Award-winning humanitarian and social entrepreneur inspiring organizations to embed purpose into workplace culture, cultivate engagement, and lead with heart and resilience through times of change.
5.00 of 5
Top rated!5 of 5
Katie is a master storyteller—her keynote was truly inspiring. We laughed, we cried, we learned, and we left with a clear plan for our futures.
Beth McDonald
Real Estate Investor Success Summit
Katie Hilborn turned personal adversity into global impact, earning recognition alongside the Dalai Lama and Jane Goodall as a 7x award-winning humanitarian, social entrepreneur, and keynote speaker. A master story weaver, she blends lived experience with actionable insight to shift paradigms and move audiences to meaningful change. Her heart-led initiatives have raised millions and inspired over 100,000 volunteer hours.
Her defining moment came in March 2015, when a massive earthquake flattened Nepal. Living in Australia at the time, Katie watched villages vanish, temples crumble, and children become orphaned overnight.
As an orphan herself, she couldn’t look away. She flew to Nepal with no plan and led 13 missions delivering aid to remote villages—where she uncovered a child trafficking ring. It wasn’t just disaster relief—it was about saving lives in more ways than one. That experience taught her: fear isn’t something you wait to overcome. You move forward with it.
It also taught her something deeper—how to lead teams with purpose and heart, even in crisis. True impact doesn’t come from control, but from creating trust, vision, and meaning in the chaos.
Born to a mother with mental illness and abandoned at birth, she was adopted into a loving Chicago family whose legacy shaped her future. At 20, witnessing her birth mother’s death from multiple sclerosis forced her to confront mortality, privilege, and purpose—igniting a lifelong quest to explore, grow, and give back.
Her journey has taken her from funding her first school in Uganda with coffeehouse tips to walking pumas in the Bolivian jungle, living with the Maasai, and helping communities rise after loss. These extraordinary chapters shape a keynote platform that is impactful and memorable.
As founder and CEO of Compass Rose International, a nonprofit advancing mental wellness and education for girls, Katie introduces the concept of “following the breadcrumbs” of intuition—trusting your inner compass to make bold, heart-led decisions that transform careers, cultures, and communities.
Her message resonates with leaders and teams seeking more than motivation. Audiences leave with frameworks to build purpose-driven workplaces, boost engagement, retention, productivity, and navigate uncertainty.
She has spoken at 15 major events—including the Global Family Office Investment Summit, The CE Shop, and Northern Illinois University—and has been featured in New York Magazine, NBC Denver, and ABC Chicago. Her accolades include a Silver Anthem Award Leader of the Year, multiple Telly Awards, The President’s Call to Service Award, and membership in the Forbes Nonprofit Council.
Her keynotes don’t just inspire—they awaken something deeper. With humor, humanity, and heart, she delivers experiences that leave audiences forever inspired.
5 of 5
Katie is a master storyteller—her keynote was truly inspiring. We laughed, we cried, we learned, and we left with a clear plan for our futures.
Beth McDonald Real Estate Investor Success Summit
5 of 5
Really enjoyed the presentation that Katie provided today to offer inspirations to Real Estate Investors and how they can change the world and her world travels have really painted a picture of how people need help in the world.
Travis Spencer Organizer, Real Estate Investor Success Summit
5 of 5
Katie was very inspiring. I really feel like we're leaving better people with a plan of how to get started in making our dreams come true.
Ami Orchard Colorado PTA President, 100th Annual PTA Convention
5 of 5
It's exhausting just to think about how Katie thinks, let alone try to imagine the fortitude it requires to take all of this on.
Daily Herald Editorial Staff
Watch Katie Hilborn in action!
Watch Katie Hilborn in action!
Watch Katie Hilborn in action!
The workplace is in flux. Between AI disruption, remote work, and cultural shifts like quiet quitting and The Great Resignation, one truth has emerged: employees are no longer satisfied with checking boxes—they want meaning.
Nearly 40% of workers are considering leaving their jobs due to a lack of purpose (Gallup). But what if the solution isn’t more perks or pressure—but realignment?
In this keynote, Katie introduces a blueprint for helping teams and organizations align personal purpose with collective mission. And the timing is critical: AI advancements are projected to save employees up to 12 hours per week within five years—and four hours as early as next year (Thomson Reuters). That time isn’t just a cost-saving—it's an opportunity to create cultures rooted in purpose, reflection, and impact.
Backed by research showing a 40% increase in retention (Global Talent Trends) and a 30% boost in productivity (McKinsey), Katie’s approach equips leaders to harness this shift through heart-centric leadership—turning saved time into meaningful, human-centered progress.
Drawing from real-world lessons—delivering earthquake aid in Nepal, walking pumas through the Bolivian jungle, and launching charities that reduce trafficking to zero—Katie reveals how intuitive, heart-led decision-making can shape cultures that thrive through change. Because when people feel aligned with their purpose, they don’t just stay—they rise.
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From shifting job roles to sweeping industry changes, today’s workplace has never felt more uncertain. Change fatigue has surged by 170%, and only one-third of employees feel equipped to manage what’s coming next (Harvard Business Review). We’re not just burned out—we’re directionless.
In this keynote, Katie introduces a transformational model rooted in archetypal balance—merging feminine leadership traits like empathy, intuition, and collaboration with masculine leadership traits like decisiveness, clarity, and bold action. The result is a powerful shift: from grinding through uncertainty to growing through it.
Leaders and teams who use this model drive 33% better team collaboration and are 3.5x more effective in managing change (TalentSmartEQ).
Drawing from real-life experiences—from delivering aid in disaster zones to building multi-million dollar social movements—Katie offers neuroscience-backed tools and deeply human insights that allow individuals and teams to move through change with clarity, steadiness, and purpose.
This keynote is for anyone who wants to show up with strength and authenticity in a world that’s constantly evolving.
The audience will leave with:
Students today face challenges that demand adaptability, creativity, and self-leadership. Research shows many experience declines in performance and well-being during transitions, such as starting university or preparing for careers, often due to disrupted support systems and lack of guidance. This keynote provides a framework for embracing change with authenticity, empathy, and heart-centric principles, equipping students to thrive in uncertainty and turn challenges into opportunities.
Katie Hilborn’s extraordinary journey demonstrates the transformative power of self-leadership and leading with heart. Born into adversity and adopted after being abandoned at birth, Katie overcame significant challenges to find her path of resilience and growth. From living with the Maasai Tribe to delivering disaster relief during the Nepal earthquakes, and founding initiatives that reduced child trafficking cases in Nepal to zero, her story shows how challenges can become opportunities for lasting impact.
Through relatable metaphors and personal anecdotes, Katie inspires students to rethink self-leadership as a balance of archetypes: embracing the feminine archetypes of empathy, intuition, and collaboration alongside the masculine archetypes of decisive action, strategic thinking, and bold problem-solving. By understanding how and when to draw on these complementary qualities. She shares how self-leadership and intuitive decision-making—following the "breadcrumbs" of purpose—can transform setbacks into opportunities, helping students create meaningful and impactful futures.
Katie’s approach blends resilience with intentional action to create lasting change. With over 100,000 hours dedicated to her mission and recognition as an Anthem Awards Leader of the Year, she shares how heart-centric self-leadership helped her navigate challenges, guide teams, and achieve extraordinary results. Her insights empower students to approach challenges with authenticity, empathy, and the courage to take meaningful risks.
The Audience Will Leave With:
Today’s students are navigating an increasingly complex world where stress and uncertainty are at an all time high. Research shows that 74% of young people are actively searching for purpose and meaning in their lives, yet 40% report feeling disconnected from a clear sense of direction or fulfillment (Pew Research Center). The pressures of academic performance, social media, and future planning leave many students feeling overwhelmed and lost, craving deeper connections between their daily actions and a greater purpose.
Katie Hilborn’s Purpose ArchitectTM keynote provides a transformative approach to building a life where purpose is at the cornerstone. This framework aligns students' values, passions, and goals, creating a foundation for well-being, academic success, resilience, and ultimately fulfillment.
Grounded in data—such as a 30% boost in academic performance (Stanford) and a 40% increase in happiness for purpose-driven individuals (Greater Good Science Center)—and enriched by Katie’s extraordinary experiences, this keynote inspires and equips students to embrace purpose as their guiding force. Katie also introduces the concept of following the breadcrumbs of intuition, demonstrating how small, seemingly insignificant moments can guide heart-led decisions that reshape not only their education but their entire lives.
As a 7x award-winning humanitarian recognized alongside the Dalai Lama, Katie shares profound lessons from walking pumas in Bolivian jungles, to leading earthquake disaster relief in Nepal, and founding children’s charities. Through these vivid stories, she illustrates how embracing purpose and intuition can transform challenges into opportunities, cultivate meaningful connections, and ignite a ripple effect of positive change.
The Audience Will Leave With:
