Top 19 Future of Work Speakers to Book in 2026
The best future of work speakers don't just predict change—they help your team prepare for it. With AI, hybrid work, and workforce expectations all shifting at once, the right voice in the room can reframe how your organization thinks about talent, culture, and strategy. This list covers speakers worth booking, so you can find the right fit for your next event.
Top 19 Future of Work Speakers
Below are the profiles of the top future of work speakers, covering who they are and the impact they've made in this space.
Ravin Jesuthasan
Ravin Jesuthasan is Mercer’s Global Transformation Services Leader, a Kellogg executive fellow, and an author. His work examines AI, skills, work design, and global workforce transformation.
His books Work Without Jobs and …
Ravin Jesuthasan is Mercer’s Global Transformation Services Leader, a Kellogg executive fellow, and an author. His work examines AI, skills, work design, and global workforce transformation.
His books Work Without Jobs and The Skills-Powered Organization challenge job-based models and show leaders how to redesign work around tasks, skills, and human-machine combinations. His research and speaking give HR leaders practical frameworks for navigating AI-driven workforce change.
Lynda Gratton
Lynda Gratton is a London Business School professor and founder of its Future of Work Consortium. Her research spans careers, longevity, hybrid work, culture, and global HR strategy.
Through books including Redesigning…
Lynda Gratton is a London Business School professor and founder of its Future of Work Consortium. Her research spans careers, longevity, hybrid work, culture, and global HR strategy.
Through books including Redesigning Work and The 100-Year Life, Gratton examines how longer lives, technology, and changing expectations reshape careers and organizations. Her work helps leaders rethink work design, learning, and people practices for a more fluid future.
Heather E. McGowan
Heather E. McGowan is a future-of-work strategist, author, and keynote speaker who translates technological and social change into practical frameworks for leadership, learning, and adaptation.
Co-author of The Adaptation Advantage and The…
Heather E. McGowan is a future-of-work strategist, author, and keynote speaker who translates technological and social change into practical frameworks for leadership, learning, and adaptation.
Co-author of The Adaptation Advantage and The Empathy Advantage, McGowan argues that adaptability, curiosity, empathy, and human potential become more valuable as technology advances. Her keynotes help leaders rethink learning, culture, and leadership amid rapid change.
Josh Bersin
Josh Bersin is the founder and CEO of The Josh Bersin Company, an industry analyst and educator whose research spans HR technology, talent, learning, leadership, and workforce strategy.
After founding Bersin &…
Josh Bersin is the founder and CEO of The Josh Bersin Company, an industry analyst and educator whose research spans HR technology, talent, learning, leadership, and workforce strategy.
After founding Bersin & Associates and later the Josh Bersin Academy, Bersin built a body of research used by HR leaders to interpret shifts in skills, AI, organizational design, and employee experience. His work connects emerging workplace trends with practical people strategy.
Laszlo Bock
Laszlo Bock is a former Google and Alphabet CHRO, co-founder of Humu and Gretel.ai, and co-director of Berkeley’s Transformative CHRO Leadership Program, with deep expertise in people analytics.
At Google, Bock helped…
Laszlo Bock is a former Google and Alphabet CHRO, co-founder of Humu and Gretel.ai, and co-director of Berkeley’s Transformative CHRO Leadership Program, with deep expertise in people analytics.
At Google, Bock helped build a data-driven approach to people management and later wrote Work Rules! on culture and talent practices. His work now spans CHRO education, AI advising, and entrepreneurship, giving HR leaders a perspective on how analytics, technology, and management systems shape work.
Kelly Monahan
Kelly Monahan is co-founder of Beyond the Desk, a researcher and future-of-work advisor. Her career includes leadership roles at Accenture, Deloitte, Meta, and the Upwork Research Institute.
Beyond the Desk combines workforce…
Kelly Monahan is co-founder of Beyond the Desk, a researcher and future-of-work advisor. Her career includes leadership roles at Accenture, Deloitte, Meta, and the Upwork Research Institute.
Beyond the Desk combines workforce research with organizational psychology to help leaders navigate AI, workforce change, and organizational systems. Monahan’s work examines how leaders can deliberately redesign work while balancing technology, performance, and human needs.
Anita Lettink
Anita Lettink is a future-of-work keynote speaker, author, and advisor with more than two decades of experience spanning HR, workforce transformation, payroll, technology, and business strategy.
Lettink connects demographics, skills, pay, HR…
Anita Lettink is a future-of-work keynote speaker, author, and advisor with more than two decades of experience spanning HR, workforce transformation, payroll, technology, and business strategy.
Lettink connects demographics, skills, pay, HR technology, and AI rather than treating them as separate trends. Her keynotes and advisory work help HR leaders test assumptions, plan for changing workforce expectations, and make more durable decisions about how work and people systems evolve.
Erik van Vulpen
Erik van Vulpen is co-founder of AIHR, an online academy focused on building practical HR capabilities. His work centers on future-proofing HR through skills, technology, data, and AI.
Through AIHR, van Vulpen…
Erik van Vulpen is co-founder of AIHR, an online academy focused on building practical HR capabilities. His work centers on future-proofing HR through skills, technology, data, and AI.
Through AIHR, van Vulpen helps HR professionals build capabilities in analytics, digital HR, AI, and strategic workforce practice. His writing and education focus on how HR can adopt new technology responsibly while developing the skills and operating models needed for changing organizations.
Stacia Garr
Stacia Garr is co-founder and principal analyst at RedThread Research, where she studies employee experience, leadership, people analytics, talent practices, learning, and HR technology.
Garr’s research examines how organizations use data and…
Stacia Garr is co-founder and principal analyst at RedThread Research, where she studies employee experience, leadership, people analytics, talent practices, learning, and HR technology.
Garr’s research examines how organizations use data and technology to improve talent decisions, skills strategy, learning, leadership, and employee experience. Her analyst perspective helps HR leaders separate durable shifts from vendor noise as work and workforce systems evolve.
Josh Drean
Josh Drean is a workforce futurist, author, keynote speaker, and founder working at the intersection of employee experience, emerging technology, organizational change, and the future of work.
Drean writes and speaks about…
Josh Drean is a workforce futurist, author, keynote speaker, and founder working at the intersection of employee experience, emerging technology, organizational change, and the future of work.
Drean writes and speaks about how technology changes the employee-employer relationship, with particular attention to AI, digital work, and workforce experience. His future-of-work perspective pushes leaders to rethink how organizations create value, trust, and engagement as work models change.
Melissa Swift
Melissa Swift is founder and CEO of Anthrome Insight, an author and workplace strategist whose work explores how leaders can redesign organizations, jobs, and ways of working amid rapid change.
Swift studies…
Melissa Swift is founder and CEO of Anthrome Insight, an author and workplace strategist whose work explores how leaders can redesign organizations, jobs, and ways of working amid rapid change.
Swift studies why work breaks down and how leaders can make organizations more effective through better job design, management, and technology choices. Her writing and speaking connect AI and transformation with the human realities of change, helping leaders redesign work without losing sight of people.
Claire Haidar
Claire Haidar is co-founder of WNDYR and Pattyrn, a technology entrepreneur and speaker. Her work explores people analytics, work design, employee experience, and digital transformation.
Haidar treats the future of work as…
Claire Haidar is co-founder of WNDYR and Pattyrn, a technology entrepreneur and speaker. Her work explores people analytics, work design, employee experience, and digital transformation.
Haidar treats the future of work as a design problem spanning humans, workflows, data, and technology. Through WNDYR and Pattyrn, she has focused on analyzing how teams work and redesigning employee experiences, giving leaders a systems view of digital, global, and increasingly AI-enabled work.
Cassie Kozyrkov
Cassie Kozyrkov is CEO of Kozyr, a decision intelligence pioneer, AI advisor, speaker, and Google’s former Chief Decision Scientist, known for helping leaders make better decisions with data and AI.
Kozyrkov founded…
Cassie Kozyrkov is CEO of Kozyr, a decision intelligence pioneer, AI advisor, speaker, and Google’s former Chief Decision Scientist, known for helping leaders make better decisions with data and AI.
Kozyrkov founded the field of decision intelligence and built her work around turning information into better actions. Through Kozyr, she advises leaders on AI strategy, decision quality, and responsible technology adoption, connecting AI’s potential with the human judgment needed to use it well.
Adam Grant
Adam Grant is a Wharton professor of management and psychology, organizational psychologist, author, and speaker. His research explores motivation, creativity, work culture, and organizational change.
Grant’s research and books examine how people…
Adam Grant is a Wharton professor of management and psychology, organizational psychologist, author, and speaker. His research explores motivation, creativity, work culture, and organizational change.
Grant’s research and books examine how people rethink assumptions, generate ideas, collaborate, and build healthier organizations. His work on motivation, psychological safety, learning, and adaptability gives leaders evidence-based ways to shape cultures that can respond to changing technology and work.
Wagner Denuzzo
Wagner Denuzzo is a future-of-work and organizational transformation leader, author, executive coach, and founder of the School of Work, drawing on decades of HR, talent, and leadership experience.
Denuzzo has led future-of-work,…
Wagner Denuzzo is a future-of-work and organizational transformation leader, author, executive coach, and founder of the School of Work, drawing on decades of HR, talent, and leadership experience.
Denuzzo has led future-of-work, talent, and leadership initiatives at large enterprises and now develops leaders for a more fluid workplace. His work emphasizes culture, connection, teaming, skills, and human-centered transformation as organizations adapt to new technologies and operating models.
Bernard Marr
Bernard Marr is a futurist, author, keynote speaker, and business adviser whose work translates shifts in artificial intelligence, data, digital transformation, and technology into leadership insight.
Marr explains how AI and other…
Bernard Marr is a futurist, author, keynote speaker, and business adviser whose work translates shifts in artificial intelligence, data, digital transformation, and technology into leadership insight.
Marr explains how AI and other emerging technologies change jobs, skills, leadership, and business models. Through books, articles, advisory work, and keynotes, he helps leaders connect technology trends with workforce implications and the human capabilities organizations need as work evolves.
Shama Hyder
Shama Hyder is an entrepreneur, author, adviser, and keynote speaker who founded Zen Media. She built her career translating shifts in technology, digital behavior, AI, and business strategy.
Hyder’s work tracks how…
Shama Hyder is an entrepreneur, author, adviser, and keynote speaker who founded Zen Media. She built her career translating shifts in technology, digital behavior, AI, and business strategy.
Hyder’s work tracks how emerging technologies change communication, trust, markets, and the way organizations operate. After building Zen Media as a remote-first company, she has expanded her speaking and advisory work around AI, strategic urgency, and how leaders respond to consequential change.
Nancy Lyons
Nancy Lyons is founder and CEO of Everdare Advisors, a future-of-work strategist, author, and technology leader focused on human-centered leadership, organizational change, culture, and AI readiness.
Lyons works at the intersection of…
Nancy Lyons is founder and CEO of Everdare Advisors, a future-of-work strategist, author, and technology leader focused on human-centered leadership, organizational change, culture, and AI readiness.
Lyons works at the intersection of people, technology, culture, and organizational transformation. Through Everdare, her speaking, and her writing, she argues that AI readiness depends as much on trust, leadership, and workplace design as it does on tools—a human-centered frame for the future of work.
Bradley Hook
Bradley Hook is founder of FLAME and the Values Institute, an author and keynote speaker whose work combines human performance, values, neuroscience, and technology for the age of intelligence.
Hook’s FLAME framework…
Bradley Hook is founder of FLAME and the Values Institute, an author and keynote speaker whose work combines human performance, values, neuroscience, and technology for the age of intelligence.
Hook’s FLAME framework explores how people and teams can sustain performance as AI transforms work, emphasizing fellowship, legacy, agility, mindset, and energy. His future-of-work speaking connects decades in technology with research on values and human performance to examine what remains distinctly human in the age of AI.
Selection Methodology
I selected the leaders on this list based on their relevance, demonstrated expertise and impact, professional credibility, and ongoing contributions to the field.
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I look for evidence such as leading meaningful initiatives or delivering notable results within their organizations, developing influential ideas or practices, publishing research or educational resources, speaking or teaching, and other contributions that demonstrate impact within their work or the broader field.
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