Luis Alvarez

Keynote Speaker

Top Ironman Triathlete | CEO of SAG MECASA

Speaker Biography

Long before Luis Alvarez became a top Ironman triathlete and an advocate for the triathlon sport, he was a self-described big, fat, lazy “couch potato” who smoked too much. Luis was 21 years old and weighed more than 200 pounds when he put out his last cigarette. He got off his couch a year later and began participating in 10-kilometer races and a half-marathon in his hometown of Monterrey, Mexico.

Luis has since taken part in a historic number of Ironman events: 23 consecutive years in Ironman triathlons, 34 inaugural Ironman races, 18 Ironman venues that are no longer current, and 13 Ironman races in a row, all within a 12-month period. To date, he has completed 132 full Ironman triathlons.

Luis is CEO of SAG MECASA, a producer of tank and automotive components in Mexico. He took on another role 14 years ago when he founded a triathlete team, named it IRONMEX and started recruiting Mexican fellows in his own country and around the globe. Luis is also founder of Asociación de Triatletas Mexicanos (ATM), an organization that promotes Non-Drafting Legal Triathlons.

He has been racing for 26 years and believes he’s too young to retire. One of his long-standing goals is to be the oldest person in an Ironman competition. His inspirational phrase has always been, “We are just ordinary people achieving extraordinary things.”

Speaker Session

Breaking Paradigms

Session Abstract:

Luis Alvarez is recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records for having completed every Ironman in the world. He competes in up to 13 full-distance races a year, has scaled Mount Kilimanjaro and made it to the top of Mount Elbrus in the same week he finished Ironman UK— all while running the world’s largest fuel tank manufacturer, SAG MECASA. However, all of this didn’t happen overnight. Luis spent his early days as a self-proclaimed “couch potato.” Slowly but surely, he made significant feats to grow his incredible list of accomplishments. How did he do it?

In this session, Luis will share his story and the lessons learned along his journey. He will convince you that you truly can achieve anything.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How to self-motivate, cope with setbacks and move forward
• How to take control of situations and create a vision that motivates you and others
• How anything can be achieved with patience and persistence

Alondra de la Parra

Keynote Speaker

Orchestra Conuctor | Founder of the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas (POA)

Speaker Biography

Orchestra conductor, Alondra de la Parra, has gained widespread attention for her spellbinding, vibrant performances, making her one of the most compelling conductors of her generation.

Born in New York City in 1980, Alondra moved to Mexico with her parents when she was 2 years old. She began playing the piano at age 7 and the cello at 13. When she decided she wanted to become an orchestra conductor, Alondra returned to Mexico City to study at the Center for Research and Music Studies (CIEM). At 19, she moved to New York City and attended the Manhattan School of Music, where she received the Presser Foundation Scholarship. She obtained her bachelor of music in piano performance with Jeffrey Cohen, as well as her master’s in Orchestral Conducting with Kenneth Kiesler— both with highest honors.

In 2004, at age 23, Alondra founded the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas (POA). Her mission was to create an orchestra that showcases young performers and composers of the Americas, asserting the continent’s place in the standard orchestral repertoire. With POA, Alondra recorded her debut album, Mi Alma Mexicana (My Mexican Soul), released in 2010 by Sony Classical. The album celebrates Mexico’s bicentennial anniversary and honors 200 years of Mexican orchestral music. In the same year, Alondra and the POA performed during Mexico’s bicentennial celebration at the Monumento a la Independencia, an event that was attended by hundreds of thousands and seen around the world by an estimated 200 million households.

Alondra holds the distinction of being the first Mexican woman to conduct in New York City, and she has been named Cultural Ambassador of Mexico.

Speaker Session

Leaders in a Music Stand

Session Abstract:

Alondra de la Parra, a standout Mexican conductor with an international career, will share her experiences as the leader of an orchestra. She will discuss how an orchestra works as an amplified model of any human organization. With the proper analogies to the areas of business, marketing and human resources, Alondra explores key points that any leader must consider in order to achieve the proposed mission: to perform a symphony.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How the workings of an orchestra apply to business and life.
• Key points any leader must consider to perform a “symphony” within their business.
• Best practices by implementing lateral thinking to connect the dots between a musical orchestra and business.

Othon Garcia

Founder of Bitacora Social

Speaker Biography

Othon Garcia studied International Relations at the Iberoamericana University in Mexico City. His professional experience began as a teacher at the University while working for the Mexican government analyzing the international oil market and then against the war on drugs. In March of 2000, he founded Los Niños Cuentan (Kids Count). The company became the standard of excellence in marketing for kids and qualitative research (it received a Best in Mexico award in 2002). Businesswise, it was a success. However, Othon was not having fun. In 2004, Othon left his company to become an independent strategic and marketing consultant. Since then, he has worked for more than 45 top brands in 17 countries. In April 2010, he founded Bitacora Social Mexico where with a current network of 300+ anthropologists across 11 countries in Latin America and a multidisciplinary analysis cabinet, he has elaborated social-academic studies designed for those who must make decisions in a high-level position.

From explaining a strike in the biggest coal mines and debunking the social origin of obesity in a society to analyzing the success (or failure) of a soap opera on TV, Bitacora Social expounds different social phenomena and goes into detail about the understandings of society and its different groups. Currently, the 50+ Bitacora Social clients include those from TV networks, banks, museums, innovation houses, consumer goods companies, political parties, governments, advertising agencies, NGOs, Pharma companies, universities, social foundations, radio groups and newspapers.

Speaker Session

Community and Trust

Topic: Community

Session Abstract:

Bitácora Social, over the course of nearly seven years of research, has dedicated its efforts to the study of social phenomena. The relationships and social codes that individuals establish comprise a significant part of all of the agency’s research. In this session, Othón García, founder of Bitácora Social, will share its consolidated findings, demonstrating how these ties and bond can support or affect the building of a sense of community. Garcia will demonstrate how a sense of community (or lack thereof) can affect other indicators relating to a company’s performance or effectiveness.

Agustín Barrios Gómez

EMCEE

President of the Mexico Image Foundation | Former Mexican Congressman

Speaker Biography

A federal congressman during the LXII legislature of the Mexican Congress (2012-2015), Barrios Gómez grew up as the son of an ambassador, raised in Canada, Switzerland, the United States, as well as his native Mexico. Upon graduating from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, he was recruited to lead brand management at Procter & Gamble, before becoming independent in business. He has a master’s degree from the Madrid Law School and is a founding member of the Mexican Council on Foreign Relations.

Having worked extensively in radio and television as a commentator, Barrios Gómez has also been a frequent speaker on Mexico, lecturing at most of the key institutions that have to do with international affairs in both Mexico and the U.S., including the Woodrow Wilson Center, Rice University’s Baker Institute, the Center for Hemispheric Policy at the University of Miami, the Council on Foreign Relations, among many others.

In 2015, he was elected as the Chair of the Border Affairs Committee of the bi-national Mexican Entrepreneurs Association (Asociación de Empresarios Mexicanos – AEM). In government, he has served as advisor to the Minister of Public Security in Mexico City and he ran for Mayor (“Jefe Delegacional”) of Miguel Hidalgo, DF, in 2003. In July 2012, he was elected as congressman for this same district to a period that would come to be considered the most active in modern history thanks to the passing of 11 structural constitutional reforms. Since leaving Congress, he has dedicated more time to the FIM, Fundación Imagen de México (Mexico Image Foundation), believing that his country’s success is a cornerstone for prosperity in North America and a potential positive example to the world. To that end, it has brought together recognized experts from business, government and academia to speak with a common voice about Mexico’s important successes and opportunities, as well as our significant challenges.

Speaker Session

Emcee

Session Abstract:

Agustín Barrios Gómez will serve as the official 2017 EO Mexico University emcee and host.

Daniel Gomez de la Vega

Breakout Speaker

Speaker Biography

Daniel Gomez de la Vega

My name is Daniel Gomez de la Vega, and in 26 June, 2011, I was given an opportunity to appreciate my life, to know myself better and to see my life through a different perspective. That day, while riding my dirt bike, I crashed and broke my back, leaving me paralyzed from the chest down. That Sunday, my struggle against adversity began. And I learned— the worst human disability is a bad attitude.

I have spoken at countless events, and participated in various triathlons, half Ironmans, water races, bike races, surf races and para-triathlons around the world. I earned my bachelor’s degree in business administration, as well as a degree in corporate finance, from the Tecnologico de Monterrey, Campus Santa Fe; served as a consultant for Deloitte from 2006-2010; as an analyst for Grupo Financiero Inbursa from 2010-2011; and as an operating and administrative officer for Alugomsa, S.A. de C.V. from 2011-2015.

Speaker Session

Daniel Gomez de la Vega

Session Abstract:

In Daniel’s session, he will give the audience the strength and inspiration they need to pursue what they love no matter what, and to know that the limits they face are only in their minds— it’s never too late to change your life! Daniel will focus on how to prepare for sudden change; share a testimony about building a new life, with new plans; explain how to face adversity, ask for help and not feel alone; talk about finding meaning in your life; and share how sports changed his life.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How you don’t know your limits until you try.
• How to never stop pursuing your goals.
• How to turn your obstacles into opportunities.
• How to dream BIG.
• How to accept and deal with the things you cannot change.
• How to focus on what you can do, not what you can’t do.

Salim Ismail

Keynote Speaker

Best-Selling Author of Exponential Organizations, Executive Director of Singularity University, and Former Vice President of Yahoo!

Speaker Biography

Salim Ismail is the best-selling author of Exponential Organizations, a sought-after technology strategist, and a renowned entrepreneur with ties to Yahoo!, Google, and Singularity University. He consults with governments and the world’s top Fortune 500 companies on innovation and growth, and his work has been featured in premier media outlets like the New York Times, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Fortune, Forbes, WIRED, Vogue, and the BBC.

Ismail travels extensively sharing a global perspective on the impact of breakthrough technologies and how organizations can leverage these disruptions to grow 10 times faster than their peers. His book quickly reached No. 1 on Amazon’s “Best-Sellers in Business Management,” was also named Frost & Sullivan’s “Growth, Innovation and Leadership Book of the Year.” In presentations, he shares the five internal and five external characteristics that exponential organizations have in common and walks audiences through how any company, from a startup to a multi-national, can streamline its performance and grow to the next level. Audiences walk away with a tailored action plan for moving forward, a new process for leading-edge thinking, and an understanding of what emerging technology trends mean for the future. His captivating, educational, and downright jaw-dropping presentations have been called “mind-blowing” and “the best talk I think I’ve ever heard.”

Solving Humanity’s Greatest Challenges
Ismail has spent the last seven years building Singularity as its founding executive director and current global ambassador. SU is based at NASA Ames, and its goal is to “educate, inspire and empower a new generation of leaders to apply exponential technologies to address humanity’s grand challenges.” SU – whose founders hail from Google and the X PRIZE Foundation – has empowered people from more than 85 countries to apply disruptive technologies – biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and neuroscience – to more than 100 startups and countless patents and ideas.

Tech Entrepreneur
Prior to Singularity, Ismail was a vice president at Yahoo, where he built and ran Brickhouse, the company’s internal incubator. His last company, Ångströ, a news aggregation startup, was sold to Google in 2010. He has founded or operated seven early-stage companies including PubSub Concepts, which laid some of the foundation for the real-time web, and the New York Grant Company, a direct response to 9/11. In its first year, the organization attracted over 400 clients and delivered over $12 million of federal grants to the local economy.

Speaker Session

Exponential Organizations

Session Abstract:

As a result of accelerating change, a new breed of businesses is scaling ten times faster than established organizational structures. Salim calls these exponential organizations. The talk describes the characteristics and attributed of these organizations, and finishes with how to implement these ideas into established companies.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• A distinction of linear to exponential thinking.
• A prescriptive path and specific ideas to improve organizations by 10x.
• How to integrate disruption innovation in large organizations.

Caryn Kopp

Breakout Speaker

Chief Door Opener® at Kopp Consulting

Speaker Biography

Caryn is the Chief Door Opener^® at Kopp Consulting whose Door Opener^® Service has helped thousands of business owners and sales people secure initial meetings with high level decision makers in almost every major company including P&G, Pfizer, GE, Merck, Verizon, AT&T, Time Warner, Kraft, Target, CBS and the list goes on and on.

Caryn has been dubbed the Chief Door Opener^® because she gets her clients “in the door” with their prospects. Many business owners and sellers say, “When I’m in front of the right decision maker, I close the sale most of the time, I just can’t get in front of enough of the right prospects.” Her team of senior business developers known as Kopp Door Openers® find the right opportunities and secure initial meetings for their clients.

A best-selling author, nationally-recognized speaker, and an expert in Business Development, Caryn can also be found in Inc., Fortune, Forbes and Newsweek and has been interviewed on The Wall Street Journal Morning Radio Show. Her webinar “Overcome More Objections, Close More Sales!” can be seen on Verne Harnish’s Gazelle’s Growth Institute where she is a faculty member. She is also the author of The Path to The Cash! ^® The Words You NEED To Bypass Those Darned Prospect Objections. This is the go-to book for getting in the door with prospects. Her latest book, co-authored with Carl Gould and titled Biz Dev Done Right helps business owners and their sales people understand the blind spots in the sales process and gives critical strategies for getting Business Development right.

Caryn received her MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business and her undergraduate degree from Babson College. She has held board positions for the Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO), National Speakers’ Association (NSA) and Enterprising Women Magazine. Caryn is also a member of the Women’s Presidents Organization (WPO).

Kopp Consulting is recognized on the Inc. 5000, is a winner of a SmartCEO Future 50 Award, a Stevie Award for Sales Outsourcing Provider of the Year and was an NJ BIZ Business of the Year Finalist. Caryn has also received awards including the Top 25 NJ Leading Women Entrepreneurs, Enterprising Women of the Year and the Stevie Award for Female Entrepreneur of the Year.

Speaker Session

Biz Dev Done Right: Demystifying the Sales Process and Achieving the Results You Want

Session Abstract:

Scaling business development efforts and consistently finding new sales revenue is the most difficult and frustrating part of business, bar none. For the last 17 years, Caryn has owned an outsourced business development company whose Door Opener® Service not only gets doors opened for their clients at the highest levels in major corporations but also guides clients on the fastest path to the closed sale. Caryn speaks from experience and provides practical, actionable information on what works (and what doesn’t) to accelerate sales results. Business leaders often report moments of clarity after attending “Biz Dev Done Right” regarding blind spots in the sales process that have kept them from the success they deserve. When they know their blind spots, they can change themselves, their processes and/or their people to achieve results. When business development is done right, there is no limit to what can be accomplished.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How your team can meet more of the right prospects and get more sales.
• How your team can close sales in less time.
• How to find the time to implement what you just learned.

Virginia Lopez

Breakout Speaker

Head of Family Revitalization - Family Therapist

Speaker Biography

Virginia Lopez is a clinical psychologist having studied at Iberoamericana University. Since 1987, she has been practicing child, youth and family psychotherapy and currently serves as the head of Revitalizacion Familiar with experience in education, social work, teaching, and trauma therapy. She has created projects to prevent sexual, physical and psychological abuse for the federal government.

Virginia has also co-authored a series of workbooks on emotional intelligence and authored a program engaged in resiliency for the infant orchestral in Mexico. She works extensively with families in the process of dealing with separation, loss, disease, and death.

Speaker Session

Resiliency

Session Abstract:

What does a person need to go through to be successful? What happens to those who have experienced distressing circumstances and cannot move forward? Why can some people do it, and some cannot? We can find these answers in resilience, the property that certain materials have to recover into their original form, even though they have suffered transformations. Resilience is the capacity of the human spirit to return strengthened from difficult events or crisis. It is the ability to recover, resist, grow to something new, jump forward, open doors, overcome, bounce back. It is also the capacity to return to your essence after having supported adversities and to recognize and discover new strengths and resources to face life. In this session, attendees will participate in an exercise to experience resiliency.

Arnie Malham

Breakout Speaker

Founder and President of cj Advertising and Legal Intake Professionals

Speaker Biography

After graduating from the University of Mississippi in 1989 with a degree in finance, Arnie spent a year in First American National Bank’s training program. He then spent four years in sales at WTVF, Nashville’s local CBS affiliate. In 1994, Arnie launched cj Advertising (cj), an agency focused solely on growing personal injury law firms. Built on a foundation of financial comparison models extracted from his bank experience and advertising insight gained from his time at the TV station, the agency grew rapidly as hard work and client loyalty paid off.

cj Advertising grew to become the largest, full-service legal advertising agency in the country, with gross revenues topping $40 million for 45 firms in more than 70 markets nationwide. cj gained recognition in multiple publications as one of Nashville’s best places to work and was the 2012 winner of the Nashville Business Journal’s “Best in Business” award.

After internally running an innovative pay-to-read program for over seven years within the agency, BetterBookClub.com was launched in late 2014, so that others could implement this overwhelmingly effective platform for their teams. Endorsed by thought leaders, authors, and business owners, use of BetterBookClub.com is spreading rapidly across the country, the continent, and the globe.

Speaker Session

Why Building My Company Culture Was “Worth Doing Wrong” On The Way to Getting It Right

Session Abstract:

Yeah, yeah, yeah … you’ve been to Starbucks and The Container Store, you’ve flown Southwest and ordered shoes from Zappos, you’ve stayed at a Ritz-Carlton and shopped at Macy’s. But, likely the last thing you have time for right now is building your own company culture. You’ve got your hands full with client service problems, internal communication breakdowns, floor production issues, and unexpected turnover. When your business grows and becomes more profitable, you’ll hire better people, and then you’ll have time for “culture.” You might even get a ping pong table and implement casual dress on Fridays, but for now, you’re committed to the “micromanage, I’m right – you’re wrong, work harder – not smarter” model that got you here.

You know one thing for sure … only really successful companies spend time, effort, and resources on culture. I’m here to tell you that you’re right and I’ll share exactly what you can do about it that will absolutely be “worth doing wrong!”

In this session, you’ll learn:

• Who is most responsible for culture in your organization.
• Harvestable ideas to develop and evolve your company’s culture.
• How to eliminate excuses that traditionally haunt, halt, and handicap your company culture and your team.

Daniel Marcos

Breakout Speaker

Co-founder and President of Gazelles Growth Institute

Speaker Biography

Daniel has an outstanding record of entrepreneurial success. He is the Co-founder and President of Gazelles Growth Institute, the leading online executive education company for C-level executives at fast-growing firms. He also co-founded Inflection, a management coaching company that helps managers and entrepreneurs grow their companies faster and with less “drama.”

Earlier, he co-founded Creditos123, LLC, an online lending exchange that serves the Hispanic community in the United States. In 1999, he created the first financial website focused on the Mexican financial markets, Finanzas Web, which he later sold to Patagon.com; he subsequently assumed the position of CEO of Patagon Mexico. Additionally, he created Fondo.com, an Angel Fund specializing in Internet-related businesses.

Daniel is the blogger of www.capitalemprendedor.com, which is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs grow their business; he was selected as a “30 in their 30s” honoree by Expansion Magazine. He co-authored the book, Hogares para Hispanos and hold a BS in Industrial and Systems Engineering from I.T.E.S.M. and an MBA from Babson College.

Speaker Session

From Entrepreneur to CEO

Session Abstract:

If you want to scale up your company 10X you first have to 10X yourself. The entrepreneur has to evolve from entrepreneur to CEO to allow and lead the company to grow to the next stage.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How to evolve from entrepreneur to CEO.
• The tough decisions you will need to make in each stage of your business to allow your company to evolve to the next stage.
• The right training you have to provide your team in each stage.

Saskia Niño de Rivera

Keynote Speaker

Founder of Reinserta Un Mexicano

Speaker Biography

Saskia Niño de Rivera attended the American School Foundation and graduated with the Leadership Award in 2006. She went on to study psychology at Universidad Iberoamericana and completed her coursework with a specialization in criminal profiling, abduction and kidnapping matters. Saskia is an Ashoka Fellow dedicated to realizing social criminal impact. She is a rising talent in the Women’s Forum, has been named a “Global Shaper” by the World Economic Forum and was awarded TIME magazine’s “Next Generation Leader” award in 2015. Concerned about adverse prison conditions in Mexico, the lack of transversal programs to prevent crime and ways to introduce social reintegration for those who have been deprived of liberty, Saskia founded Reinserta Un Mexicano, a non-profit organization that works closely with partner institutions within the prison system. Reinserta Un Mexicano’s aim is to make Mexico a safer country by improving jail conditions.

Speaker Session

Social Metamorphosis

Session Abstract:

In this session, you will learn how as a society, we must begin to change the way we approach our social problems. We are at a breaking point. We can either ignore the vulnerable groups that we have in society, or we can choose to understand and help their basic needs and human rights. The future of this world is in our hands, and ignoring social injustices, violations of human rights and the needs of those in need, is a perfect way to sabotage our future.

In this session, you’ll learn:

To explore human rights by its guiding principles.

What social injustice is and how as a social consequence, it does not exempt us as a society.

How to stop ignoring social injustices and confront reality to create a better world.

David Niu

EOTalk Speaker

Founder and CEO of TINYpulse

Speaker Biography

David Niu is the Founder and CEO of TINYpulse, an employee engagement survey solution that helps leaders get a pulse on how happy, frustrated, and burnt out their people are before issues fester or retention suffers. David is a serial entrepreneur, having founded and successfully sold two prior businesses, NetConversions and BuddyTV, the latter of which was honored in 2011 with the Inc. 500 award as one of the 500 fastest growing companies in the United States. David attended the University of California at Berkeley for his BA and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania for his MBA. David was named a “40 Under 40” recipient by the Puget Sound Business Journal and is actively involved in EO (Entrepreneurs’ Organization).

He is frequently asked to speak on topics spanning employee engagement, company culture, and organizational morale at top-tier organizations such as Amazon, HubSpot, and the Paul Allen Companies. In the past year alone, David and TINYpulse have appeared in over 100 press outlets including Fast Company, Inc., SUCCESS, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and The Today Show. David is also the author of Careercation: Trading Briefcase for Suitcase to Find Entrepreneurial Happiness.

Speaker Session

Why We Suck at Hiring

Topic: Hiring Employees

Session Abstract:

We’ve all interviewed hundreds, if not, thousands of applicants, so most business owners think they’re pretty good at identifying studs from duds. But have you ever taken a step back and reviewed your hiring tendencies and blind spots to assess if you and your team are actually interviewing well and testing the right success criteria? By applying data-driven approaches to hiring and performance tracking, organizations can take a huge leap forward in their ability to hire “A” players and minimize the toxic costs of mis-hires.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How to identify the “studs” from the “duds” when hiring.
• How to assess your current hiring techniques and identify blind spots.
• How to narrow down the right success criteria.

Gerry O'Brion

EOTalk and Breakout Speaker

Speaker, Branding Strategist and Franchise Expert

Speaker Biography

After years as an executive with billion dollar brands, Gerry O’Brion is now a professional speaker and strategy consultant who uses big company strategies to grow businesses of all sizes, regardless of their budget.

His talk, What Big Brands Know, has helped thousands of business owners, executives and association members. Gerry teaches a simple process that helps organizations attract their ideal customers.

Gerry began his career in marketing at Procter & Gamble and then was an executive for Coors Light, Quiznos, and Red Robin. His Business Blueprint system includes simple steps to grow independent businesses like the big guys.

Speaker Session

Big Brand, Small Budget – How to Grow Your Business like a Billion-dollar Brand

Session Abstract:

You don’t have to have a big budget to build a big brand. Entrepreneurs today are changing the world and starting companies that attract customers not through marketing, but through delivering more insightful value to their users. In this session, you’ll learn one strategy used by the world’s best brands to attract customers, and turn them into passionate fans who refer their business. Gerry is a former marketing executive for brands like Procter and Gamble, and Coors light who now helps companies of all sizes compete like the big guys.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How to stand out in a sea of sameness.
• One big-brand secret that you can implement today to dramatically increase word-of-mouth referrals.
• How to create a powerful brand, even without a big budget.

Dr. Gabriel Pliego

Breakout Speaker

Speaker Biography

Dr. Gabriel Pliego received his PhD in musicology from the University of Salamanca, Spain. He began his musical studies at UNAM National School of Music; studied courses at The Juilliard School in New York; and received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Toronto, as well as a master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University, both in violin performance. He also obtained the degree of Advanced Studies in Music Education and Aesthetic Culture from the Public University of Navarra, and has completed the Senior Program of Top Business Management at IPADE.

Dr. Gabriel Pliego has performed in concerts, taken specialization courses and conducted research all around the world, including in England, Holland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Norway, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, the U.S., Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Mexico. He had been the director of the Cedros-Panamericana University Art and Culture department since its establishment in 1995 until July of 2015. This department was chosen by the United Nations and the International Council for Caring Communities as a model project to follow in order to reach the objectives of The Development of the Millennium.

Dr. Gabriel Pliego was the director and founder of the Cedros-UP International Festival, where artists and pedagogues from more than 40 countries participated. Currently, he is the speaker and consultant of various educational and musical institutions in Mexico, and is the General Director of EMDEMUS (Mexican Publishing Company of Music Education).

Dr. Gabriel Pliego has served as the founder and president of the Mexican Association of the Suzuki Method since 2005, where he helped organize more than 30 Suzuki Festivals in Mexico and two national conferences, among other accomplishments.

Dr. Gabriel Pliego has received awards on four occasions from the CONACULTA. For his contribution to music education in Mexico, the Legislative Assembly of the Federal District awarded him the merit medal in musical achievement in November 2011.

Speaker Session

Coming Soon!

Session Abstract:

Stay tuned for more information!

Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa, M.D.

Keynote Speaker

Speaker Biography

Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa, M.D., is a consultant and serves as chair of the Department of Neurologic Surgery at Mayo Clinic in Florida.

Dr. Quiñones-Hinojosa’s clinical interests are surgical treatment of primary and metastatic brain tumors with an emphasis in motor and speech mapping during surgery, as well as treatment of patients with pituitary tumors and skull base tumors using minimally invasive approaches. He leads NIH-funded research to cure brain cancer. His research focuses on brain tumors and stem cell migration, health care disparities for minorities and clinical outcomes for neurosurgical patients. He is frequently invited to give presentations on his research to both national and international audiences, and he has authored numerous journal articles, book chapters, abstracts and other written publications. He is an editorial board member and reviewer for several
prominent publications.

In recognition of his work, Dr. Quiñones-Hinojosa has received many awards and honors, including being named as one of the 100 most influential Hispanics in 2008, the 2014 Gary Lichtenstein Humanitarian Award and Neurosurgeon of the Year, and by Forbes in 2015 as one of Mexico’s most brilliant minds in the world. He has received honorary degrees from Southern Vermont College, Lackawanna College, Dominican University, University of Notre Dame and Loyola University.

In addition, he published an autobiography, Becoming Dr. Q, about his journey from migrant farm worker to neurosurgeon and recently Disney with Plan B Entertainment productions announced that his inspirational life story is going to be featured in a movie.

Besides his clinical and research activities, Dr. Quiñones-Hinojosa is active in education and provides mentorship to many postdoctoral fellows.

Dr. Quiñones-Hinojosa is co-founder and serves as president of Mission: BRAIN, Bridging Resources and Advancing International Neurosurgery a 501 (c)(3) non-profit foundation. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Voices Against Brain Cancer, and he is co-chair of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/Congress of Neurological Surgeons Tumor Section International Committee. Moreover, he serves on many study sections of the National Institutes of Health, including being chair of meeting sessions.

Speaker Session

Surgical Innovation: Building Bridges from the Laboratory to the Operating Room

Session Abstract:

The needs of the patients come first! This Mayo Clinic ideology motivates us every day to push forward the fields of cancer research and neurosurgery, and to provide the best patient care and experience. The current state of translational science and surgical procedures is good, but it has not yet reached its pinnacle. In an effort to bring these medical fields to the next level, Mayo Clinic is identifying ways to improve our understanding of cancer, stem cells and surgery with our three-shield approach: research, education and patient care. The patient is always at the center of our three shields. We have created an environment where our scientific and surgical discoveries link to our patients’ quality of life and care. We are part of a world where everything imagined can be achieved, and we imagine a world free of cancer.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How to transform obstacles into opportunities.
• How Mayo Clinic is engineering stem cells and using them to fight cancer.
• The current techniques and tools used in brain tumor surgery.

Hagai M. Segal

Keynote Speaker

Award-winning Academic and Internationally-renowned Consultant on Geopolitical Issues

Speaker Biography

Hagai M. Segal is one of the world’s leading authorities on geopolitical and strategic issues, counter-terrorism and the Middle East. For over 15 years, he has advised, consulted and briefed a vast array of key institutions and companies including the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Metropolitan Police, Deutsche Bank, Macquarie Bank and Securities, KPMG, Marriott Hotels and Qantas. He has also participated in Middle East peace negotiations.

His work enables businesses and organizations to easily understand, interpret and anticipate the complex risks and crises impacting on our increasingly globalized world, and helps them to ensure they are best placed to mitigate their harm, and in some instances, profit from them.

Hagai lectures at New York University in London, is a visiting lecturer at Regents University, London and serves on the London First Security and Resilience Advisory Board and the Global Risk Network Executive Advisory Committee. He is also a United Nations Alliance of Civilizations recognized expert. A self-proclaimed ‘global citizen,’ Hagai was born in the Middle East, grew up in the UK and has lived in Belgium, South Africa, and Australia. With his highly engaging style and fascinating content, which draws on his vast experience, high-level knowledge and specific data, he provides an astute, contemporary and dynamic insight into the hottest local and global political trends and quantifies the strategic and economic impacts on specific businesses and sectors.

Attracting the attention of the media, Hagai regularly appears on national and international radio and TV, including CNN, the BBC, Sky News and CNBC. He is also a regular contributor to a host of well-known publications and newspapers.

Speaker Session

Turbulent Times: Why Geopolitics Today Matters More Than Ever - Personally and Professionally

Topic: Geopolitics

Session Abstract:

You don’t need to be an expert to know that we are living in turbulent times! Across the globe, political, social and economic tensions are brewing – and 2017 threatens to become even more dangerous and unstable. Be it Brexit, Trump, Putin, North Korea, the South China Sea, or the bloodshed in Syria and Iraq, wherever we look, we can find a crisis. These events can seem random and chaotic, yet when we look closer, logical and clear drivers can be recognized and interconnections identified. These events can then begin to be understood, as can the economic and social consequences and ramifications. Hagai – with unique analysis but also a little humor – will help explain how.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• About the global and interconnected nature of geopolitical risk, and how the political and the economic are intertwined.
• How, with simple and inexpensive action, you can better understand, and even foresee, geopolitical developments and their consequences.
• How this knowledge can help you make more informed decisions for the resilience of your business, and for the safety and security of yourself and your family.

Shiza Shahid

Keynote Speaker

Co-founder and Ambassador of the Malala Fund

Speaker Biography

Shiza Shahid is a social entrepreneur, television personality, speaker and women’s rights advocate. She is passionate about leveraging philanthropy, venture capital, technology and the media to drive scalable social impact and women’s empowerment.

Shiza co-founded the Malala Fund with Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, and led the organization as founding CEO. She is now focused on supporting startups, innovators and entrepreneurs, particularly women, who are creating positive global impact. She is an advocate for women entrepreneurs, and hosts Women’s Story-telling Salons bringing together leading female entrepreneurs to collaborate. She is the host of the new show ASPIREist, which will air on Flipboard, Facebook and YouTube.

Shiza grew up in Pakistan as a vocal advocate for social change. She graduated from Stanford University with University Distinction and was a business analyst with McKinsey & Company. She is also a graduate of Singularity University where she studied how to apply technology towards the goal of solving gender inequities.

Shiza has received many awards for her work including TIME’s “30 under 30 World Changer”, Forbes “30 under 30 Social Entrepreneur,” WEF Global Agenda Council, Tribeca Institute Disruptive Innovator. She has been featured in multiple publications including Forbes, Fast Company, Elle, Glamour, Town and Country, The Edit, CNN, ABC, Al Jazeera, MSNBC and others.

Shiza is also a prominent speaker on millennial and women’s entrepreneurship. She speaks frequently at major international gatherings including Aspen Ideas Fest, Milken Global Institute, Forbes Women, Fortune Most Powerful Women, Inc Women, Women Moving Millions, World Economic Forum and others.

Speaker Session

The Power of Mission-Driven Entrepreneurship

Session Abstract:

We are in a unique moment in time; where companies that are mission-driven are the ones that out perform; where financial returns and positive social good are not mutually exclusive, but mutually enhancing. Companies that exist to make the world better will be positioned to capture larger market share, create loyal customers, attract and retain talent. Their financial success means everyone benefits.

Shiza Shahid will describe the unique opportunity of mission-driven entrepreneurship and will outline how you can start harnessing your mission more effectively to improve your chances of success. Shiza Shahid created NOW Ventures in partnership with AngelList, the world’s first funding platform dedicated to enabling early-stage companies with transformative solutions for a prosperous world. NOW invests seed capital and accelerates startup growth through critical expertise. She also cofounded the Malala Fund and helped Malala Yousafzai on her journey to becoming the youngest every Nobel Peace Prize winner, in defiance to the Taliban’s war on female empowerment.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How being a mission-driven business is good for the world and for returns.
• How some of the greatest social challenges today are also the greatest business opportunities.
• What individuals and companies can start doing today to harness their social impact.

Raj Sisodia

Keynote Speaker

Co-founder of Conscious Capitalism, Inc.

Speaker Biography

Raj Sisodia is a Franklin W. Olin distinguished professor of Global Business, a Whole Foods Market research scholar in conscious capitalism at Babson College, and co-founder and co-chairman of Conscious Capitalism, Inc. He has a PhD in marketing from Columbia University. Raj is co-author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business (2013) and Wall Street Journal bestseller Everybody Matters (2015). He was named one of “Ten Outstanding Trailblazers of 2010” by Good Business International, and one of the “Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior” by Trust Across America for 2010 and 2011. Raj received an honorary doctorate from Johnson & Wales University in 2016.

Raj has published ten books and over 100 academic articles. His book Firms of Endearment: How World Class Companies Profit from Passion and Purpose was named a top business book of 2007 by Amazon.com. He has consulted with numerous companies, including AT&T, Nokia, LG, DPDHL, POSCO, Kraft Foods, Whole Foods Market, Tata, Siemens, Sprint, Volvo, IBM, Walmart, Rabobank, McDonalds and Southern California Edison. He is on the board of directors at The Container Store and a trustee of Conscious Capitalism, Inc.

Speaker Session

Conscious Capitalism: How Business Can Uplift Humanity

Session Abstract:

We stand at a tipping point in the social and economic history of the world. Capitalism has been extraordinarily successful over the past two centuries at raising human living standards, life expectancy and life satisfaction. But many see it is extracting too steep a price for the prosperity it has enabled. Traditional capitalism elevates profit above all else and treats people and the planet as means to that end. No wonder it has failed to capture the minds of intellectuals, the hearts of citizens and the trust of society.

We need a better way, rooted in a higher level of consciousness about the myriad ways in which business impacts the lives of people. Conscious Capitalism is an emerging paradigm that realigns business to the emerging realities of our world and the shifting hearts and minds of people everywhere. Driven by a higher purpose and built on love and care, conscious businesses deliver extraordinary financial performance while creating multiple kinds of positive value for all stakeholders: financial, intellectual, physical, ecological, social, cultural, emotional and even spiritual. They bring joy, fulfillment and a sense of meaning to all their stakeholders. Their very existence enriches the world.

Kinari Webb

EOTalk Speaker

Founder of Health In Harmony

Speaker Biography

Kinari Webb, MD founded Health In Harmony and Project ASRI as a response to the devastation she saw in the rainforests of West Kalimantan, Indonesia. With a mission to recognize the inextricable link between human and environmental health and a focus on providing healthcare as an incentive to protect natural resources, Health In Harmony is working toward a healthy planet for all.

The seeds of a future in Indonesia were first sown for Kinari Webb in 1993 while studying orangutans in Gunung Palung National Park. Bearing witness to the dichotomy of a beautiful and simultaneously threatened rainforest, and experiencing firsthand the travesties befalling local communities with regards to healthcare, Kinari vowed to complete medical training and return to Indonesia.

Dr. Webb graduated from Yale University’s School of Medicine with honors and completed her residency in family medicine at Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in Martinez, California in 2005; Health In Harmony was founded shortly thereafter. Based on information gleaned from a year spent traveling around Indonesia, Health In Harmony’s project, ASRI, was sited in Sukadana, on the border of Gunung Palung, in 2007. Recognizing Sukadana had threatened but salvageable rainforest, a responsive local government, and unmet healthcare needs, Dr. Webb worked with co-founder Dr. Hotlin Ompusunggu to build an infrastructure spanning the profound human and environmental health needs of the region.

Today, the ASRI program has improved the lives of the people in the communities around Gunung Palung through increased and affordable health care and decreased logging of the park and introductions of alternative incomes sources.

Dr. Webb was honored with an Ashoka Social Entrepreneur Fellowship in 2014 and was selected as a Rainer Arhnold Fellow through the Mulago Foundation in the same year. She speaks regularly on topics ranging from the health and future of the forest, community involvement and social capital, healthcare in the global south and the link between human and environmental health.

Kinari’s work has been profiled in Oprah Magazine, PBS’s News Hour with Jim Lehrer, National Geographic, the Sierra Club, Mongabay, four Indonesian TV channels, Tempo Magazine, Kompas Newspaper and the Voice of America.

Speaker Session

Saving Rainforests with a Stethoscope

Session Abstract:

What would you do if the only way to provide for the immediate needs of your family was to destroy the environmental resources you depend on long-term? This is the daily reality for many people trapped in the cycle of poverty, poor health, and habitat destruction. Communities know the solutions to their own problems, a truth Dr. Kinari Webb recognized through radically listening in Borneo 10 years ago. In this session, she will talk about the win-win solutions she’s developed alongside rainforest communities for human health and the health of our planet.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• The problem-solving technique of radical listening.
• The connection between human health, poverty, and the health of the environment and our planet overall.
• Win-win solutions for conservation and human development do exist.

Matt Weiss

Breakout Speaker

Writer and Director of Man In Red Bandana

Speaker Biography

Matthew J. Weiss is a New York traffic ticket attorney by trade but, after a major career pivot, now embodies the EO Mexico City University theme of “metamorphosis.” Five years ago, without any experience, training or connections, Matt embarked on making his first film, Man In Red Bandana. Along the way, he convinced Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow to narrate it (the first time that she has ever narrated a documentary) and Grammy-winning musician, Lyle Lovett, to contribute a song.

Matt is passionate about business education and personal development. He is one of the most business-savvy, entrepreneurial lawyers you will ever meet. He was a two-term Chapter President of EO New York, as well as a Learning Chair, and has spoken before thousands of business owners on various topics. Matt regularly appears as a business expert on MSNBC’s “Your Business.” He has also been quoted by dozens of media outlets and keynoted more than 20 EO chapter events. Matt is excited to speak at his first EO University.

In 1991, Matt co-founded his private law practice. Since then, Weiss & Associates, PC, has grown to represent thousands of clients annually throughout New York. His law firm defends motorists in various vehicle and traffic law matters, such as drinking and driving, speeding and reckless driving. He also handles commercial and real estate transactions, as well as commercial and personal injury litigation for select clients.

Speaker Session

Being a Legacy Leader

Session Abstract:

Given his transformative journey, Matt personifies EO’s core values of “Make a Mark” and “Boldly Go!” In this breakout session, Matt will present how his experiences let him become a legacy leader, while sharing insight into how attendees can exemplify what he has learned in their own lives. Matt has traveled throughout the United States, screening his film to EO and YPO audiences, all while garnering rave reviews and a few standing ovations along the way. Matt takes his post-screening presentation to the next level in this session so that members can leave with a road map to successfully launch their own legacy projects.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• What it means to be a legacy leader.
• Why legacy leadership is so critical to leading a fulfilling life.
• Best business practices employed by Matt to complete his legacy project, as well as the steps needed to evaluate your own legacy project.

Chris Winfield

Breakout Speaker

Entrepreneur and Success Coach

Speaker Biography

Chris Winfield is a passionate entrepreneur, writer and speaker from New York City. Known as the productivity guy who “makes complicated things simple,” Chris has taught thousands of successful (but stressed) entrepreneurs and executives how to truly work smarter, not harder.

Over the past decade and a half, he has worked with people from many of the world’s best-known companies, including Disney, Virgin, Macy’s, Viacom, Conde Nast, Intuit, NBC, TIME, Inc. and many others.

Chris has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, NBC’s Today Show, USA Today, Fast Company, Forbes, and hundreds of other media outlets. He is also a columnist for TIME, Business Insider, Entrepreneur & Inc.

Speaker Session

Finally Free: The Simple “No-Fail” Productivity Strategy for Getting More Done — Faster

Session Abstract:

In this interactive presentation and workshop, productivity expert Chris Winfield will teach you how to double your productivity and permanently wipe the words, “I’m too busy,” from your vocabulary. He will also show you the no-fail strategy for simplifying your life and getting more done, faster— regardless of what’s going on around you. Chris will teach you how to increase your focus and complete your most important work, even if you’re working in a busy office, have a lot of responsibilities and a “million things” to do each day.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How to do two hours of work in just 25 minutes, and turn time into your friend (not your enemy).
• A simple technique that will help you slice your to-do list in half and gain control of your life.
• How to to break any big project into small, manageable chunks so you can stop feeling overwhelmed and quit procrastinating.