I have spent well over 10,000 hours on stages. I studied theatre in college, acting in or directing hundreds of plays and musicals in my 20s. Then I got a gig teaching engineers how to better collaborate, drawing on lessons from improv! Nearly forty years and one PhD later, I’m still standing on stages and in university classrooms. I’m a professor of engineering and technology leadership at Purdue University. I’m also an author and speaker. My latest book, Biohacking Leadership: Leveraging the Biology of Behavior to Maximize Your Impact (Wiley) comes out July 16, 2025. I perform stand-up comedy occasionally, as the faculty advisor of the student-run Purdue Stand-Up Comedy Club. I’ve given keynotes and led workshops on stages all over the world. My Ted Talk on the Science of Prospection has been viewed more than 1.3 million times. The focus of all my work is on helping leaders manage the complexities of human and organizational performance. My audiences always walk away from my talks entertained, informed, and equipped with evidence-based, practice-proven insights and tools to achieve greater levels of human and organizational performance.
The following are some of the keynote topics I offer regularly, but I'm also happy to customize something specifically for your audience.
Biohacking Leadership: How to Leverage the Biology of Behavior to Maximize Your Impact
What if the key to effective leadership isn’t just mindset or strategy, but biology? In this engaging and science-backed keynote, I introduce a bold new way to think about leadership—one rooted in the biology of behavior. Drawing on neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and behavioral science, we explores how leaders can consciously signal warmth, competence, and gravitas to activate trust, alignment, and shared value. Participants will walk away with actionable tools to optimize their own leadership signals and unlock higher performance in themselves and their teams.
Virtuoso Performance: Getting From Band Camp to Carnegie Hall
What separates a competent performance from a truly virtuoso one? In this keynote, I draw on insights from world-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma, who penned the foreword to his book, Strategic Doing, and explores how the biology of behavior—our neural wiring, feedback loops, and social signaling—shapes the journey from the structured practice of "band camp" to the adaptive brilliance of Carnegie Hall. Learn how to cultivate mastery not just in what you do, but in how you connect, collaborate, and lead.
A Philosophy of Kindness: Leadership Lessons from "Mr. Rogers"
What if one of the most profound leadership philosophers of our time wore a cardigan and sang about neighbors? In this keynote, I explore the enduring wisdom of Fred Rogers, unpacking how his quiet philosophy of kindness aligns with the biology of behavior—activating neural pathways of trust, safety, and connection that are foundational to influence. Grounded in the "warmth, one of the three key behavioral changes in the Leadership Biodynamics model, this talk offers practical lessons for leaders who want to create environments where people thrive.
Strategic Doing: Move Fast. Stay Focused. Get the Real Work Done
In times of complexity and constraint, the work that matters most often slips through the cracks of traditional strategy. Strategic Doing offers a new discipline, one grounded in the biology of behavior and inspired by how ecosystems adapt and thrive. Its a strategy discipline that helps teams and networks collaborate quickly, stay aligned, and make measurable progress without waiting for perfect conditions. Whether you're leading innovation in a company, a university, or a community, this keynote shows how to turn conversations into action and shared aspirations into achievable outcomes.