keynote

Setting Your Ideas Up To Win: Power, Influence, and What Actually Drives Change

Harvard Business Review article:
To Create Change, Leadership Is More Important Than Authority

You’ve been taught to believe that talent, intelligence and hard work are what really matter and that the best ideas naturally rise to the top. In reality, most ideas fail—not because they’re bad, but because they aren’t backed by the power and influence needed to overcome resistance and drive adoption.

In this keynote, Greg Satell, acclaimed author of acclaimed author of Cascades and Mapping Innovation, reveals why good ideas so often fail and how to get yours to break through. Drawing on decades of research and told through compelling stories and real-world examples—from political movements and scientific breakthroughs to corporate networks—he shows how change actually happens when hard power, soft power, and network power work together.

Audiences will learn how to identify the forces shaping adoption, understand why persuasion alone is rarely enough, and design conditions that allow ideas to build momentum and spread. Rather than pushing harder or talking louder, leaders will leave with a clearer understanding of how to set their ideas up to win—by aligning authority, legitimacy, and networks to drive lasting change.

What People Are Saying About Greg Satell

"Greg Satell was the keynote speaker at IACMI-The Composites Institute's bi-annual members meeting, which attracts more than 300 participants in the innovative advanced composites manufacturing ecosystem. Our attendees enthusiastically connected with Greg and openly engaged in the discussion he led on integrating innovation into their workspaces and products. His participation and best practice input on realizing the potential of innovation were highlights of our event."

"Mendix had the opportunity to host Greg as our keynote speaker at an event about enabling innovation. I have regular discussions with business and IT leaders who are challenged to use technology to stay competitive in their industry and generate revenue. The insights that Greg shared from interviews he's had with impactful business innovators sparked thoughtful discussion. It was an inspiring and thought-provoking discussion that I'd highly recommend."

"Greg is a superb blend of integrity, creativity and professionalism."

"We've been searching for that "magic formula" for bringing members back to our associations. Of course, there isn't one, but Mr. Satell gave us a valuable perspective and a framework for employing it as bar associations adapt to important changes in the legal profession. We would not otherwise have gotten this perspective on transformational change from within our industry. Just as he's done in writing for HBR, Forbes, and other publications, he brought fresh eyes and a clear voice as a great plenary speaker for the National Association of Bar Executives (NABE)."

"Greg Satell transitioned our strategic plan from a document to a movement. He helped us clarify our vision and empowered and engaged our college in owning and implementing it."

"He helped us start a movement to change an entire industry for the better. We will bury mediocrity."

"We decided to start our own movement and has some great early success but how would we get it to sustain? Greg showed us, in practical steps, how to do just that!"

"The Women Director’s Association in Panama invited Greg Satell to speak for an audience of over 350 business leaders from the most prestigious companies in our country. Greg delivered an extraordinarily compelling exploration of how to succeed in driving change. Through storytelling and data, his key messages were clear, memorable and applicable. The question and answer period was enriched with abundant audience participation. We are so thankful to Greg for visiting our country and sharing his passion for positive change with us!"

"Many speak about systemic change, but few have studied and lived it like Greg Satell. Greg shared his perspectives on "The Physics of Change" just before our conclusion at TWIN Impact 2022. With leaders from 30 countries joining in-person and virtually from around the world, Satell delivered, big time. Inspirational, rigorous, actionable, motivating."

"Tasked with navigating a way through a year-long stalled innovation initiative – made complex by a blend of merged and acquired teams – Greg Satell taught me to find the shared intentions within the organization and progress from there."

"Greg's Innovation framework was instrumental in the success of our Leadership Conference. We needed a clear, simple methodology for Innovation to help with an interactive and experiential learning exercise. Greg's expertise and framework delivered even beyond the expectations of a successful conference as some of the outputs on innovation are being turned into reality as we speak."

"His concepts are powerful, pragmatic and quickly adaptable to any effort that's looking to build power, change hearts and minds, and get stuff done.

"Greg was one of the Keynote speakers at our annual SEMPL conference in Slovenia. He is a true expert on innovation and trends. Not only did he deliver a strong keynote, he went the extra mile to do a special "VIP" and breakout session."

"Greg superbly delivered an engaging speech that engaged (and challenged) us all to think deeper, harder and smarter about what it takes to be a great innovator in the 21st century. We look forward to collaborating with Greg again!"

"It was great having Greg speak at our Innovation Challenge event in September 2018. Through the stories and perspective you shared you helped the attendees realize how innovation can be applied to the work they do in healthcare and taking care of patients. He also spent the time to sign books one-by-one with each of our guests. It was valuable and very appreciated!"

"We were delighted to have Greg present at the inaugural US Innovation Leadership Circle. His talk was an excellent blend of thorough research and engaging presentation. His points of view were expressed authoritatively and then backed up with pragmatic, practical steps that leaders can take to increase their chances of innovation success. Everyone took away an idea, action or insight."

"Greg provided interesting insights to frame ways of thinking about innovation. He was eager to learn about the significant role community colleges play in society and incorporate this learning into his ongoing work and research."

"I would like to thank you for the Strategic Alignment Workshop you led for the Havas Media North America leadership team. They found your experience and perspectives very valuable and especially liked your message about small groups, loosely connected and united by shared content. This is a great way to emphasize the power of networking and social media."

"Greg was a guest speaker for our customer meeting. His session set the tone for the participants to understand what Innovation is really about. His focus on framing the right grand challenge makes for a compelling proposition for any company to succeed with their innovation program"

"It was a privilege for us was to host Greg as keynote speaker for our Xnovate event. Greg gave us incredibly beautiful insights and examples about how great innovators do things differently. Even better, Greg also took the time to interact with our executives and attendees off the stage and sit down for media interviews. Greg was the highlight of our event!"

"We had the pleasure of hosting Greg for the Falak Unreasonable Thinking Summit here in Bahrain. This is a two-day summit on innovation, disruption and "unreasonable thinking". Not only was Greg's talk very educational and informative, but he delivered it in a captivating and entertaining style that kept the audience completely engaged. I highly recommend Greg and would gladly work with him again."

"Greg's keynote at the Kuwait Agile Transformation Conference was remarkable. His insightful perspectives and engaging delivery captivated our audience, sparking meaningful discussions and a deeper understanding of transformations. His expertise illuminated the subject of change, particularly energizing and empowering individuals to assume a change agent role. Greg's speaking and facilitation was a critical factor in the event's success, leaving a lasting impact on all attendees. I would be fortunate to have him as a speaker at any event."

"Greg ran a workshop for executives in the MS Technology Management Program at Columbia University, for the course I am teaching on Strategic Advocacy. Students loved the session, where Greg quickly and clearly demonstrated, including the class' hands-on participation, how the same theories enabling transformational social and political movements to take hold are relevant to leaders seeking to transform any enterprise. He brings a fresh, out of the box perspective on a topic sorely in need of rethinking — how to create positive change at scale."

"Our aim was to establish an outside-in focus and transformational mindset for our leadership team planning summit. Greg delivered that with compelling stories, practical examples and useful models that the team was able to apply throughout the entire session. He spent prep time tailoring his content to the objectives of our summit, which resulted in his session folding seamlessly into the remaining sessions of the summit."

"I really enjoyed Greg's energy and perspective on innovation and its intersection with Generative Artificial Intelligence at the Texas Tech AI Summit. He lights up a room."

"Based on his research, experience, and interactions with many organizations, Greg Satell shared his thoughts and practical recommendations for overcoming the resistance, “de-risking” the innovation, leading to broader adoption of the Innovation mindset across the Enterprise. Practical examples and techniques shared by Greg in this engaging presentation were well received by a large and diverse Maximus audience. We are grateful to Greg Satell for sharing his valuable experience and strategies for de-risking innovation with our team. Thank you, Greg Satell!"

keynote

Setting Your Ideas Up To Win: Power, Influence, and What Actually Drives Change

What People Are Saying About Greg Satell

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