Kymberli Speight

Summary: Kymberli Speight eradicates the barriers and challenges of successfully exchanging information with others through networking that improves corporate, business, career, and personal growth.She knows people do business with, promote, and work well with people they know, like, and trust, but first, you must become known. She also believes that people’s stories play a powerful role in changing the lives of others. Everyone, not just celebrities, has a story worth being told. Kymberli regularly speaks to audiences about networking (becoming more known, becoming more likable and building trust) and mental fitness.Kymberli is an author, keynote speaker, and workshop facilitator. She wrote the book I Need To Know You: How to Meet Ordinary Extraordinary People and Improve Your Life where she shares her original research on networking. Kymberli has served as the National Speakers Association-Austin Chapter President and is currently a regional leader for NSA National. She has served on multiple corporate boards and holds certifications in executive coaching, career coaching, Conversational Intelligence, and several others.Kymberli is married to a retired Air Force colonel and has two adult sons. She is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and considers it a privilege to have served in the Air Force for 5 years active duty and 6 years in the reserves. She is passionate about giving back.Question 1) Why would a prospective client want you to be their keynote speaker or to support their speaking event? What are some compelling aspects of your background/career/experience that we should know about? I am often brought in to kick off an event as I help set the tone for positive engagement and interactions. I am told my presentations are inspiring. I have mastered the method of building and developing networks for professional and personal growth. More importantly, I teach my audiences the vital techniques for rapidly building their personal networks. Individuals walk away from my presentations with live experience building the first stages of their own networks.I took a challenge to meet 100 people in 100 days. After the 100 days challenge, I wrote a book that chronicles this wonderful journey and includes lessons learned from my experience. For the past 6 years, I have taught military senior executives (Colonels and Chief Master Sergeants), entrepreneurs, associations groups and C-suite executives networking techniques that work! My expertise has been shaped through numerous relocations, from my 100 days challenge, and by my desire to stay well connected. I have jumped out of planes, soloed in a plane, and spent $954M of the FY91 Air Force budget on the F-15E Fighter Jet as the buyer. I have served on active duty, in the reserves, and as a military spouse for 24 years.Question 2) What are your primary topics/areas of expertise? Some examples may include: Conflict resolution, International Relations, Leadership, Diversity and Inclusion, Cybersecurity, as well as specific countries or geographical regions.

• Corporate Culture
• Entrepreneurship
• Inspiration
• Leadership
• Networking for:
  • Professional & Personal Growth/Development
  • Mental Fitness
  • Managing Negatives to Successfully Network
  • Internal Engagement

Question 3) What are the 2 – 4 positions you have held in your career that you would like prospective clients to know about? Please provide a brief description of each.

• NSA-Austin Chapter President: I recruited and assembled a top-flight team of 9 talented board members. I established that the primary goal was to increase membership by fostering an environment for building relationships (networking), building an inclusive community, and providing value to members. My team embraced this vision and together we worked hard and grew our organization by 24% during the Pandemic period when the speaking industry had radically come to a halt. Even with a mass exodus of professional speakers, our team persevered and achieved our shared vision.

• NSA National Reginal Leader: I am responsible for mentoring 2 NSA chapters. One is a brand new chapter, so I am helping them with setting up key roles, processes, and succession planning. The other chapter is in a rebuilding stage after COVID and the mass exodus from the speaking industry. I am helping them rebuild their financial reserves, rebuild their current board, and plan for the future.

• ETAP Facilitator: I have the privilege of continuing to serve our country by conducting 4-day seminars for senior military executives. The purpose of this seminar is to help the dedicated men and women who have served 20 or more years in the military make a smooth transition to the civilian world. During this seminar, attendees are taught how to successfully navigate every aspect of their executive transition. Seminar topics cover the marketplace, job search strategies, knowing your competencies’ market value, effectively using social media, AI, marketplace communications, and more.

Question 4) Have you supported any speaking events recently? If so, what were the events and who were the clients?

• Senior Enlisted Summit—client: 363d Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing
• Cultures in Action Conference—client: Gerald R. Wagner
• Southwest Learning Summit—client: ATD Dallas
• Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) Conference—client: SHRM Austin

Question 5) Do you have any articles or publications? Have you been featured in any? If so, what were they?

• My book is: “I Need To Know You: How to Meet Ordinary, Extraordinary People and Improve Your life.”

Question 6) Do you have any client testimonials you can share?

• “Kymberli was a speaker at our Austin HR Conference for an innovative talk for our Human Resources Leaders. Her style is warm and she engaged our 200+ person audience with her unique stories. It was an honor to have be a part of our one-of-a-kind speaking series and we would definitely consider her speaking to us again!” – Metha Vasquez, Head of Workforce Readiness Brainstorming Speaker Series for Austin SHRM

• “Myself and the attendees at the Cultures in Action conference were honored to have Kymberli as a speaker. Her content was wonderful but more important was the person. She has a way of connecting, responding, and relating to the audience. Putting it simply, she was like one of us. More important than all else, she is a genuinely nice person. I hope that Kymberli will continue to be a part of our future conferences.” – Gerald Wagner, Conference Organizer

• “Kymberli is an excellent presenter and brought the material to life even in a virtual setting. Kymberli brought an interesting approach to relationship building to our Employee Resource Groups during our annual event. She connects well with her audience, shares stories and examples, and provides excellent expertise.” – Reggie Willis, Ally Bank Executive

• “Great job! This needs to be taught to more Sr. Leaders in the Air Force.” – Anonymous Talkadot Respondent