Conference Keynote Speaker for Phillips-Medisize Leadership Summit
As a conference keynote speaker, I’m often booked through agencies that connect me with companies running their most important annual meetings. This past August, Washington Speakers Bureau brought me in for one of the most internationally diverse rooms I’ve ever worked with — the leadership team of Phillips-Medisize, a Molex-owned medical device manufacturer under the broader Roche umbrella.
About the Event
The summit took place on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, at the Lora Hotel & Event Center in Stillwater, Minnesota. It was the kickoff evening of a three-day leadership meeting — roughly 90 attendees, drawn from 15 U.S. facilities plus operations in Mexico, China, Thailand, Ireland, Finland, and Denmark, among others.
Phillips-Medisize had run this summit twice before. The feedback both times: “too much talking, not enough fun.” Year three, they decided to change that.
My session was the evening’s centerpiece — cocktail reception at 6:30, performance from 8:00 to 9:00.
My Role at the Event
For this conference keynote speaker engagement, I worked closely with company leadership — including President Paul Chaffin’s team — to build a 60-minute set that honored both the celebratory and strategic sides of the meeting. The summit theme was “Team Selling,” reflecting the company’s evolution from a traditional plastics manufacturer into a medical-device-focused growth story.
The brief was specific: lean into the multinational room dynamic, acknowledge the growth goals and new hires, steer clear of a few flagged sensitivities, and tie the magic back to the team-selling theme.
With 11 nationalities in the room, every routine had to land across language and cultural lines. So the show leaned on visual, interactive moments where the wonder did the talking.
Why Hire a Conference Keynote Speaker for a Multinational Summit
When your leadership team comes from a dozen countries, traditional keynote formats can struggle. A conference keynote speaker who blends performance with content can:
- Build connection without leaning on language-heavy comedy
- Use visual and physical moments that translate across cultures
- Reinforce the meeting theme — in this case, team selling and collaboration
- Reset the energy after long workdays and cross-time-zone travel
- Give attendees a shared experience they’ll reference for the rest of the week
That last one is everything. It’s what turns a roster of strangers from 11 countries into a team that already has an inside joke by Day 2.
Client Feedback
Thanks so much. We have already received so much positive feedback, and you were a wonderful addition and true energizer to the first day of our meeting. On the third and final day of the meeting, I walked past a group eating lunch that was still puzzling and hypothesizing on how you did what you did! 😊
-Candace Bowering, Senior Director
Takeaways
- Honor the brief. When a client tells you past sessions have been too dry, that’s the goal. Every routine was picked for energy and participation.
- Multinational rooms reward visual storytelling. The fewer words required to make a moment land, the more universally it lands.
- Cocktail-to-stage timing matters. The 90-minute gap between reception and showtime let guests relax into the evening. Walking into a warm room is always better than fighting a cold one.
- Good agencies earn their seat at the table. Washington Speakers Bureau, and Will Lee specifically, made every part of the contracting, logistics, and client communication clean. That kind of partnership shows up in the final product.
Book Me for Your Next Event
If you’re building a global meeting and want a conference keynote speaker who can hold a room across cultures and time zones, I’d love to talk. Use the form at the bottom of this page to get in touch — let’s design something memorable.
