HI, I'M HEATHER.

One of Forbes' Top Futurists, Heather E. McGowan brings fresh energy and actionable insights to the future of work. A sought-after strategist, keynote speaker, and 2x bestselling author, she equips organizations to navigate relentless change by activating their most critical resource: their people.

Heather’s audiences range from startups to publicly traded Fortune 500 companies, including Google, JPMorgan Chase, Mastercard, and Kaiser Permanente. Through data-driven insights and powerful visual frameworks, she helps leaders and teams transform their distinctly human capabilities—adaptability, empathy, and curiosity—into strategic advantages.

Often quoted in The New York Times, with Thomas Friedman calling her an "oasis" for her insights, Heather’s bestselling books include The Adaptation Advantage and The Empathy Advantage, which was named a Top 10 Business Book of 2023.

By teaching people to ask better questions, she enables them to adapt at the speed of possibility to Solve Tomorrow's Problems™.

Talk: Start with Trust: The Secret to High-Performing Leadership

Description

Tuesday, April 7, 8:45 AM

What separates teams that merely function from those that truly excel? The answer may surprise you: it's not strategy, talent, or technology. It's trust.

In this keynote, future-of-work strategist Heather E. McGowan draws unexpected leadership lessons from three iconic moments in American history — the building of the Interstate Highway System, the Apollo moon landing, and President Lincoln's legendary cabinet — each one a masterclass in what becomes possible when leaders build deep trust, shared purpose, and mutual accountability.

But knowing what trust requires isn't the hard part. Heather closes with a deceptively simple story — one involving an ordinary bicycle — that reveals why the real leadership challenge isn't learning something new. It's something far harder than that.

Woven throughout: an honest look at the uncertainty leaders navigate every day, the invisible forces that shape team behavior, and the small, concrete actions that either build trust or quietly erode it.

Takeaways

Participants will leave with:

A new understanding of trust as performance — Why it's the hidden multiplier behind every high-functioning team and resilient organization.
History as a leadership lens — What the Interstate Highway System, the moon landing, and Lincoln's cabinet reveal about bold, accountable, trust-based leadership.
An insight that will change how you lead — The bicycle story unpacks something most leadership frameworks never address.
Practical tools for uncertain times — Concrete behaviors that create stability, clarity, and psychological safety when the path forward isn't clear.

Presentation