No matter what you is your profession, everybody wants to be successful.

“Success is the realization of your goal.” ~ Robin

Robin Sieger

Originally from Scotland, he studied science at the University of Glasgow before going on to fulfill a childhood ambition by becoming a successful comedian, appearing regularly on radio and having his own television show. In 1986, at the age of 29, he was diagnosed with cancer. In what is best described as a wake up call, he began to realize that success is not a matter of luck, but of design. Since then he has spent the last twenty years researching and continues to study the principles behind true success.

Robin set up his first company, with the sole aim of teaching people to develop themselves and reach their full potential. He firmly believes that organisational culture is a reflection of what people believe about themselves and
the company they work for.

Robin is the author of the international best seller Natural Born Winners (Random House), which is sold in over 70 countries, translated into 12 languages, and also turned into a No 1 rated television series for Scottish Television. Robin’s second book, You Can Change Your Life Any Time You Want, examines the impact of how we think on our success. His third book 42 Days to Wealth Health and Happiness, was published in January 2006 and had its first reprint after 10 days, and topped Amazon.com’s best seller list.

“This decade is going to be the most exciting in human history.”
~ Ross Dawson

About Ross Dawson:

Ross Dawson is globally recognized as a leading futurist, entrepreneur, keynote speaker, strategy advisor, and bestselling author.

He is Founding Chairman of four companies: international consulting and ventures firm Advanced Human Technologies, futures think-tank Future Exploration Network, leading events company The Insight Exchange, and online start-up Repyoot.

Strong demand for Ross’s expertise has seen him deliver keynote speeches across six continents and consult to leading organizations worldwide such as Ernst & Young, Macquarie Bank, Microsoft, News Corporation, Procter & Gamble and many others.

He is author of the Amazon.com bestseller Developing Knowledge-Based Client Relationships, now out in its second edition, the acclaimed book Living Networks, which foresaw the social networking revolution, and the highly successful Implementing Enterprise 2.0. He also writes the highly influential Trends in the Living Networks blog, has written White Papers for organizations including SAP and Microsoft, and has published over 100 articles in leading publications worldwide.

Ross’s frequent media appearances include CNN, Bloomberg TV, SkyNews, European Business Network, Channel News Asia, ABC TV, Today and Sunrise shows, New York Times, The Guardian and many others. Ross was recently named by Digital Media magazine as one of the 40 biggest players in Australia’s digital age.

Contact us at info@speakersconnect.com to engage Ross to inspire you about the future at your next event.

Asia’s leading futurist, Mike Walsh, shares his insights on the one most crucial factor of the future social media, in his recent blog post, The Social Side of Trust :

Getting a little help from your friends was easy enough for Lennon and McCartney, but in an age of Google Circles, Facebook lists and Twitter followers – it is far from clear what friendship actually means. Worse still, marketers are muddying the waters. Brands used to want to brainwash us – now they want to be our friends. But consider this for a moment. What if social marketing was not about getting your customers to like you on Facebook but rather fixing a much bigger problem? Namely, trust.

I grew up in a retail family. My old man used to manage department stores and when I was a kid, one of his favourite ‘father and son’ activities was to take me around the store and check whether the products that had been advertised in the newspaper that day were actually in stock. Perhaps it was his very Irish way of giving his nine year old a home-made MBA. Anyway – one Saturday morning, I remember him pointing out one of displays and asking me whether I knew why there were so many mirrors on the walls? I shook my head, puzzled. ‘When people see themselves’ he explained with a wry smile, ‘they are less likely to steal things’.

Like it or not – ‘being seen’ – is one of the strange, uncredited forces that keeps civil society in balance. There are a lot of things that people would do if they thought no one else would see them doing it. And in rare moments, like the London riots in 2011 – you get a glimpse of just what those things might actually be. But ironically – the very social platforms that have been behind so much revolution and unrest in recent times, also have the potential to improve the way that your customers behave online. And it couldn’t come a moment too soon.

The Web has changed – and in some ways, not for the better. When was the last time you tried to buy or sell something on eBay? What was once a friendly community of amateurs and garage sale enthusiasts now feels to me like an unruly mob of fraudsters, identity thieves and shady offshore merchants. When I recently tried to sell a camera – my advertisement was deleted halfway through an auction. A terse email informed me that my listing was considered potentially fraudelent, and when I re-listed the item and it finally sold – the transaction was voided one final time – because the seller was apparently a fake. Hardly the model of friction-free commerce.

Some argue that new sharing models of commerce will change everything. After all, isn’t the popularity of new platforms to share your home, your car, and other posessions indicative of a more responsible online community? Perhaps, but potentially not for long. In my view, like eBay, once digital platforms become mainstream, it is inevitable that the community spirit forged by early adopters becomes tainted by the actions of a few willing to abuse the system.

One solution may be finding better ways to use the social graph to make your customer’s networks more transparent. Already, to defeat spammers, many websites require you to login with Facebook before you add your comments to an article. If you connect AirBNB with Facebook, you can see which property owners have common friends with you. Co-working space provider, Loose Cubes, offers a similar feature. Picking an office where friends of yours have worked before helps customers choose between the listings and also provides the owner with a sense of who they are. However, these integrations are only the beginning of what might be possible when you start to combine data with smart consumer pyschology.

The strategy of making your customer networks transparent is not just limited to the digital world. When Grameen bank makes a micro loan, they hold the borrower responsible not only for their debt, but the repayment actions of those in their lending circle. You can see how this logic can be taken a step further ont he Web. Imagine if AirBNB allowed householders to only rent their places to people within one or two degrees of friendship from their network? And when someone did make a booking, the system showed you the pictures of their common friends so that you knew who you would have to answer to should something go wrong. It would be like catching a glimpse of yourself in a store mirror, just when you were thinking of shoplifting.

True – there is something slightly distateful about this. No one likes to be reminded that we live in public. And rightly or wrongly, many still believe that the Internet is some kind of protected space from the rest of society where different rules might apply. That’s a delusion. Consumers may want to be Mark Zuckerberg by day and Julian Assange by night, but you can’t have it both ways. Either you are connected and you take responsibility for your actions, or you are anonymous, cut-off and on the run.

As social media matures, consumers will discover that their networks, recommendations and behaviour will become a passport as valuable, if not more relevant, than their credit rating. And for business, reaching such an agreement with their customers will be equally essential – literally, a new social contract. Without it, increasing levels of fraud, spam, and abuse will cripple the new economy.

So the next time your marketing manager tells you proudly how many new fans you have on Facebook, ask them to think about the more interesting question. How can you leverage social networks to better shape your customers’ behavior?

Contact us today if you would like engage Mike to speak at your upcoming conference to inspire you about the future.

Steve Wozniak

A Silicon Valley icon and philanthropist for the past three decades, Steve Wozniak (Woz) helped shape the computing industry with his design of Apple’s first line of products the Apple I and II and influenced the popular Macintosh. For his achievements at Apple Computer, Steve was awarded the National Medal of Technology by the President of the United States in 1985, the highest honor bestowed on America’s leading innovators.

In 2000, Steve was inducted into the Inventors Hall of Fame and was awarded the prestigious Heinz Award for Technology, The Economy and Employment for “single-handedly designing the first personal computer and for then redirecting his lifelong passion for mathematics and electronics toward lighting the fires of excitement for education in grade school students and their teachers.”

Contact us at Speakers Connect should you are interested in engaging Woz to speak at your next event in Asia / China.

Pankaj Ghemawat is one of the new generation management gurus who throws new light on corporate behaviour and particularly its global aspect. He is currently Professor of Global Strategy at the IESE Business School which is ranked as one of the top 3 business schools in Europe and also writes a blog on global strategy, ‘What in the World’ for Harvard Business Online. He has written several award winning publications on Business Strategy including the bestseller ‘Redefining Global Strategy’.

Professor Ghemawat earned his PhD in Business Economics from Harvard University. He then worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company in London before joining the Harvard Business School in 1983. In 1991, he was appointed the youngest professor in HBS’s history and in 2006 he joined IESE. In October 2008 he was appointed Fellow of the Strategic Management Society (SMS). He has received numerous awards including the 2008 Irwin Outstanding Educator Award from the Academy of Management, the first European Business School Professor to receive this award.

Pankaj Ghemawat challenges current thinking on globalisation and explains to audiences his controversial theory as to why he believes ‘the world is not flat’ and why we are living in an era of ‘semi-globalisation’. By basing his research on real-world case studies and with a mastery of economic data, Prof. Ghemawat offers CEOs and business leaders refreshing and effective strategies for sustained business development in today’s volatile economic climate.

Contact us today at Speakers Connect to engage Prof Ghemawat to inspire you on the global trends and strategy.

Do you want to live forever? | Trends in the Living Networks

rossdawsonblog.com2/3/12

Ross Dawson, February 3, 2012 at 11:57 am. For any student of potential disruptive technological advances, life extension inevitably looms as one that could completely change the condition of humanity. While there is heated debate about …

Facebook’s IPO and its plans for China and global domination …

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Ross Dawson, February 2, 2012 at 8:34 pm. Yesterday I was interviewed by Radio Australia in a piece titled Facebook IPO filing reveals China plans. Their website includes a podcast and transcript of the segment. Below are the parts where I …

The future of radio will be a personal mosaic of global and local …

rossdawsonblog.com2/2/12

Ross Dawson, February 2, 2012 at 10:32 pm. On Tuesday I was interviewed as part of a 30 minute panel discussion on ABC Queensland on the future of radio. The podcast of the program is here. It was a wide ranging discussion, and we …

The headache (and opportunity) of managing your company’s online …

rossdawsonblog.com1/30/12

“Reputations are more visible – and more vulnerable – than ever before,” says futurist Ross Dawson, who cites reputation as one of the key themes for 2012. So what can you do to ensure that your organisation is remembered …

Dominant themes for 2012: transformation and beyond | Trends in …

rossdawsonblog.com1/16/12

Dominant themes for 2012: transformation and beyond. Ross Dawson, January 16, 2012 at 10:59 am. In December I created a list of 12 themes to frame the year ahead, and then explored the ideas in a number of media interviews. The slides …

Ross Dawson

Ross Dawson is globally recognized as a leading futurist, entrepreneur, keynote speaker, strategy advisor, and bestselling author.

He is Founding Chairman of four companies: international consulting and ventures firm Advanced Human Technologies, futures think-tank Future Exploration Network, leading events company The Insight Exchange, and online start-up Repyoot.

Strong demand for Ross’s expertise has seen him deliver keynote speeches across six continents and consult to leading organizations worldwide such as Ernst & Young, Macquarie Bank, Microsoft, News Corporation, Procter & Gamble and many others.

He is author of the Amazon.com bestseller Developing Knowledge-Based Client Relationships, now out in its second edition, the acclaimed book Living Networks, which foresaw the social networking revolution, and the highly successful Implementing Enterprise 2.0. He also writes the highly influential Trends in the Living Networks blog, has written White Papers for organizations including SAP and Microsoft, and has published over 100 articles in leading publications worldwide.

Ross’s frequent media appearances include CNN, Bloomberg TV, SkyNews, European Business Network, Channel News Asia, ABC TV, Today and Sunrise shows, New York Times, The Guardian and many others. Ross was recently named by Digital Media magazine as one of the 40 biggest players in Australia’s digital age.

Ross has run executive education programs and lectured at numerous academic institutions around the world, including the University of Virginia, Australian Graduate School of Management, Singapore Institute of Management and the Institute of Banking and Finance.

Previously Ross worked in senior positions in London, Tokyo and Sydney with organizations including Merrill Lynch, NCR and most recently Thomson Financial as Global Director – Capital Markets. He holds a B.Sc (Hons) from Bristol University and a Grad.Dip in Applied Finance from Macquarie University, and is certified as a Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). He has extensive international business experience, and speaks five languages.

Contact us at info@speakersconnect.com to engage Ross to inspire you about the future at your next event.

Peter Diamond

Peter Diamond was awarded the Nobel for his seminal work on search theory, the theory of the frictions and incentives involved in the process of matching. He is an Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, known for his analysis of U.S. Social Security policy and his work as an advisor to the Advisory Council on Social Security in the late 1980s and 1990s. It was announced at the end of 2010 that President Barack Obama was to renominate Peter to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors.

Peter Diamond earned a bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in mathematics from Yale University and received a Ph.D. at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After beginning his teaching career at the University of California, Berkeley, Diamond returned to the MIT faculty in 1966 and has remained at the Institute ever since. He was promoted to full professor in 1970, and was named Institute Professor — the highest honor awarded by MIT’s faculty and administration — in 1997. Among many other avenues of research he has pursued in his career, he helped develop studies from the late 1970s onward that examined the ways markets function over a period of time. In 2003, he served as president of the American Economic Association.

Widely considered a world expert on labour analysis and an incredibly distinguished economist, Peter Diamond has embraced the role of public citizen, conducting highly influential research over five decades on a remarkably diverse range of subjects. In addition to his presentations on market analysis, he offers tailored talks on topics such as public finance and taxation, Social Security, labor markets and behaviour economics. His invaluable presentations make him a highly sought-after speaker at prestigious events all over the globe.

An expert on pensions and taxation with an honest, transparent, and comprehensive approach, Peter Diamond expertly helps audiences understand the ways in which unemployment, job vacancies, and wages are affected by regulation and economic policy, bringing some welcome realism and decency to current issues.

‘Friend request’ to cut bank fees? | Bankrate.com

www.bankrate.com2/3/12

“If you introduced 20 friends, we might add 25 basis points to a saving account or offer free (person-to-person) transfers,” says Brett King, founder and chairman of MovenBank. While King does not dive into specifics of how …

Brett King: Who Needs a Bank Branch When You’ve Got a Mobile …

www.huffingtonpost.com2/2/12

Brett King. Author Bank 2.0, founder Movenbank. GET UPDATES FROM Brett King. Like. 13 … Simple and Movenbank are vying for the new definition of the ‘bank account.’ Telcos, like Rogers, are applying for banking licenses, and ISYS is …

Sevendotzero: Why are the banks looking backwards?

www.sevendotzero.com1/1/12

Sunday, 1 January 2012 … The move to contextual banking has been best summed up by Brett King of Movenbank – “Banking is now something you do, not somewhere you go”. This tenet underpins

World’s first everyday cardless bank to launch | Merchant Account …

electronicbankingoptions.com1/2/12

The launch of Movenbank was announced by its founder and chairman, Brett King, at the SIBOS Innotribe conference in Toronto last week. It is a completely new model of bank that will operate entirely online embracing mobile and social technology.

Contact us at Speakers Connect at info@speakersconnect.com or +852 21654126 if you would like to engage Brett for your next event, or viist us for more top-notch International Speakers from us.

Andrew Grant

Andrew Grant is the CEO of Tirian and creative designer of Tirian programs which are sold under license internationally. Andrew has worked on leadership and team development for top executive clients in multinational companies throughout the world for more than 15 years and is a recognized leader in the field.

Andrew has been in high demand as a keynote speaker and has shared the stage with top international speakers such as Stephen Covey, Jonas Ridderstrale and Bob Nelson. Andrew has been a keynote presenter and executive level facilitator in over 15 countries, and has successfully worked with over 30 different nationalities. He has presented at the global leadership conference for the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) & World Presidents’ Organization (WPO), where he ran several key sessions – including the opening keynote, and moderation of the inaugural merger meeting between YPO & WPO. The feedback received after the event was rated one of the highest ever achieved. Andrew has also been invited to speak on Leadership in the Middle East, presenting to over 2000 participants. Previously, as a lecturer in Education at the Central Philippines University, Andrew worked on breakthrough education projects across Asia. He has also worked pro bono with aid groups in El Salvador, Thailand and tribal India.

Contact us today to engage Andrew for your new event!

Ever since he spearheaded that first expedition, David has been one of the most famous and desired leadership coaches in the world. One of the reasons David has been so successfully is definitely due to his unique and engaging style of speaking and teaching. Unlike many other speakers, David is at least as concerned about how to teach adults according to their unique needs as he is focused on providing solutions to common problems and examples from his own incredible life. This approach to audience engagement and retention, a combination of analytics and good-humor, elevates every David Lim engagement well past your expectations for “just another” motivational speaker.

No matter the size of your audience, David can provide a powerful speaking experience for them. David has spoken professionally hundreds of times over the last decade, enthralling audiences as many as 12,000 attendees at a time. The content of David’s speeches are as diverse and eclectic as the man himself, covering everything from goal setting to separating facts from beliefs. To acquire David for a speaking engagement, email his representation at info@speakersconnect.com.