Backed by decades of experience, Jim Harris transforms leadership thinking, offering actionable frameworks for thriving in disruption, innovation, and GenAI adoption.
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Top rated!Recognized as TEC Canada’s Speaker of the Year and one of North America’s top ten keynote speakers, Jim Harris is a global authority on AI, GenAI, disruption, and innovation. He delivers high-impact keynotes to Fortune 500 companies like IBM, Walmart, and Barclays, helping executive teams embrace change, accelerate innovation, and future-proof their organizations with actionable, strategic insights. His bestselling book Blindsided! is published in 80 countries and hailed as essential reading for forward-thinking leaders.
Keynote Speaker Jim Harris is one of North America’s foremost thought leaders on AI, GenAI, disruption, and innovation. Recognized globally for his ability to decode complex trends and translate them into clear, actionable insights, Jim helps organizations future-proof their strategies and thrive in rapidly evolving markets.
With more than 60 high-impact in-person and virtual presentations delivered annually, he has inspired executive teams at leading global companies including IBM, Walmart, Barclays, SAP, Zurich Insurance, and Canon.
Jim’s expertise lies in equipping leadership teams with the tools to navigate technological disruption, embrace transformative innovation, and unlock sustainable growth. As the #1 international bestselling author of Blindsided!, published in 80 countries, his influence reaches tens of thousands of senior leaders around the world. His keynotes are described as “mind-blowing,” “riveting,” and “eye-opening,” and he was recently honored as Speaker of the Year by TEC Canada, part of the world’s largest CEO peer mentoring group.
Whether you're planning a conference, leadership summit, or strategic offsite, booking Jim Harris ensures your audience receives unmatched insight into the forces shaping business today. Book Jim Harris for your event to ignite innovation, drive engagement, and give your team a competitive edge in the age of AI and digital transformation.
5 of 5
I launched the Center of Excellence for Sales Leadership at York University's Schulich Executive Education Centre with the 13-day Masters Certificate Program and the 5 day Executive Sales Management Program. Jim Harris was one of my faculty for both programs. He is exceptional. Jim engages the minds and hearts of participants with his informative content, style and humour. Jim is able to create a complete shift in participants' outlook in just a single session. I always learn something new every session I attend with Jim because it is never canned content. He is exceptional at refreshing and adding current and relevant content to his programs. In all my years in sales I've never met anyone who can create such a shift in such a short time. I would highly recommend him to any executive team looking to shift the outlook, behaviour and outcomes they are seeking from a sales team or sales organization.
Lorella DePieri, Program DirectorYork University, Schulich School of Business
5 of 5
Jim Harris did a great job! He knocked the ball out of the park talking to a crowd of 350 construction industry people here at the Ottawa Construction Association. I got a lot of great feedback that it was actionable items, something they were going to move on right away and they were going to pursue so you can't do better than what Jim did at our annual general meeting. Jim was a pleasure to work with him and his supporting team, easy to coordinate, did a great job of research in our group, researching with my board of directors. He really invested time and effort to deliver a A-Plus presentation. What Jim did for a construction crowd was bang on for the times. Everyone's questioning "What's the impact of AI in construction?" We're all on the same level of learning and Jim provided us that education and a path to go forward.
John DeVries, Executive DirectorOttawa Construction Association
5 of 5
You initiated a shift in strategic thinking within our plant management.
Richard JensenP.Eng, GM, Manufacturing, CXY Chemicals
5 of 5
Having attended countless sessions over the years, I am very selective. I am especially proud that one of the best messages I’ve heard at MPI was delivered by a Canadian – Jim Harris.
Marjorie HamiltonMeeting Professionals International
5 of 5
Jim’s session was one of the most highly rated and I am certain that we will work with him in the future. What was particularly noteworthy was the accessibility and relevance of his material. Jim’s friendly, open style is critical in encouraging participants to take the material on board and shift their thinking.
Geoff MerchantCentre for Management & Policy Studies, UK Cabinet Office
5 of 5
In the fast paced global business environment, the possibility of being blindsided by a competitor or new market entrant is very real, even for businesses that appear most secure. Jim Harris offers real-life examples that will cause the reader to stop, think and question whether he or she is doing everything in his or her power to avoid being blindsided. A must read for all senior executives.
Clare Hart, President & CEOFactiva, a Dow Jones & Reuters Company
Keynote by speaker Jim Harris:
AI is transforming business, government and society as a whole. We’re seeing AI applications with 10X to 10,000X increases in productivity! AI will add up to $4.4 Trillion of economic value every year by 2030. Many aspects of business, associations, government and society are being enhanced by this transformative technology.
This fast-paced, dynamic session will focus on proven, practical strategies, tactics, and actionable tools. It will highlight dozens of AI and GenAI apps and case studies focused on improving customer satisfaction, dramatically shortening cycle times, increasing sales and cutting costs. It will highlight benefits for many different functions within an organization: sales, marketing, customer service and finance.
In the US there are nearly 2 million job openings in health care alone. AI can save $386 billion a year if fully implemented in health care alone and while addressing the staff shortage.
Jim’s sessions have been described as “mind-blowing,” “riveting” and “eye-opening.”
The session will explore:
Keynote by speaker Jim Harris:
Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity (VUCA) – is the defining reality of modern business. For today’s executives, mastering VUCA is essential to navigating the turbulence and turning uncertainty into opportunity.
The Age of Accelerated Change
We are witnessing the fastest, most disruptive period in corporate history. Markets shift overnight. Technologies leapfrog decades. Consumer behaviors evolve in real time. The scale and speed of change are without precedent:
These events aren’t anomalies – they’re signals of a world in permanent flux. Leadership strategies must evolve accordingly.
The Executive Imperative in a VUCA Landscape
For C-suite executives, this moment demands more than operational excellence. It requires visionary leadership, systemic thinking, and a willingness to experiment at scale. Key questions every executive team must address:
VUCA as a Strategic Advantage
Leaders who understand the nature of VUCA don't just survive—they thrive. They create adaptive organizations, nurture courageous cultures, and lead with both decisiveness and humility.
In a world where transformation not optional, mastering VUCA is essential. Those who develop the capacity it will outpace disruption—and shape the future of business.
Keynote by speaker Jim Harris:
The pandemic has driven a decade of change in just two years. Here are a few examples:
eCommerce
experienced a decade of growth in the first 90 days of the pandemic! You can take the value of Walmart, Best Buy, Target and five other retailers, add them together and multiply by three and it’s just worth Amazon’s market cap.UBS predicts that 100,000 US retail locations will permanently shutter by 2025 as a result.
Telemedicine
experienced 10X the growth rate in the first 15 days. In 2020 Americans made 1 billion medical visits via telemedicine. More than 300 million Chinese use the
Ping
a Good Doctor
app.
Zoom
grew its customer count from 10 million daily users to 300 million downloading the application in the first 90 days of the pandemic. How many companies do you know that grew their customer count by 30X in the pandemic? Zoom is now facilitating 3.5 trillion minutes a year. More than all theinternational long-distance calls of all telcos combined added to all international long distance VoIP calls globally of all providers.
Streaming
(Netflix, Disney+and others) experienced 7 years of growth in the first 5 months of the pandemic.
Tesla
is now worth more than the following 11 traditional car companies combined: General Motors, Ford, Toyota, VW, Honda, Daimler (Mercedes Benz), Subaru, Hyundai, Ferrari, Mazda and BMW. So if you don’t think that electrification and autonomous vehicles are going to change the $10 Trillion a year transportation market, think again.
What are the permanent business changes as a result of COVID?
Future of Work & Hybrid Work: Dell computers says that 60% of it’s 165,000 employees will never come back into the office. They’ll work from home. What are theimplications for commercial real estate?
Mental Health: Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce admitted that 36% of the company’s 50,000 employees were experiencing mental health challenges. And that’s in a company that was growing during thepandemic! In this time of high stress for employees’ mental health and wellness has become very important.
Keynote by speaker Jim Harris:
41% of patients skipped care during the pandemic. In China, more than 50% of all medical visits have been virtual during the pandemic and 300 million Chinese use the app Ping a Good Doctor! These changes raise profound questions and that have critical implications.
Telehealth
In the US, 46% of all medical visits in 2020 used telehealth. And there are now a billion virtual medical visits in the US in a single year.
McKinsey estimates that the telehealth market will be $250 Billion by 2025.
The need for telehealth existed pre pandemic. American Medical Association estimates 40% of emergency room visits & 70% of doctor’s office visits could be eliminated simply by phone calls.
Mental Health
36% of Salesforce’s 50,000 staff report experiencing mental health challenges during the pandemic(and that’s in a company that’s been growing).
Anxiety and depression are widespread. What are strategies to help staff? Patients?
Health care professionals are burnt out and anti-mask, anti-vax protests in front of hospitals have increased employee stress and frustration.
Staffing Crisis
We have a shortage of 108,000 medical professionals in Canada currently, creating anunprecedented staffing crisis. Strategies to cope?
Demographic Shifts
There are more Canadians over the age of 65 than under 14! Who’s going to care for aging boomers?
Millennials and Gen Z’s are now 50% of the workforce. By 2025 it will be 75%. How does organizational culture need to evolve to attract, retain and engage these demographics?
Technology
As our smartphones are getting ever smarter, we are seeing its medicalization. A University of Cambridge developed an app who listens to breathing and coughing and predicts, with exceptional accuracy, whether you have COVID.
Using a high-res image of your retina an AI can predict your gender and age; whether you have high or normal blood pressure; whether you are a smoker; are at risk of a stroke or heart attack. Is our medical system taking advantage of technology advances?What are the implication for the insurance industry?
To sequence the first human genome took 13 years and cost $2.7 Billion; today, it takes 13 hours and costs less than $600. Within five years, it will only take 13 minutes and cost $10.
Keynote by speaker Jim Harris:
Keynote by speaker Jim Harris:
Select one or two trends from each category and Jim will create a custom keynote focusing on your choices.
Energy Shift: The cheapest form of energy in North America? Globally? Solar.
Mobile First: Mobile first companies have an 825% higher valuation on IPO than those with no mobile enablement.
AI First: Artificial Intelligence is changing everything.
Edge Computing or Internet of Things (IoT) preventative maintenance.
Electrification of Transportation: Tesla is now worth more than the 11 traditional car companies combined. So if you don’t think that electrification and autonomous vehicles are going to change the $10trillion a year transportation market, think again.
Blockchain, Crypto, NFTs, DAOs, Web 3.0 Metaverse.
Permanent Business Changes Because of COVID
Future of Work & Hybrid Work: Dell computers says that 60% of it’s 165,000 employees will never come back into the office. They’ll work from home.What are the implications for commercial real estate?
Mental Health. Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce, admitted that 36% of the company’s 50,000 employees were experiencing mental health challenges. And that’s in a company that was growing during the pandemic! In this time of high stress for employees’ mental health and wellness has become very important.
Work & Workplace Trends:
Watch Jim Harris in action!
Watch Jim Harris in action!
Watch Jim Harris in action!
