Your keynote speaker:
REIMAGINE POWERFUL PRESENTATIONS AND AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT
You’re looking for a keynote speaker who’s passionate, creative, has great audience engagement and is easy to work with? I’m happy to say: that’s me, Simon Banks!
Take a look at me in action
I’m an international keynote speaker and author, podcaster on creativity, innovation and design and a recovering professional artist. I’ve delivered over 1400+ events and am an experienced, proven and acclaimed presenter who’s helped people shift their thinking and develop great ideas in industry-leading companies around the globe.
Want a guest speaker who really inspires?
My conference speaker geek-out spot is at the intersection of creativity and design, business and people, with some passion and inspiration thrown in. I think these are essential building blocks for reimagining what’s possible.
I use my artist’s curiosity combined with my 20+ year corporate career to help build a uniquely creative world to enable people and organisations to thrive in the ever-evolving business space. I’m here to help you bring fresh, cutting edge thinking and practical strategies to your workplace to ignite your people and achieve your business goals while keeping the innovation ball rolling.
The future is creative
Predicting future trends can be tricky, we’ve all learned that over the last few years.
Our creativity (connecting the dots in different ways) is essential for business as it helps us to adapt, thrive and grow – whatever the future trends are saying.
Building that creative muscle in our organisations empowers us to do all the things that machines, A.I. and technology can’t do. It’s all about our brilliant human capabilities. When your people have creative confidence as part of their business process, you’ll find your results skyrocket and your people thrive.
How does this work in a keynote presentation?
I’m not your ordinary keynote speaker. (Not boasting, I’m just a little different.)
As a practicing artist with a foot firmly planted in both the creative and corporate worlds, I ‘get’ creativity and the alchemy that becomes possible when we use it. I’m passionate about the critical role creativity – and its wingmen, curiosity and imagination – can play in our lives. I believe the world can only be a better place when we embrace our creativity and a more whole way of thinking, working, and doing.
I like to practice what I preach and bring a creative approach into the way I present keynote presentations. I use my visual storytelling skills to bring content to life with drawing (I’m handy with a Sharpie).
Just as I do in my Innovation Workshops, I draw on the practical world of creativity and design practices to provide an active, hands-on approach for everyone in the room (or on Zoom). People learn by doing and we get to do creativity. It’s not just a framework or a ‘follow my three steps’ shoved at them from the front of the room.
HERE’S THE DEAL:
IF YOU WERE BORN,
YOU’RE ALREADY CREATIVE.
As the world around us continues to shift apace, it’s never been more important to be the creative human you’re designed to be. Whilst every business management trend will tell you how important creativity is, I’ll show you how to embrace your creativity every day to drive innovation and put you on the path to achieving the business goals you desire.
We’re on the edge of a revolution (yes, them’s big words!) if we choose to accept our limitless creativity, curiosity, and imagination.
And that’s what I love to bring into my keynote presentations – passion, creativity, energy and a tangible experience of what’s possible when we embrace what we were born to do.
If you’re after a better-than-average inspirational speaker (I don’t want to be too boastful) who ‘gets’ audience engagement and isn’t your average PowerPoint warrior, then I’m pleased to meet you.
And just before I go, let me tell you: I have a pretty compelling presentation style for both the online and offline environments. As a recovering professional artist, I’m comfortable wielding a Sharpie. As such, I use my drawings throughout all my keynote speeches. It makes for great audience engagement as the screen comes alive with animation and energy.
Choose your keynote adventure:
Hello Creativity, it’s good to see you!
Remember that kid who saw possibility in every corner? Where every moment was a mini adventure? That was your creativity speaking, and it’s waiting to say hello – if you’re willing to listen. Future trends show us just how important our creativity is. As automation and AI rapidly change the world around us, your business strategy for the future of work needs your creative intelligence more than ever. It’s pleading for it: innovative thinking and reimagining what’s possible play a critical role that will only grow in importance.
As this keynote explores the neuroscience of why our creativity makes us human, be ready to embrace your creativity like a long-lost bestie. Every human is creative. When we open our eyes, are curious and use our natural-born creativity, the possibilities are endless – personally, for your career, for your organisation and the dent you and your organisation want to make in the universe.
This keynote presentation will enable you to kickstart your creative brain like never before as you say, “Hello creativity, it’s good to see you.”
Keynote outcomes:
A Thousand Little Lightbulbs:
How to Kickstart and build a culture of Innovation in your organisation.
Kickstarting a culture of innovation can feel pretty hard. Let me tell you, it’s not that hard to change your thinking and fulfill the hidden innovation potential in your organisation.
The good news is, I promise you don’t have to ride a unicycle, grow a Hipster beard or start drinking kale and quinoa smoothies (though I won’t stop you if that’s really important to you). Small steps and smart thinking can make a huge difference. If you’re looking to kickstart a culture of innovation, develop to your full potential and have a constant stream of little lightbulb moments that lead to massive forward motion, this keynote speech is for you.
Keynote outcomes:
Ok, this sounds good.
Reimagine how you solve problems and keep creativity alive
Watch a Preview of Simon’s Reimagine Keynote
You know those days, weeks, maybe even months where it can just feel like:
Over the last few skew-whiff years, we’ve heard so much about the ‘re’ words – resilience, rebuilding and recovery. These are all important. However, we can’t do any of them unless we embrace another ‘re’ word – reimagine.
When we engage our curious and creative minds and reimagine what’s possible, we can write the uniquely creative stories we want to be in. With imagination, we can do better than merely adapting to the current ‘treadmill’ environment. We can thrive by shaping the environment, creative spaces and story we want to be part of. Yes, times are a little different (tell us something we don’t know!) and we need new ways of thinking and operating to not only just get by, but to thrive. Creative spirits aren’t just for downtime, it’s time to bring them to work, too.
Keynote outcomes:
I keep the work I do directly with clients private.
Here are some of the recent public conferences where I’ve been a conference speaker
IABC Global Conference
New York, 2022
Virtual Lean
Summit 21
Global Audience, 2022
Human Insights Conference
Sydney, 2022
National Development Conference (MC)
Virtual, 2021
PRIA National Conference
Gold Coast, 2022
The art of the story:
Principles to get real, get going and upshift your communication game
Humans have been telling stories since day one. They are an essential part of our communication, whether that’s in person or digital communication. A good story makes us think, feel, and speaks to us in ways that numbers, data, and presentation slides simply can’t. Most importantly, if you know your storytelling techniques you can put information in a way that our 21st Century minds crave: simple, meaningful and engaging. Whilst communication design technology can spice up storytelling, it’s the most basic human traits of effective communication and connection that drive a story and its ability to cut through.
If you’re after a session that busts through your company’s addiction to corporate speak and teaches you how to tell awesome stories, this one’s for you. (And think you can’t draw? Get ready to bust that myth once and for all!)
Keynote outcomes:
Thriving ideas:
Get your team to a place where big ideas and great conversations exist every day.
Do you want to take your collaboration skills and creative leadership to the next level? Ideas can get stuck or shut down all too easily if your team lacks creative intelligence. In the blink of an eye, that flash of inspiration can be gone, never to return.
An organisation that routinely kills ideas is an organisation that’s not fit for the future.
However, it can be hard to find your creative flow in a world of 1000 emails, constant pings and endless checklists. How do you make sure that you future-proof your business and enable ideas and great stories to thrive across your organisation?
Good news, there is a way.
This highly interactive keynote session uses the principles of improv theatre, storytelling and a good dash of humour to engage your people. They’ll move to a place where rewarding conversations, captivating stories and great ideas exist every day, and the collaboration skills, strategies and team spirit speak via the results you see now, and into the future. Oh and if you like to snooze at the back of the room, bad luck as you’ll certainly be out of your seat for this one!
Who said learning had to be boring?
Keynote outcomes:
Here’s what some happy clients say
about having me as a keynote speaker
The keynote was awesome. Your presentation style rocks. You have made the most of doing talks remotely, your drawing and visuals are such a clever adaptation to this new environment. I really enjoyed spending time with you.
Peter Seaman,
Head of Continuous Improvement and Innovation – International Visitors at nib Health Funds
I wanted to write to you personally to say thank you on behalf of myself and our CEO Louise Harland-Cox, but most importantly a thank you on behalf of every single one of our members.
With you, we were able to create an event that truly commemorated the creativity that drives our industry, unpacked the curiosity that underlies every great idea and celebrated the power of storytelling in every way. Every single attendee that I spoke to was inspired by the power of the insights that you shared, and your transparency in doing so.
Thanks so much for your energy, enthusiasm, and most importantly – time.
Shane Allison,
President, Public Relations Institute of Australia
Thanks so much Simon! I had a blast. So many great comments on Facebook. Such an awesome effort getting everyone going online, it was great. Thanks so much for your time, our members truly appreciate it.
Keirin McCormack,
JCI Australia National President
