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Frits van Paasschen

Top Business Speaker, Change Management Expert, Bestselling Author, Board Member of J. Crew, and Former CEO of Coors Brewing Company and Starwood Hotels and Resorts

Frits van Paasschen is a top change management keynote speaker, bestselling author of The Disruptors’ Feast, and the former CEO of Coors Brewing Company and Starwood Hotels and Resorts. Most recently, he became a board member of J. Crew. Frits is a frequent keynote speaker and advisor with a focus on disruption and strategy. He also held several management positions at Nike, ultimately becoming Nike’s President of Europe, Middle East, and Africa.

Frits van Paasschen Keynote Speaker Fee Fee range is for U.S. events, depending on location and organization type
$40,001 - $50,000
Languages Spoken
Dutch, English, German, Italian, Spanish

Frits van Paasschen Keynote Speaker Fee Fee range is for U.S. events, depending on location and organization type
$40,001 - $50,000
Languages Spoken
Dutch, English, German, Italian, Spanish

Why Frits?

Move past the headlines and learn about the trends lines from a CEO who led 250,000 people at Starwood hotels and a global customer base. They modernized the business lead significant innovations plus he led extensive growth at Coors as CEO and Nike MD for Europe. Here is a client testimonial too: Carol Turner, CONECT’s Executive Director who’s been running CONECT events for over 20 years, said this in her wrap up:

“We agree that the conference was a great one this year, and the attendees and exhibitors seemed to love it too. The weather the best we’ve ever had, and the sunset at dinner was spectacular! Every panel was really well received, and the finish with Frits was exceptional. I’ve never heard such a buzz as people left the room regarding his fantastic extemporaneous presentation.”

Keynote Speaker Topics

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Suggested Keynote Speaker Programs

The Disruptors' Feast: How to Avoid Being Devoured in Today's Rapidly Changing Global Economy

Are digital technologies, global development, urbanization, and industry disruption presenting your business with unprecedented challenges? Do you feel ill-equipped to face this level of disruption and volatility? Drawing from his bestselling ...

Are digital technologies, global development, urbanization, and industry disruption presenting your business with unprecedented challenges? Do you feel ill-equipped to face this level of disruption and volatility? Drawing from his bestselling book The Disruptor’s Feast, Frits van Paasschen gives a unique look into the trends that are shaping the world of the future, and provides a guide on how to avoid being eaten alive in a world that is changing exponentially today. In this keynote, Frits will reveal what individuals and organizations can do to prepare for this change and how to stay relevant in a tumultuous environment.

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Inspiring Change and Giving Hope in the Exponential Age

Are you drowning in data and searching for some wisdom to help negotiate your business through this hyper-connected, competitive world? Is your business being overwhelmed by technology and disruption? In this lively and intimate talk, Frits van ...

Are you drowning in data and searching for some wisdom to help negotiate your business through this hyper-connected, competitive world? Is your business being overwhelmed by technology and disruption? In this lively and intimate talk, Frits van Paasschen draws on his experience as a global business leader to offer organizations advice on how to prepare for, and even thrive in, this exponential age of disruption while inspiring change and instilling hope in his audience.

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Customized Advising on Strategic Direction Workshop

Is your organization stuck on an issue? Would you like some guidance to find answers to your newest challenges from a seasoned veteran? Frits van Paasschen is a seasoned global executive and the author of ...

Is your organization stuck on an issue? Would you like some guidance to find answers to your newest challenges from a seasoned veteran? Frits van Paasschen is a seasoned global executive and the author of The Disruptors’ Feast. His thirty years of experience inside global companies have afforded him a unique perspective on the current trends that are impacting your business. In this highly customizable presentation, van Paasschen will share his deep understanding of the forces that are disrupting the status quo to advise your business or organization on how to evolve and thrive in a changing environment.

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About Keynote Speaker Frits van Paasschen

Frits D. van Paasschen is a seasoned global executive and the best-selling author of The Disruptors’ Feast. His thirty years of experience inside global companies affords him a unique perspective on the trends that are reshaping the global economy. Frits sees the accelerating pace of disruption as being driven by climate change, digitization, and human inequality. His work as a keynote speaker, investor, board member, and advisor focuses on helping organizations thrive in times of rapid change.

Frits serves on the boards of two public companies that have navigated global change exceptionally well, Williams-Sonoma and DSM-Firmenich AG. His other boards are The JCrew Group, citizenM Hotels, and Sonder. He is an advisor to TPG Capital and Russell Reynolds, as well as several startups, namely BigSpring (remote learning platform), Jabbrrbox (technology equiped workspaces), rePurpose Global (plastics footprint reduction), Syndio (human equity analytics for corporations) and Rewyre (a prop-tech platform).

Frits spent more than a decade as a Fortune 500 CEO, first at The Coors Brewing Company and then at Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide. He also held several management positions at Nike, ultimately becoming Nike’s President of Europe, Middle East, and Africa. Prior to Nike, he worked in finance in Disney’s Consumer Products Division. His career began at The Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey & Company, where he primarily served retail and consumer clients.

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Frits has been a Non-Executive Director at Barclays Bank, Jones Apparel, Oakley, and Apollo Hotels. Frits has also served on numerous other advisory boards, including; The European-American Industrial Council (as Chairman), The U.S.-India and U.S.-China business councils,The Red Sea Development Company, and The Center for Environmental Leadership in Business at Conservation International.

Frits holds a BA in Economics and Biology from Amherst College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. At Harvard, he was a Teaching Fellow in Economics. Originally from the Netherlands, Frits holds dual U.S. and Dutch citizenship. A passionate traveler, he speaks five languages and has visited 125 countries. In his free time, he enjoys endurance sports, photography, and collecting antique maps. He has been married since 1990 and has three children.

Testimonials

Frits tells a captivating story of how technology and big data have transformed businesses and our daily lives. As CEO of Starwood, Frits had a unique, ringside global view of this continuing phenomenon and offers prescriptions for businesses to succeed in this environment. I would highly recommend Frits as a compelling keynote speaker at any industry conference whose participants are challenged by disruption.

Rob Shepard

Vice President of Strategic Logistics Solutions International Forest Products

Frits served as the anchor for our closing day of content and was one of the hits of the conference. His knowledge and engaging style let to an interactive general session that drilled down beyond high-level trends to identify reasons for those trends and what could happen next. Frits’ unique take on leadership and technology culled from stints as a CEO in two major business classes gave our attendees an honest, sincere—and sometimes humorous—look at how disruptions can affect them on a daily basis.

Jeff Higley

Editorial Director/VP, Digital Media & Communications - STR

Frits is an extremely engaging and insightful business mind, grounded in years of real-world experience at the highest levels of leadership in global brands. He’s seen the forces shaping global economies first-hand, and brings those insights to life in ways that are very relevant and actionable, including to our audience of venture capitalists and early stage tech company CEOs. Our group left inspired and energized by his wisdom and advice.

Curt Roberts

Partner, Kickstart Seed Fund

The conference was a great one this year… the finish with Frits was exceptional. I’ve never heard such a buzz as people left the room regarding his fantastic extemporaneous presentation.

Carol Turner

CONECT’s Executive Director

In his role as CEO of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Frits van Paasschen had a prime perch from which to observe the global economy, where he responded to and profoundly influenced how, why, and where people travel for business and pleasure. The Disruptors’ Feast is a fascinating and astute collection of stories and data that explain the unprecedented change and speed necessitated by today’s shifting plates in the geopolitical and technological landscape.

Danny Meyer

CEO, Union Square Hospitality Group

“Frits van Paasschen draws on his experience as a global business leader to offer advice on how we can prepare ourselves and our institutions to thrive and make sense of a tumultuous world.”

Arianna Huffington

co-founder, The Huffington Post