Joe Hirsch

Dr. Joe Hirsch helps organizations design and deliver feedback without fear. An award-winning educational leader and researcher, Joe has earned praise from Fortune 500 executives and NFL coaches for his transformational approach to feedback. Described by Adam Grant as a “breath of fresh air,” Joe uses relatable research, memorable stories, and powerful models that help leaders and teams turn feedback into a cause for joy, not fear.

He's a TEDx and global keynote speaker and the author of The Feedback Fix, which has been praised for its forward-looking view of team and individual effectiveness. Joe's work and research has been featured in Harvard Business Review, CNBC, Forbes, Inc., The Wall Street Journal, and other major outlets. Joe has helped leaders at PepsiCo, Adobe, T-Mobile, the Gates Foundation, government agencies, and over 20,000 others across three continents communicate with impact and joy. When Joe's not doing something outdoors with his wife and kids, he's hosting his popular podcast, "I Wish They Knew."

KEYNOTE TOPICS:

Feedforward: Fearless Feedback For All (Leadership Track)

There are few things more uncomfortable than giving and receiving feedback. Judgment, worry, disappointment, pain – when these deeply felt emotions enter the conversation, they can complicate relationships, crimp performance, and diminish trust. To create a fearless feedback culture, we must change its tone and trajectory – starting with a bolder mindset and message. In this interactive and evidence-based general session, leaders and individual contributors will explore the impact of FEEDFORWARD, a fearless alternative to traditional feedback. FEEDFORWARD amplifies strengths, promotes dialogue, and focuses on future success instead of past failure – creating performance partnerships built on straight talk and genuine relationships. Starting with the brain-based case against traditional feedback, you’ll discover why appraisal systems often underperform, how managers miss critical information, and why feedback often stifles growth rather than promotes it. From there, you’ll learn how FEEDFORWARD can shift legacy thinking and practices to produce robust partnerships powered by candor, clarity, and connectedness. Work has changed. With FEEDFORWARD, so can the way we talk about it.

Feedforward: Fearless Feedback For Sale Success (Sales Leadership Track)

When feedback fails, sales suffer. Meetings aren’t booked, leads aren’t closed, and predictability is elusive. Strong sales depend on robust feedback, but without the right skills and savvy, we strain our results and relationships. Sales managers need a playbook for giving feedback without fear or friction – a plan to move their people and pipeline forward: FEEDFORWARD. FEEDFORWARD is a strengths-based, forward-looking view of success. Instead of focusing on past failures, FEEDFORWARD emphasizes future possibilities. Blending cutting-edge behavioral science with practical solutions, FEEDFORWARD reinforces the lines of communication and trust through a partnership model that empowers others to grow. Whether you’re looking to support individual performance, improve team effectiveness, or drive company culture, FEEDFORWARD provides the mindset and skillset that leads to sales success.

Messaging and Mattering: How Feedback Fosters Workplace Wellbeing (Workplace Wellbeing Track)

It’s widely recognized that our work reflects our well-being. But how we talk about work can dramatically impact the way we feel – delivering either a lift or blow to our standing, sanity and overall sense of self. Through a lively blend of storytelling, science and strategy, you'll explore the surprising link between performance feedback and workplace well-being. Learn how effective feedback can become a catalyst for emotional fitness, driving more positive and productive dialogue that energizes work, fosters deep connection among teams, and creates a human-centered workplace built on empathy and trust. By crafting a message of mattering, we enable others to do their best work while experiencing their fullest selves – all while putting people at the center of their career growth and development. When people feel that their purpose and practice are one, work becomes an elevating experience.

Change Agents: Stop Scrambling, Start Scaling (Change Management Track) 

The only constant in work is change. That's when the most successful leaders respond with a “coach approach” – the set of messages and methods that help others thrive in the face of uncertainty and rediscover the joy in their work. In this interactive and evidence-based talk, you'll discover how leaders at all levels can put high-performance coaching to work for the benefit of their entire organization. Using proven, practical models, you'll learn how to navigate change as a change agent who builds high-trust, authentic relationships at work and sets the conditions for greater happiness and connection. Using a three-part plan, you’ll learn how change agents shift the dynamics from fear to safety, chaos to clarity, and power to partnership. From sharing critical feedback to creating buy-in and improving teamwork, this talk will inform and inspire you to sustain powerful outcomes across your organization and help others manage change – together.