Former Royal Marine, accomplished sailor and speaker.
UK
Pete is an accomplished sailor, speaker and Associate Fellow of Said Business School at Oxford University. He draws on his experiences to offer leadership and management talks and team-building exercises, inspiring individuals and groups to achieve beyond what they thought possible.
Request fees and availability5 out of 5 stars
Absolutely First Class. We were mesmerised. Without doubt the most interesting, stimulating and motivational speaker we have experienced… Pete Goss has excellent management motivation.
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About Pete
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Pete has competed in seven transatlantic and two round-the-world races and has sailed more than 300,000 nautical miles.
A former Royal Marine, Pete has taken on numerous endeavours that share the same four principles; innovation, technology, challenge and adventure. An acclaimed International Speaker, he draws on his experiences to offer leadership and management talks, team-building exercises and training sessions, inspiring individuals and groups to achieve beyond what they thought possible.
A regular lecturer at business schools, he is an Associate Fellow of Said Business School Oxford University.
Recently Pete built the 37’ Cornish Lugger ‘Spirit of Mystery’ (as seen on BBC Coast) which he sailed with family members, including his fourteen year old son, to Melbourne. This recreated the voyage of the smallest migrant vessel to make it to Australia 150 years ago. Rowing out of harbour and navigating by the stars, they faced many challenges including a ferocious Southern Ocean storm that rolled them upside-down and broke a crewman’s leg. However they still reached Australia together.
In addition to this Pete circumnavigated Tasmania by sea kayak; with limited communication he was exposed once again to the Southern Ocean and the notorious Bass Strait.
Pete first captured global headlines whilst competing in the Vendee Globe single-handed non-stop round the world yacht race. Risking his own life in the midst of a fierce Southern Ocean hurricane Pete turned his yacht around to rescue French sailor Raphael Dinelli. Once Pete had dropped Raphael off in Tasmania he completed the race, coming 5th. In recognition of his courage Pete was awarded the Legion d’Honneur, Frances highest bravery award, an MBE presented by Her Majesty the Queen and voted World Sailor of the Year.
He trained and led the original set of amateur crews for the British Steel Challenge (generally regarded to be the toughest yacht race in the world). Pete talks positively and with passion about leading teams through exciting but often complex, difficult and dangerous situations.
Always keen to defy convention he attempted a world record with a revolutionary catamaran, Team Philips (which was sadly brought to a halt by a freak storm in the Atlantic). This was a five-year project where Pete headed up a workforce of more than 100 employees, brokered multi-million pound sponsorship deals and assisted with the creation of several new companies. Handling these complex and often conflicting pressures, gave Pete a unique insight into the challenges that face every organisation.
Whether Pete is taking on the next sailing challenge or heading expeditions to the North Pole he combines a competitive tenacity with a keen ‘will to win’.
From design to completion Pete managed every aspect of the 15 projects he took on. His stories create an interesting, motivating tapestry through which he weaves business lessons learned. A natural communicator with a dynamic but informal style, Pete never ceases to amuse, entertain and inform.
See keynotes with Pete GossMore astronauts have circled the globe than single-handed sailors.
The Southern Ocean is known as the most desolate place in the world.
Imagine you are competing in a single-handed round the world yacht race and you are in the midst of a fierce Southern Ocean hurricane.
You are thinking of your family when suddenly you hear a mayday call.
Do you risk your own life, turn your yacht around and prepare to sail into the unknown to rescue a stranger?
Pete Goss’s humorous, emotional and compelling storytelling takes you with him to that moment of truth.
You are left realizing that Pete’s success rests on the shoulders of a very broad team that challenged the norm through innovation and technology, adapting to the disruption of change. From creating new yachting concepts, studying sleep patterns, analysing dietary requirements and developing personal resilience.
Pete has a “can-do” spirit that’s infectious. His exploits are both inspirational and awe-inspiring. When he recounts his adventures and you feel you are at sea by his side!
With remarkable skill Pete, a successful businessman in his own right, takes real life adventures and relates them to todays business situations. He reinforces lessons in Leadership, The Importance of Teamwork, Risk and How to Make Things Happen.
This talk will touch you, stay with you and influence your thinking.
‘Leadership Challenges the norm whereas management makes it more efficient.’
‘The best teams are all leaders, it’s an ethos, an attitude’.
Imagine starting with a sketch, a sketch that stretches the norm and then turning that sketch into reality. Where would you start, what would your guiding principles be?
How would you ignore those timid experts that choose to judge future potential by polishing the past rather than challenging it?
Leaders must have mental resilience, be credible, they are judged and must judge themselves by their actions.
Weaving a story through history, family, risk and adventure. This is a unique, amusing yet thought-provoking speech recreating Pete’s journey on-board the ‘SPIRIT OF MYSTERY’.
This is a mix of funny but thought provoking anecdotes from every thing Pete has done so far – from racing in the Vendee, pushing the boundaries of boat design with Team Philips, having an integral role in The British Steel Challenge, leading 4 expeditions to the North Pole to being a the Royal Marine, raising a family and working on a Salvage Tug!
Pete was recommended to us as a motivational and leadership speaker. We wanted to put him in front of our customers, a senior group of no nonsense operational management. Having not seen Pete speak before, I was apprehensive. His session was a keynote, the audience was tough, but one minute into his speech, the attention was 100%. You could hear a pin drop, everyone related to his adventure and story of determination in business. We were all truly motivated by it. In our feedback survey everyone voted 5/5 for Pete, we would definitely hire him again!
Pete’s work with executives exhibits his ability to reinforce important business lessons. These include, how to move on from having an idea to making it happen and how to manage risk. He always remains humble and grounded - reinforcing the concept of the team approach. Pete’s sessions provide the ideal backdrop for global senior executives to challenge their capability, whilst remaining true to their values.
What strikes me most about Pete Goss is that he’s authentic! No pretenses, no self-adulation, just exceptional wisdom and leadership skill. He takes real-life adventures and extracts lessons that are relevant to many business situations.
During a lunch event held in Monaco, Pete Goss gave one of the very best keynote speeches we have heard. He inspired the audience with his lively, well organised and thoughtful presentation, which was delivered with a fun and appealing approach. Members of the audience were inspired and could easily relate Pete’s incredible experiences to their own day to day business challenges.
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