Telling “My Story” at a fundraising event hosted by CTV 
photo by Wesley Yu @westlycyu

Keynote Speaking & Training

Why should you hire me to keynote speak / train your people? Because I could really use the money! Just kidding; the truth is, I’ve been sharing my story and training high impact service teams successfully for over 20 years, and the results speak for themselves. But first, here’s how it all got started…

I began my 35 + year hospitality/sales career as a Chef, and worked my way up through the ranks to senior hotel management. In an effort to become self-employed, one day I decided to buy and operate a couple of small restaurants, which went okay, but not great. Having said that, a lot of valuable lessons were learned, and not long after I was recruited as the managing partner at a busy restaurant at Sun Peaks Ski Resort. Being “Customer Experience” driven, I wanted to make sure our staff were exceptionally well trained, however there was a problem; the high quality programs needed to teach staff (a) how to create an optimum customer experiences, and (b) the skills and strategies needed for success (both on and off the job) didn’t exist. So with no-one to turn to, I decided to develop and teach these programs myself; and with this, my career as a professional trainer and speaker began.

Even though my style was a bit rocky at first, staff enjoyed and appreciated my “No B.S.” approach to both business and personal development; my style was direct, humorous, and used “real life” examples to illustrate important points. The training was a huge success, and our people were, without a doubt, the best in the business. I kept studying to be a better trainer and speaker, and my courses and speeches gradually became more and more polished.

 

Somehow word of my “Success Training” got out, and I soon began getting calls from local businesses asking me to create and facilitate workshops for their staff, which I gladly obliged! And the more companies I worked with, the more something became obvious to me: That that all of the participants – regardless of what industry they were in – wanted to learn the same things. They wanted to know how to do more and be more with their jobs and lives, but to hear it in a way that was honest and real from someone who had “been there – done that”. It seemed people liked what I had to say, how I said it, and were inspired by my stories. As time on, I incorporated new “life lessons” (both good and bad) in to my presentations, and worked hard to inspire people to see what they were capable of achieving in their own careers and lives. So how’d I do? Here’s what some of my clients had to say: 

“David is gifted speaker with a passion for helping other people to succeed – your message of sound business judgement and ACTION, ACTION, ACTION is exactly what people need to hear… and DO.”

~ Bill Redmond, Founder & CEO: HRI (Sysco) Food Services, Kelowna, B.C. 

 

“David was recommended to me as a potential speaker for Social Media Camp (SMC) by a previous SMC keynote speaker. After watching his TEDx talk online we met and I was impressed enough to add David to the agenda on opening day.

What an awesome decision that turned out to be. Not only did David deliver an outstanding talk he engaged the audience in such a way that had other speakers and attendees quoting him for the next 2 days. He obviously resonated with the crowd as he was rated #3 out of more than 30 speakers.

If you need an inspiring, engaging and passionate keynote speaker – you just found him. But don’t try to book him for January 27, 2017 – he’s already booked to speak at SOHO Victoria, my other conference. “

Chris Burdge: Founder and Producer of Social Media Camp, and SOHO Victoria

“Your reputation preceded you and it helped have more of an impact on returning staff as they recognized that you are obviously someone who knows and understands customer service. Thanks again for setting us up for success!”

~Nicky Braithwaite: Operations Manager, Sun Peaks Resort, B.C. 

 

“David is an exceptional speaker and his lectures were dynamic, informative and results-oriented; he has a great deal of knowledge of business, and is able to communicate his expertise very clearly”

~Minaz Abji: Executive VP Host Hotels and Resorts (European Division)

 

“Hi David: Thank you for participating in our management conference and contributing so much to its success. The feedback on your session was extremely positive – your style, enthusiasm, humour and willingness to speak frankly really set the tone we wanted. You have a unique ability to get your point across, and inspire others to come up with ideas themselves. I look forward to the opportunity to work together again! ”

~Kelly McCauley: General Manager, Coast Edmonton Hotel, Edmonton, Alta.

 

“The impression that you made has left a revitalized and focused group of individuals. You have, through your dynamic delivery, inspired us to take a hard look at ourselves and the way in which we operate on a daily basis. You definitely “Wowed” our team!”

~Patty Schweighardt: General Manager, Raddison Hotel, Saskatoon, S.K.

 

As these testimonials attest, after attending my workshops clients cite high material retention and better focus by their employees; what this means for you as a manager/leader/employer is this: Employees who are focused and have direction tend to have a better attitude towards their jobs AND their lives; so in the end everyone benefits! And it’s these benefits that make my training and keynotes a solid business investment for any customer service based employer.

I usually present in 2 formats:

 

1. Workshops 

I build custom workshops (4 hours or 8 hours) that focus on creating unique connections, setting and achieving goals, challenging ourselves to do better in all areas of life, etc. These workshops are ideal for those in:

 

•Hospitality Industry

•Food and Beverage Industry

•Tourism

•Sales

•MLM Teams

•Resort Tourism (Ski Hills, Golf Courses, Spas, etc.)

 

2. Key Note Speaking

My Keynote speeches focus primarily on the positive messages of possibility and achievability for anyone; using my own life experiences as examples, I focus on how “It’s not the wind, but the set of the sail” that makes the difference in our attitudes towards life, and how anyone can take control of their situation and build a plan for their future. My speeches have been called inspirational, motivational and moving, and cover many topics, including:

 

•Creating the best possible experiences regardless whatever life throws at us

•Overcoming personal / business challenges

•Achieving our dreams and goals – whatever they may look like to an individual 

 

My goal is to always leave the audience understanding that by adjusting the “sails” in their own lives, they too can have a more fulfilling and rewarding life existence; programs/ speeches are designed around the client’s specific wants and needs; programs that will inspire, motivate and challenge your audience to do more and be more with their jobs AND their lives, while providing them with the tools and resources needed to take immediate action towards goal achievement.

 

So what do you think? Do you think your team would benefit from a workshop or keynote speech from me? If so, please drop me an email with a little information about your group, your goals, etc. and I’ll get back to you on how I can help your organization achieve their goals… sound good? Awesome! Then let’s do this!

To your success!

David