Hall of Fame speaker Michael Kerr helps businesses create happier, more inspiring workplace cultures that drive outrageous results with humor and insight.
5.00 of 5
Top rated!5 of 5
Your presentation was beyond excellent! You have the unique ability to both entertain and educate. It was the perfect mix of a serious business message, along with a very funny delivery.
Dave Thompson, CFO & President
Sandvik Canada, Inc.
Hall of Fame speaker Michael Kerr empowers organizations with dynamic keynotes on leadership, workplace culture, and the power of humor. With global expertise, real-world insights, and actionable strategies, he helps businesses create inspiring, productive cultures that drive engagement, innovation, and extraordinary results.
How to Create an Inspiring, Collaborative, Service-First Culture that Drives OUTRAGEOUS Results
Your workplace culture is your #1 competitive advantage.
But here’s the rub. Great cultures don’t just happen! You can’t fake a great culture or buy your culture at IKEA.
You need to be intentional about your workplace culture. And you need to enlist everyone’s support to contribute to a purpose-driven, happier, more resilient, innovative, collaborative, and service-focused culture.
If you’re looking for a high-energy, humor-filled, idea-packed keynote or workshop that will leave your audience inspired, energized, and excited about ideas they can bring back to their workplace that will make a lasting change, then this may be the presentation you were looking for – and if not, keep reading, there’s more topics to follow!
Key messages for Small Moments, Big Outcomes:
Great Cultures Begin With Intentional Leadership From the Top
Great workplace cultures don’t happen by accident, and they don’t happen without intentional leadership.
I use the term ‘intentional,’ well, intentionally. I’ve interviewed 100s of leaders around the world, and inspiring leaders tell me time and again that the key to their success as a leader starts by simply being more intentional about being a leader.
Which means knowing there’s a difference between being a manager or boss and being a leader. Being intentional means consciously making decisions and choices about your attitude and behaviors that reflect and demonstrate real leadership.
Intentional leadership is about creating more leaders at work, not more followers, which is why so many high-achieving organizations embrace the mantra “we are leaders leading leaders.”
This keynote or workshop is for employees who are in managerial or supervisory roles, however, there’s also a “frontline leadership” version that focuses on instilling an attitude of personal accountability and leadership in your frontline employees who have no supervisory responsibility. So I’ve got you covered either way! For the frontline leadership version, please hop on over to The Jerk-Free Workplace presentation.
Key messages for Leaders Leading Leaders:
How to Take the Lead When You’re Not The Boss
As I explain in my book, The Jerk-Free Workplace, this presentation is more than just about shining a spotlight on jerk-like attitudes and behaviors that might lead to conflict and poor morale in your workplace.
It’s about the need for all your employees, regardless of their position or role, to step up, take responsibility, be accountable for their actions, and embrace the power they have as leaders to create a greater future for themselves and for your workplace.
This presentation celebrates the idea that everyone has the potential to step up as a leader. And if you want to create a happier, more collaborative, and more innovative culture that drives outrageous results, you absolutely NEED to encourage all your employees to embrace a leadership mindset.
Key messages in The Jerk-Free Workplace include:
Putting Humor to Work for Less Stress and More Success
Argus Industries embraces a mantra that I think every workplace should embrace: “Work is hard enough as it is without making it any harder!”
Which is why Argus, along with hundreds of other high-performing companies around the world, embrace a spirit of fun and humor as one of their core values.
I’ve visited dozens of inspiring workplaces around the world that take their humor, well, seriously! And for good reason. Study after study reveals how humor helps companies reduce employee turnover and absenteeism rates, lower stress levels, foster an environment of resiliency, build relationships, and improve morale, collaboration, and communication. Humor also helps companies stand out with their remarkable customer service, humanizes their company, and in some cases even builds a unique brand.
Key messages in The Humor Advantage include:
How to Champion Innovation and Turn Ideas Into Action
In my 20+ years of speaking, I don’t think I’ve ever had a client say, “You know Michael, we’re just not experiencing much change these days. We’ve been cruising along on auto-pilot, embracing the status quo for the last three decades or so!”
Change is happening on so many levels and at a faster pace than ever before. And if the pace of change outside your company exceeds the pace of change on the inside, it’s just a matter of time before you’re going to be in trouble. Serious trouble.
You have three options really, when it comes to your relationship with change. You can ghost it (in other words, cover your eyes and ears and ignore it), you can host it (learn to adapt to the change that is happening around you), or you can toast it (by embracing and leading change).*
(*Ghost it, host it or toast it. Okay, come on, you have to admit that’s pretty good! I just thought of it as I’m writing this in the moment and I have to confess, I’m very proud of it.)
Key messages in Inspiring Change at Work include:
Why You Need to Stop Providing Good Customer Service!
“Over 80% of companies believe they have fantastic customer service. Only 8% of their customers agree.” Harvard Business case study
Okay, so I’m being slightly facetious with the title. But hear me out.
Since your customers already expect “good customer service,” all you’re doing by providing “good customer service” is staying out of the customer service doghouse or staying out of customer service jail. All you’re doing is meeting expectations. Yawn.
You’re never going to stand out from the herd and earn a reputation for your phenomenal service if you don’t do one of two things:
And this customer service mindset begins on the inside.
This high-energy, humor-filled presentation is packed to the brim with real-life examples of businesses that have become outrageously successful by doing something different. Or funny. Or outrageous. Or just something really, really simple that ended up making an enormous difference to their customers.
Key messages for Creating a Service-First Culture include:
How to Recruit, Onboard, and Train New Employees to Live Your Culture Out Loud!
You cannot create a rocking, innovative, service-first culture without getting your hiring, onboarding, and training right! As the old mantra goes, “If you hire wrong, you can do no right, but if you hire right, you can do no wrong!”
Everything starts with hiring the right people – the people that are a right fit for you; the employees that are going to grow your culture in the direction you need to take it.
This is an essential topic for leaders who understand the significant costs associated with a bad hire and, conversely, the enormous benefit of recruiting top talent who are a perfect fit for your company.
Participants will love Michael’s unique take on this in-demand topic and appreciate the many relevant ideas based on Michael’s extensive interviews with CEOs, senior managers, and HR professionals from around the world who are using innovative techniques with their recruitment and onboarding.
Key messages in Hire, Inspire, and Fuel Their Fire:
5 of 5
Your presentation was beyond excellent! You have the unique ability to both entertain and educate. It was the perfect mix of a serious business message, along with a very funny delivery.
Dave Thompson, CFO & President Sandvik Canada, Inc.
5 of 5
Michael was brilliant! An incredible session that received a standing ovation. The content was a welcome and valuable divergence from typical educational sessions. If you need to leave your audience energized with great content, I highly recommend Michael Kerr!
Dana Cooper, Executive Director Orthotics Prosthetics Canada
5 of 5
Michael held the full attention of our senior management team for a full 4-hour presentation! His management philosophy is a fantastic approach that I have encouraged my team to carry forward.
Martine Rothblatt, Chairman & CEO United Therapeutics
5 of 5
It was evident, almost from the first word you spoke, that you would be one of the most memorable parts of the two days. Your high energy, fast-paced, powerful style had everyone on the edges of their seats. Beyond being incredibly entertaining, you gave the leaders pragmatic tools and ideas that are easily transferable to their jobs.
Mark Breslaw, Human Resources Business Partner Telus
5 of 5
Michael’s Leading and Laughing During Turbulent Times was the best presentation I have seen in my 40 years in business.
Rodney Meadows, Director East Alabama Home Medical
5 of 5
That was one of the best virtual presentations I have been on and the best one since this pandemic! It was the highlight of my week and gave me a resurgence of positivity, motivation and energy.
Natasha Purnell, Chief Culture Officer Park Insurance
5 of 5
Michael Kerr delivered an absolutely outstanding performance – virtually! His energy and humorous content had our event attendees wanting our company to book him again!
Kylene Donaldson Western Financial Group
5 of 5
Michael Kerr’s humor, messages and energy was not lost at all in the virtual format and allowed us to continue an important tradition of having fun and being together. His messages on how to build resiliency were delivered in an engaging way that really hit home!
Brier Albano, Associate Registrar Medicine Hat College
5 of 5
With his high energy and animated presentation of over 90 minutes, he had everyone’s full attention!
Jolaine Arsenault, Retail Market Analysis & Liaison Specialist Co-op Atlantic
5 of 5
Just wanted to say “WOW!” – that was awesome! We’ve had many speakers over the years, but none the likes of Michael Kerr.
Richard Dansereau, President NAPA Autopro BDG
Keynote Speaker Michael Kerr is a global authority on workplace culture, inspiring leadership, and the strategic use of humor to drive business success. Known as "The Workplace Energizer," Michael delivers high-energy, impactful keynotes that provide organizations with actionable tools to create happier, more productive, and results-driven workplaces. His keynotes are tailored for leaders and teams looking to boost engagement, foster innovation, and cultivate cultures where employees and businesses thrive.
With over 20 years of research, Michael brings real-world insights and practical strategies to every event. He is the author of nine books, including The Humor Advantage and Small Moments, Big Outcomes, and his expertise has been featured in Forbes, Fast Company, and Business Insider. Michael’s content is not just insightful—it’s engaging and entertaining, ensuring your audience walks away inspired and ready to act.
Book Michael Kerr for your event to transform your workplace culture and empower your teams with the tools they need to succeed in today’s competitive business landscape.
Watch Michael Kerr in action!
