keynote presenters

michael jones
Moments of Illumination: An Evening of Music, Story and Reflection

Michael Jones is an established speaker and creative facilitator, an accomplished improvisational pianist and composer, an evocative storyteller and a thoughtful writer and communicator. He is a fresh and gifted voice in weaving together metaphors from the arts to introduce new perspectives for sustainable leadership in a time of increasing complexity and accelerated change. Michael has more than 30 years of experience as a leadership educator and consultant, including many years as a senior associate with the MIT Dialogue Project and Dialogs, the Center for Professional Excellence (College of Business, University of Texas), the James McGregor Burns Academy of Leadership (School of Public Policy, University of Maryland) and the Society for Organizational Learning.

He has written numerous essays on leadership, dialog and creativity in addition to two books: Creating an Imaginative Life (Conari, 1995) (Pianoscapes, 2006) winner of the Body, Mind and Spirit Magazine Books to Live By Award of Excellence (1996) and Artful Leadership, Awakening the Commons of the Imagination (Pianoscapes, 2006).

At mid-career, Michael took time out from his leadership consulting and teaching practice to record "Pianoscapes," which went on to be Narada Record's best selling recording and to serve as a benchmark for the popular emerging genre of contemporary instrumental music. Michael produced 15 more recordings of his original piano compositions and has sold more than two million units, serving to establish him as one of the most influential pianists of our time

Michael has a B.A. in music and the behavioral sciences from Mount Allison University and an M.A. in adult learning from the University of Toronto.

andy stefanovich in charge of what's next
founder of play
Bringing inspiration and creativity to your business.

Andy has earned a reputation as one of the most disruptive and effective advisors in business. In 1990, Andy co-founded Play, the creative consultancy headquartered in Richmond, VA, that changes the way business does business. Play has become widely respected as a pioneering group of experts and a thought leader in the space of creativity and innovation.

With an infectious passion and energy, he guides audiences through the powerful evolution from inspiration to creativity to innovation. Andy brings life to a room and gets people to their feet in a way that very few speakers or consultants can. In addition to being an accomplished speaker, Andy serves as a lead consultant for clients, leadership advisor, and blue-sky thinker.

Andy served as a visiting professor for University of Virginia's Darden Business School, the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business and the University of Richmond's Robins School of Business. A zealous, vibrant and passionate businessperson and community member, he has committed his life to making business a lot more interesting and vastly more creative.

Of Note:

Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth Global Leadership 2020, Program leader
C3 Center for Creative Change, Founder and current Board Member
Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, current Board Member
Embassy Suites Board of Creative Directors, Board Member
Ernst & Young's "Entrepreneur of the Year" Award, 1999
Kaos Pilots, Danish Business School Advisor

jeremy gutsche
Unlocking Cool

Jeremy Gutsche is an innovation expert, a maverick speaker and the founder of the TrendHunter.com, the world's largest network for trend spotting and innovation.

As a Director at Capital One, Jeremy leads innovation and the company's Upmarket business (rewards, low-rate cards, line of credit). His team studies how to methodically approach customer focused innovation. His development of an innovation pipeline fueled his team to build a billion dollar portfolio of market leading low rate and reward products.

Prior to Trend Hunter and Capital one, Jeremy spent the majority of his career as a Management Consultant at the Monitor Group. There he advised top-level strategy to Fortune 50 clients and government clients with a focus on scenario planning, creative innovation and the assessment of new ventures.

Jeremy holds an MBA from Queen's University and graduated as a Chancellor Scholar with a Bachelors in Finance from the University of Calgary. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and a lifelong student of marketing, psychology and strategy. Most recently, he studied Customer Focused Innovation at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and d.School. He loves to teach and enjoys leading workshops in: competitive strategy, creativity and innovation.

masters of ceremonies

TBA

spotlight presenters

susan davis
Environmental Programs Director for the Coca-Cola Beijing

Susan Davis is the Environmental Programs Director for the Coca-Cola Beijing 2008 Olympic Project Group. In this unique partnership, CARE is loaning Susan for one year, 8/07 through 8/08 to develop and manage Coca-Cola's environmental programs in support of the Beijing Olympic sponsorship. She coordinates with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on a Coca-Cola-funded water access program for rural communities in China. Furthermore, she manages a cross-functional team to implement the Environmental Program initiatives. She also supports marketing and communications efforts related to Environmental Programs.

Susan is also the National Water Strategist for CARE, one of the world's leading humanitarian organizations fighting global poverty. She liaises with CARE’s Water Team, several other departments within CARE, and external partners to greatly increase the resources brought in for water and sanitation programs. She has visited and evaluated water and other projects in Bangladesh, China, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, India, Kenya, Nicaragua, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

Prior to CARE, Susan helped to grow WaterPartners International (1999-2003), an international relief organization that focuses on high-quality water and sanitation interventions in developing countries.

Before entering the international development field, Susan was an environmental consultant.

Susan is also active in community service. She was named 2007 Outstanding Young Alumna by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association; she was also a trustee and chair of its Women’s Advisory Committee (2004-2007). She was a founding board member for World in Need NOW, a nonprofit organization raising awareness and funds for high quality development programs in Latin America

She graduated from Georgia Tech with a B.S. in Applied Biology and earned a Masters in Public Health at The George Washington University. She is a member of Delta Omega, the national public health honor society and a Fellow in the British American Project. Her claim to fame: being the first woman to perform as the Buzz mascot at Georgia Tech.

barry johnson
Tapping Our Gift of Polarities: For Families, Organizations, Nations and Planet

In his 30 years as an organization development and leadership development consultant, Barry Johnson has shared the “gift of polarities” with tens of thousands of individuals and hundreds of organizations around the world. His authorship of the Polarity Management™ approach, founding of Polarity Management Associates and his enthusiasm and passion have created a world-wide learning and practice community. Barry’s own evolution and learning have meant that his model and its applications are growing, too, and he has included enhancements from people who have been inspired by Barry’s ideas, approaches and applications. Barry not only acknowledges but also emphasizes that Polarity Management™ is the deliberate tapping of wisdom found in human culture for thousands of years. Bringing this wisdom into conscious, active use for the advantage of all people has been Barry’s mission, as represented by Polarity Management Associates’ theme, “Enhancing our quality of life on the planet by supplementing the way we think.”

Barry’s clients include some of the world’s largest businesses and industries; educational organizations and universities; government agencies in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, South Africa and the United Nations. Countless leaders, consultants and individual users have participated in Polarity Management Associates’ courses and presentations. His 1992 book, Polarity Management: Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems (Human Resource Development Press) is in wide use in businesses and community organizations. Barry has written several articles relating Polarity Management™ to a variety of issues, and his work has been highlighted in several other business books and articles. His latest book, with Roy Oswald, Thriving Congregations Manage Eight Polarities Well, applies Polarity Management to the lives of Christian faith communities. He is also working on Our Gift of Polarities, for Families, Organizations, and Nations due to be published in the near future.

In addition to his Ph.D. in organization development from International College, Barry has organization and system development training from the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland and has devoted great amounts of his time to community activism, community building and trust building in organizations. He is devoted to his family, an avid outdoorsman and intrepid traveler, and brings head and heart together in his presentations, teaching and consulting. Barry and his wife, Dana, have 5 children and 11 grandchildren.

denise e. knight
The Coca-Cola Company Atlanta, GA

Denise Knight is Manager of Global Water Partnerships for The Coca-Cola Company, based in Atlanta, Georgia. Her responsibilities include creating strategic alliances and partnerships with governments, industry, non-governmental and development organizations to help address local water challenges. She manages the Community Water Partnership (CWP) program which catalyzed Coca-Cola’s portfolio of over 120 community-based water projects in 50 countries. Projects include initiatives such as restoration of old water bodies and rainwater harvesting in India, safe water systems in partnership with CARE in Kenya, and water/health/ livelihoods in partnership with USAID in Mali. Denise provides strategic support for international partnerships, including the public-private Water and Development Alliance partnership with USAID, Coca-Cola's partnership with the UN Foundation and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) for tsunami reconstruction efforts in Asia, the Global Water Challenge, and the UN CEO Water Mandate.

Denise has a diverse background and set of skills in water and energy fields, having worked in both the corporate business environment and the non-profit, non-governmental sector, in the US and abroad.

Prior to her engagement with Coca-Cola, Denise was Managing Director of the International Institute for Energy Conservation (IIEC), responsible for finance, operations, and international program management to foster the implementation of energy efficiency and sustainable development in developing countries. Ms. Knight joined IIEC in 1998 in Thailand, from where she established offices in China and India and led market development initiatives which resulted in growth opportunities for US, European, and local manufacturers of energy efficient products.

Ms. Knight holds a BA. in International Affairs and Economics and an M.S. in Economics from Texas Christian University, in Fort Worth, Texas.

dimis michaelides
The Art of Innovation: Integrating Creativity in Organizations

Dimis combines his unique experience as a business executive and creativity leader with his talents as a speaker and magician to inspire people in organizations around the world.

Having held chief and senior executive positions in the World Bank, Zeneca, the Council of Europe Development Bank and the Popular Bank Group, in insurance, banking, chemicals, marketing, finance and general management, Dimis has come to the conclusion that companies must innovate or die. In his work he demonstrates engagingly how uncreative entities can become creative, how creative entities can become more so, and how creativity improves both business performance and happiness at work. Through his company Performa Consulting, Dimis helps organizations confront change creatively and even thrive in very difficult circumstances.

A graduate of the London Business School, the London School of Economics and the University of Sussex, Dimis has always used his love of art, history, magic and music to contribute fresh perspectives to the business world.

Dimis is the author of The Art of Innovation – Integrating Creativity in Organizations, a management art book, which has been hailed as the “Bible for 21st century CEOs” .

frank prince
Be Creative 24/7! 11 Key Strategies to Boost Your Creativity

Frank Prince, founder of Unleash Your Mind Consulting, conducts skill building within organizations in the areas of innovation, leadership and strategic planning. These skills transform an organization to a true "Idea Factory" that achieves bottom line results. Idea factories implement processes that create sustained innovation making them more and more successful over time. Frank is the author of over 30 books and articles in the field of creativity and innovation in business. He was recently selected to be featured in the first edition of the book Blueprint for Success, a highly successful book series. The book also features best selling authors Stephen Covey (Seven Habits of Highly Effective People) and Ken Blanchard (One Minute Manager). His clients include several Fortune 100 firms including Time Inc., Procter & Gamble, Perrier, PepsiCo and Nabisco. He serves as a Colleague and leader for the Creative Education Foundation and is a member of the National Guild of Hypnotists. Frank is a frequent keynote speaker around the world focusing on innovation techniques for individuals and organizations. He has delivered keynotes at conferences in South Africa, Turkey, Japan and throughout the United States and Europe.

immersion presenters

david magellan horth
The Art of Innovation : Integrating Creativity in Organizations

David is co-author of the award winning The Leaders' Edge: Six Creative Competencies for Navigating Complex Challenges and co-inventor of Visual Explorer™. David is a senior faculty member in The Center for Creative Leadership's Design Center. For several successive years, Business Week magazine has ranked the Center for Creative Leadership as number one for leadership development in its “Executive Education Special Report.” David specializes in study and practice at the confluence of creativity and leadership. His learning designs include "Leading Creatively" - an arts based leadership program and "Navigating Complex Challenges." and many other programs where leadership and creativity were the major themes. David loves to coach executives to help them expand their horizons. He is Chairman of the Creative Education Foundation's Board of Trustees. David describes himself as an artist in training. He is a musician and poet who uses these gifts to coach and develop others.

anthony hyatt
Leading Artfully

Anthony Hyatt is a violinist and multimedia performance artist from the Washington DC area whose interest is in the role and use of improvisation techniques in the creative process. He is a teacher for the Arts For the Aging organization under whose auspices he presents interactive programs of music and movement at senior citizen centers and for whom he co-directs the senior citizen improv dance company known as Quicksilver. His performance credits include solo work and multiple appearances as a member of the Naoko Maeshiba Performance Collective. Anthony has been part of the CPSI community since 1992 and is grateful for the enrichment it adds to his life. He does additional creativity work through his own organization which is called Moving Beauty.

natalie jenkins
Focus on Facilitation: de Bono Style

Natalie Jenkins, vice president of Innova Training & Consulting Inc., is an expert in de Bono Thinking Systems such as Six Thinking Hats© and Lateral Thinking. She dovetails her love for creativity and thinking by leading the national sales effort for Innova, the leading distributor for de Bono Thinking Systems worldwide. She closely collaborates with her clients, skillfully helping them develop innovative thinking training and skill development that are in alignment with her client's strategic goals.

She is certified in Six Thinking Hats©, Lateral Thinking, Focus on Facilitation, Direct Attention Thinking Tools (DATT), Simplicity and Six Value Medals.

barry johnson
Polarity Management™ : Pathway to Sustainable Innovation

beena sharma
Polarity Management™ : Pathway to Sustainable Innovation

Beena Sharma currently serves as Vice President of Learning and Performance at Magellan Health Services, the nation's number one Specialty Healthcare company. She brings with her significant experience in systemic change management, and facilitating leadership and organizational development. Beena has worked extensively in the area of developing creative thinking, having trained managers across business sectors, in the techniques of lateral thinking. Her passion also lies in designing and anchoring large scale change efforts using Real Time Strategic Change (RTSC) methodologies, and integrating skills development within the scope of change. Beena is a certified Action Learning Team Coach and has led several projects in Leadership Development using Action Reflection Learning (ARL) as an Associate and Learning Coach with LIM LLC. Her recent experience with designing and delivering system change and leadership development in partnership with the University of Notre Dame School of Executive Education for a branch of the US Navy resulted in the case being recognized by UNICON as among the most innovative in executive education. Beena also carries expertise in adult development, and is certified as a scorer of the MAP instrument, by Dr. Susanne Cook-Greuter. Beena has been using and teaching Polarity Management for the past seven years and is committed to develop coaches and consultants interested in incorporating the polarity perspective in diverse interventions and practices.

michael jones
Leading Artfully

Michael Jones has established himself as an inspired speaker and creative facilitator, an accomplished improvisational pianist and composer, an evocative storyteller and a thoughtful writer and communicator. He is a fresh and gifted voice in weaving together metaphors from the arts to introduce new perspectives for sustainable leadership in a time of increasing complexity and accelerated change.

Michael has more than 30 years of experience as a leadership educator and consultant, including many years as a senior associate with the MIT Dialogue Project and Dialogos, the Center for Professional Excellence (College of Business, University of Texas), the James McGregor Burns Academy of Leadership (School of Public Policy, University of Maryland) and the Society for Organizational Learning.

Michael has a B.A. in music and the behavioral sciences from Mount Allison University and an M.A. in adult learning from the University of Toronto.

w. cliff kayser
Polarity Management™: Pathway to Sustainable Innovation

Xperience® founder Cliff Kayser is an Organizational Development (OD) practitioner and Executive Coach with broad Human Resources (HR) management education and experience. For nearly a decade Cliff served both the Planning and Development Collaborative, International (international development) and The Washington Post Company (corporate, diversified media) in progressively responsible HR positions. Between 2002-2007, he was Senior Organization Development Consultant for The Washington Post (newspaper) and VP of OD and Training for The National Cooperative Bank (financial services). Recently, Cliff realized his dream of establishing a retreat facility in Berkeley Springs, WV and establishing his OD/HR/Coaching consulting practice in Washington, D.C. under the name Xperience, LLC®.

The Xperience® approach combines a safe environment with powerful tools and methods including values-based assessment and Polarity Management™, to help clients identify the best of what they want to retain from the past/present with what they want to attain in their preferred/hoped-for-future in ways that are sustainable. The results of a "return on experience" are increased alignment of individual and organization values, improved employee engagement and retention, balance among key success factors, and change-ability.

Cliff holds Master’s degrees in both Human Resources and Organization Development from American University and received a Certificate in Coaching from the Georgetown University Executive Leadership Coaching program. Cliff is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and an Associate of Polarity Management Associates.

dimis michaelides
The Art of Innovation: Integrating Creativity in Organizations

Dimis combines his unique experience as a business executive and creativity leader with his talents as a speaker and magician to inspire people in organizations around the world.

Dimis is the author of The Art of Innovation – Integrating Creativity in Organizations, a management art book, which has been hailed as the “Bible for 21st century CEOs” .

elizabeth monroe-cook
Polarity Management™: Pathway to Sustainable Innovation

Liz is a consulting psychologist in private practice. Starting with a doctorate in counseling psychology, she has enjoyed a rich variety of work experiences, from college counseling centers to a large advertising agency and even the administration of a major symphony orchestra. Most of her work has been as an independent practitioner, however, so the community of fellow consultants and her clients have been her best teachers. Her long-time interest in creativity was given shape through many years of attending the Creative Problem Solving Institute, completing the Facilitating Creative Leadership program and being a leader and presenter at CPSI. Now in her consulting, facilitation, training and coaching, Liz often blends the perspectives and tools of Creative Problem Solving, the MBTI® and Polarity Management™ to help clients with personal and professional growth, and with team and organizational effectiveness. She is a graduate of the Polarity Management Mastery Program and affiliated with Polarity Management Associates and is a Creative Education Foundation Colleague.

teri o'neill
Leading Artfully

Teri O’Neill is an artist, educator, author, and creativity coach. She is the director of T. R. O’Neill Productions which specializes in exhibitions, workshops, and seminars on creativity and design. Teri has a Masters of Art in Design, Colorado State University with a concentration in creativity and higher education. She has taught at Colorado State University, Arapahoe Community College, Naropa University, Working with Artists, and The Art Institute of Colorado.

Her photography has been exhibited nationally in museums, galleries and botanical gardens. She is in collection at the Denver Art Museum, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Jackson Hole Wildlife Museum, Kaiser Corporation, Colorado Women’s College at the University of Denver, and many corporate collections. Teri’s work has appeared in national and regional publications of books, magazines and newspapers throughout the United States and Europe.

john thompson

The Theory of Constraints Tools

John L Thompson is Chairman of the Theory of Constraints International Certification Organization (TOCICO) Board, and one of the world’s leading experts in the Theory of Constraints (TOC). John began practicing TOC in 1988, while working in the Forest Industry in South Africa.

Following the success achieved using the Theory of Constraints (TOC) methodology in Forestry, and by invitation of Dr. Eli Goldratt, John moved to the United States in 1995 where he taught and implemented all the Theory of Constraints application courses at the Goldratt Institute in New Haven, CT until 2000.

Since 2000, John has worked as an independent TOC practitioner, operating through his company Global Focus LLC.

Drawing upon his corporate and logistics background, John has implemented the unique TOC solutions in logistics, strategy, market segmentation and sales. He has led dozens of companies though the application of TOC, in industries as diverse as aerospace, electronic stock trading and steel fabrication and in such places as the US, South Africa, Ukraine, England and China all with successful process and operational improvements.

A South African native, John's early educational qualifications include a Bachelor of Science in Forest Engineering Technology and a Bachelor of Science Honors from the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa. John's early passion for forestry continued with his service as a moderator for Forest Engineering at the Saasveld Forestry College, S.A. and as a Board member of Forest Engineering of South Africa (FESA).

John currently teaches all the TOC applications (Thinking Process, Production, Distribution, Project Management, TOC Accounting, Sales and Market Segmentation), facilitates and oversees major TOC implementation projects for companies with results ranging from doubling sales while significantly increasing Net Profit through to shortening lead times, lowering inventory and increasing on-time delivery.

mary ellyn vicksta
Focus on Facilitation: de Bono Style

Mary Ellyn Vicksta has spent the last 26 years at Kimberly-Clark in the areas of product development, marketing research, creativity/Creative Problem Solving and learning & development. Currently, she supports creativity by exploring and applying effective practices in these areas. She facilitates frequently and provides training and specialized workshops in various aspects of creativity, diverse thinking styles, innovation practices and enhancing associated facilitation skills. She serves as an internal consultant to the various facilitators and project teams within Kimberly-Clark, providing advice on innovation and creativity.

Mary Ellyn is certified in deBono’s Lateral Thinking, Six Thinking Hats®, and Focus on Facilitation. Mary Ellyn has explored various personality assessments and their impact on creative thinking and diversity of thinking. In her spare time, she is an avid photographer and has spent the last few years exploring creative expression with her images.

pre-conference presenters

eilleen doyle
Zero to Participate (Z2P)

Eileen Doyle is president of Deeper Dives; a qualitative market research firm that conducts focus groups, taste tests, naming studies and ideation sessions. Moderating specialties include consumer products, kids, travel, furnishings and pharmaceuticals. Her facilitation style includes creative problem solving, projective techniques, team building and laughter! Eileen is co-founder of the New England Creativity Group. She is a Certified Laughter Leader, Innovation Games facilitator, MBTI qualified and an international cat sitter.

bob eckert
Innovation Leadership

Bob is a Senior Partner at New & Improved, LLC. A sought after speaker, trainer, executive coach and facilitator who’s impacted tens of thousands at conferences and meetings around the world, he has a solid track record of satisfied clients in the areas of innovation, human resource development, leadership training and building high performance teams. The author of numerous articles and books, his most recent (co-authored with Jonathan Vehar) is “More Lightning, Less Thunder: How to Energize Innovation Teams” which details a path to increased personal creativity, emotional intelligence and team contribution. Bob is a lifetime member of the Creative Education Foundation and has been delighting participants at CPSI for the last 15 years.

As comfortable driving productive meetings in the boardroom as he is driving a tractor, Bob lives on his tree farm in the Adirondack mountains of Northern NY State.

bill olsen
Zero to Participate (Z2P)

Bill Olsen navigates teams, engineers meaningful change and “creates results”. Since 2001 he started his company, became a Certified Professional Facilitator (CPF), co-founded two networks, and had lots of fun. Olsen Innovations Inc provides “Facilitating, Training and Guided Team Building” and as he states; “Our mission is clear… to accelerate yours.” His clients have included government agencies, National non-profits, the Fortune 500, mom and pops, and scores of youth groups. In 2007 alone, his clients spanned four countries, including a Caribbean Prime Minister, Coca Cola Europe and Nokia’s Mexico plant. A CPSI presenter since 1996 and a Lifetime CEF Member, he’s been an award recipient for applied creativity from a Vice President, a Cabinet Secretary, a regional network, two corporations and the National Facilitator Data Base, where he’s consistently ranked in its “Top 20” facilitators. But mostly… he’s on a continual path of creativity, accelerating participants to meaningful change.

rosemary rein
Go Wild! Go Great! Creativity Safari -- Applying Creativity to Contemporary Leadership

Rosemary Rein, Ph.D is an International Author, Speaker and Training Consultant based in Costa Rica. She is the Author of Go Wild! Survival Skills for Business and Life and the Blueprint for Success with Stephen Covey and Ken Blanchard. Rosemary speaks internationally on Creativity, Problem Solving, Leadership and Team Building and is also the Founder of Costa Rica Learning Adventures and Safaris. Her expertise is getting business teams to think differently by getting them out of their "bored rooms" mixing adventure with learning. At her Learning Center in Costa Rica, Dr. Rein also hosts Personal Growth Safaris where she combines experiential learning activities in the rainforest linked to Personal Growth with a discovery of Costa Rica.

jonathan vehar
Innovation Leadership

Jonathan Vehar is a Senior Partner at New & Improved, an organizational development firm focused on the people skills for innovation. Organizations that have benefited from expertise include: Disney, GE, Johnson & Johnson, McDonalds, Pfizer, Texas Instruments, and the US government. Investor’s Business Daily calls Jonathan an “Innovation Guru,” he’s been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Road & Track, and Entrepreneur. He has written extensively about innovation and creative thinking and his latest book, co-authored with Bob Eckert is entitled, “More Lightning, Less Thunder: How to Energize Innovative Teams.” Jonathan is adjunct faculty at the International Center for Studies in Creativity (SUNY Buffalo State), the Federal Executive Institute, and Northwestern University. When not working, he can be found sailing, chasing after his dog, or taking walks with his wife, Susan Rossetti.

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