Dan Pontefract

3 days ago | forbes.com | Dan Pontefract

gettygettyThere’s no shortage of people calling themselves speakers these days. Between TEDx inflation, social media influencers on lecture circuits, and AI-generated speaker pitch decks, the barrier to entry into the keynote world seems practically nonexistent. But as world-leading speaker bureau agent and author Maria Franzoni reminded me, booking stages—repeatedly and profitably—requires something much more rigorous. Franzoni would know.

1 week ago | forbes.com | Dan Pontefract

Getty - Resiliencegetty I don’t know about you, but I tend to believe that the term "resilience" has become misplaced. It’s tossed around as though it’s an innate trait, something leaders are either born with or somehow earn through adversity. But author Mandy Gill disagrees. In her new book, Reset with Resilience: A Guide to Greatness When Your Goals Go Sideways, she makes it plain: resilience is not a birthright.

1 month ago | forbes.com | Dan Pontefract

Most mergers and acquisitions start with spreadsheets and end with PowerPoint decks. But the real cost—what goes wrong and why—is almost always about people. Despite years of consulting practices and playbooks, organizations continue to undervalue the human side of post-acquisition integration, often referred to simply by its acronym: PAI. Jennifer Fondrevay has lived the damage firsthand. Founder of Day1 Ready PAI process and author of Now What?

2 months ago | forbes.com | Dan Pontefract

In the age of the distraction economy—the one so many of us currently find ourselves in—it’s time to consider that the concept of time management is a myth. Great leaders don’t merely manage calendars or time. Instead, they master moments. If you feel overwhelmed, distracted, and constantly playing catch-up, odds are it’s because you have been managing tasks (and your time) instead of your overall time behaviors.

2 months ago | forbes.com | Dan Pontefract

While DEI continues to dominate the headlines, as evidenced by Harvard University this past week, it wasn’t that long ago that organizations used various elements of belonging purely as marketing stunts. The script was predictable—slick campaigns, polished diversity statements, and feel-good corporate PR. However, one aspect of DEI that was consistently overlooked was age. It’s here where organizations quietly sideline older employees and treat them like a problem rather than a strategic advantage.