Keynotes & Workshops
Talks that change how leaders see their role
Every talk is designed for its audience, blending research, story, and interaction so people leave with tools they can use the next day. Keynotes can be delivered in person or virtually.
What to Expect
Custom, never canned. Each talk is built around your audience, industry, and goals. I prepare extensively, about an hour of work for every minute on stage.
Interactive. Story, video, and live activities keep people engaged, followed by Q&A.
Beyond the stage. I spend time with attendees before and after, in conversation, offering perspectives and insights.
Signature Keynotes
Who Are We Becoming? Leading the Human Side of AI
More than half of employees hide their AI use at work, and the reason isn’t software. It’s identity. This talk reveals why AI is an identity shift, not just a skills shift, and gives leaders three questions and four practical design moves for guiding people through it.
Ideal for: executives, HR and L&D leaders, and conference audiences navigating AI adoption.
Turning Leaders into Experience Designers
The talk that introduces Experience Design Leadership. Whatever kind of leader you are, it invites you to recast yourself as a designer of experiences for your team, your clients, and yourself, using a research-based framework for creating experiences that transform people.
Ideal for: leadership programs, management teams, and professional associations.
The Deeper Meaning of Work: Culture, Belonging & Identity
Drawing on a decade of culture research with global technology companies, this talk shows how small actions shape the cultures we work in, and why belonging isn’t a department but a leadership practice.
Ideal for: organizations working on culture, engagement, retention, and inclusion.
Building the Workforce of the Future
As AI, quantum, and semiconductor technologies reshape the economy, the biggest challenge isn’t just training people. It’s helping them see themselves in these fields. This talk explores how identity drives learning and career pathways, and how educators and employers can design for it.
Ideal for: universities, school districts, workforce programs, and technology hubs.
Additional topics are available on request, including mentoring, change leadership, and science communication.
Workshops (We Call Them Wondershops)
Where keynotes inspire, workshops build skill. Each is custom-designed and moves between hands-on experiences and research-based tools from the ELVIS Framework, so participants leave with something they’ve designed, not just something they’ve heard.
Leading the Human Side of AI. Teams map how AI is changing their work and identity, then design a transition experience that builds confidence instead of fear.
The Experience Design Lab. Leaders learn the ELVIS Framework and apply it to a real program, team, or customer experience.
Team Culture & Story. Teams co-author a shared story of who they are and who they’re becoming.
Two to five hours, or a full day. In person, for groups of up to about 50.
Formats
Keynotes: 45 to 60 minutes plus Q&A, in person or virtual.
Workshops: in person, two hours to a full day.
Packages: keynote plus workshop, at a combined rate.
Books for attendees: bulk copies of Designing Transformative Experiences at a discount.
Past Stages
ATD Global Conference · International Mentoring Association (keynote) · Learning & Development Annual Conferences, Cape Town and Johannesburg (keynotes) · 7 Experiences Summit, Auckland (keynote) · NCWIT Summit (keynote) · U.S. Army 406th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion (keynote) · University of Nebraska–Lincoln IT Leadership Conference (keynotes) · Grace Hopper Celebration · TEDx Lincoln (two talks)
Plus sessions for organizations including Apple, Google, Morgan Stanley, Qualcomm, Salesforce, Intuit, Microsoft, and Bank of America.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Brad McLain speak about?
Brad McLain speaks on transformative experiences, Experience Design Leadership, leading the human side of AI, workplace culture and belonging, and identity in learning and emerging-tech workforces. Every keynote is custom-designed for its audience.
Does Brad McLain give keynotes about AI and the workplace?
Yes. His keynote “Who Are We Becoming? Leading the Human Side of AI” explains why AI is an identity shift, not just a skills shift, and gives leaders practical tools for guiding people through it.
Are virtual keynotes available?
Yes. Keynotes can be delivered in person or virtually. Workshops are delivered in person.
Let’s Talk
Every engagement is designed around your audience and goals. Tell me what you have in mind, and I’ll get back to you.