uptycs, he currently serves as an advisor at cyber security venture capital firm, YL Ventures. Ellis formerly served as the chief security officer of web and internet security company Akamai. In his 20 years with Akamai, he helped to design and bring to market several of the company’s core technologies behind its security solutions. Combining more than 20 years of security experience with insider anecdotes from his time serving as CSO, he explores how and why humans make risk choices and decisions – and their impact on security.

Susan Ershler tours the world sharing with others her secrets for success, determination, and achieving seemingly impossible goals. Susan is the fourth American Woman to climb the Seven Summits and the twelfth American Woman to climb Mt. Everest. When she got to the top of Mount Everest on May 16, 2002, she and her husband Phil became the first couple in history to climb the Seven Summits. Susan illustrates how she utilized her experience as a sales leader as the foundation to her training for climbing mountains.

Dr. Mark DeVolder tackles the thorny topics of Leadership, Diversity, Conflict, Change and Communication - and shows people how to work better together, motivating audiences to new levels of achievement.

Gen. Allen, the former Presidential Special Envoy to Counter ISIL and Ken Pollack, a former CIA official and senior fellow at the Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institute deliver a detailed presentation on the challenges in the Middle East and what it means for business in America. Their perspectives, a meld of military, diplomatic, intelligence, and policy points of view, allow them to deliver a uniquely well-rounded analysis that helps audiences breakdown the current environment and think about the short-, medium-, and long-term risks and rewards.

Robert Cardillo is the sixth Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). Mr. Cardillo leads and directs NGA under the authorities of the Secretary of Defense and Director of National Intelligence. He became NGA’s director on Oct. 3, 2014. Prior to this assignment, Mr. Cardillo served as the first Deputy Director for Intelligence Integration, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, from 2010 to 2014. In addition, he served as the Deputy Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the Deputy Director for Analysis, DIA, from 2006 to 2010. In the summer of 2009, Mr. Cardillo served as the Acting J2, a first for a civilian, in support of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Before he moved to DIA, Mr. Cardillo led Analysis and Production as well as Source Operations and Management at NGA from 2002 to 2006. Mr. Cardillo’s leadership assignments at NGA also included Congressional Affairs, Public Affairs, and Corporate Relations. Mr. Cardillo began his career with DIA in 1983 as an imagery analyst, and he was selected to the Senior Executive Service in 2000. Mr. Cardillo earned a Bachelor of Arts in Government from Cornell University in 1983 and a Master of Arts in National Security Studies from Georgetown University in 1988. Mr. Cardillo is the recipient of the Director of National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal, the Presidential Rank of Distinguished Executive, the Presidential Rank of Meritorious Executive, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Meritorious Civilian Service Award. Mr. Cardillo resides in Northern Virginia with his wife. They have three children and five grandchildren.

Richard Hadden is a Certified Speaking Professional with a focus on employee relations and creating a great place to work. He is the co-author of Contented Cows Give Better Milk: The Plain Truth About Employee Relations and Your Bottom Line.