Kate Vitasek

“Nothing personal—it’s just business.”
This outdated attitude is the foundation that most business relationships are built on—a zero-sum
game where one party wins at the expense of the other. Organizations say things like “valued
employee,” “strategic partnership,” and “healthcare system,” but the reality is they are stuck on a
transactional treadmill focusing on this task, this time, this deal, and under these terms. The
relationships they create are static and the results are status quo.
Author, educator, and business consultant Kate Vitasek has cracked the code on how to truly create
successful win-win relationships. Kate’s evocative and edutaining Vested Way® keynote unpacks
Five Rules that turn transactional relationships into transformational relationships. Her keynote
takes attendees beyond the theory of “win-win” and is packed with real stories from real
organizations getting real results by applying the Five Rules.

You can trust Kate for her expertise. Kate Vitasek is an international authority on how to build
better business relationships. Her award-winning research is the subject of seven books and she
has been featured as an international authority on how to build better business relationships
on CNN International, NPR, Bloomberg, and Fox Business News. Kate regularly shares her insights
as a Forbes contributor in her column on the art, science, and practice of highly collaborative
relationships.

Attendees walk away:

• Challenging the game they are playing in their existing relationships
• Armed with the Vested Five Rules to help them transform their relationships
• Inspired by real-world examples of how the Vested Way has worked in practice,
  creating value far beyond traditional us-vs-them transactional approaches

The vast majority of business relationships operate with an “us vs. them” mindset: management vs.
union, buyer vs. supplier, health care providers vs. payers, boss vs. employee and functional silo vs.
functional silo.

Organizations say things like “valued employee,” “strategic partnership,” and “healthcare system,”
but the reality is they are often stuck with policies and practices and functional metrics that pit
organizations, departments, and even team members against each other. The result is a culture
that feels like a virtual tug-of-war with team members pulling against each other rather than
collaborating for mutual success.

Kate’s Getting to We ®  keynote shares five proven steps for creating an engaged, collaborative
culture. Her keynote inspires audiences with behind-the-scenes stories of how organizations such
as Island Health and their hospitalists transformed their culture from a tense, troubled, and toxic
relationship to one team members proudly call trusting, collaborative, and innovative. Kate will
leave you with tangible advice, tips, and tools for making the shift from a What’s-in-it-for-
Me culture to a What’s-in-it-for-We culture.

You can trust Kate for her expertise. Kate Vitasek is an international authority for her award-
winning work on how to build better business relationships. She has been featured on CNN
International, NPR, Bloomberg, and Fox Business News. She is the author of seven books. Kate
regularly shares her insights as a Forbes contributor in her column on the art, science, and practice
of highly collaborative relationships.

Attendees walk away:

• Understanding why “getting to yes” is no longer enough
• Learning a proven five-step approach for creating a highly engaged and collaborative
  culture
• Inspired by real-world examples of how organizations such as Island Health and their
  hospitalists transformed their culture
• Gaining access to proven tools to facilitate teams in transitioning from a “Me” to “We”
  mindset

In our fast-paced and interconnected world, the success of any organization hinges on the strength
and productivity of its teams. High-performing teams are not merely a result of chance or luck; they
are cultivated by fostering an environment built on transparency and trust. But all too often
individuals and organizations have a mantra that trust must be earned. What if we shifted our
mindset and chose to lead by trusting?

Join Kate in her evocative and edutaining Power of T keynote speech as she shares profound
insights from her groundbreaking research. Kate’s inspiring and interactive presentation will help
you challenge traditional notions of how to build trust and demonstrate how viewing transparency
and trust through a new lens can unleash the full potential of teams.

You can trust Kate for her expertise. University of Tennessee supply chain professor Kate Vitasek
has been researching the power of choosing to lead with transparency and trust for over 20 years.
Her work has led to seven books and she has been featured as an international authority on how to
build better business relationships on CNN International, NPR, Bloomberg, and Fox Business News.

Attendees walk away:

• Valuable insights that will empower their organization to thrive in today’s competitive
  landscape
• Five pillars for building trust and transparency in teams
• Real-world examples of real organizations getting real results by choosing to lead with
  transparency and trust
• Tangible tips and tools to foster a culture of trust and boost team performance

Many outsourcing deals are structured with fundamental flaws in the business model that prevent
transformational results. The problem is not outsourcing itself, but rather the outsourcing business
model. The vast majority of outsourcing deals are structured using a conventional transactional
business model. This buy-sell transactional mindset pits buyers and suppliers across the table in a
virtual tug-of-war when business needs change.

Join Kate in her evocative and edutaining Vested Outsourcing keynote where she will share how to
flip the conventional outsourcing approach on its head with her award-winning Vested Outsourcing
business model. You will learn how to align the interest between a buyer and supplier with Five
Rules. The result? A highly collaborative win-win outsourcing relationship where the parties
are vested in each other’s success. Walk away inspired by the art of the possible when outsourcing
and learn from real case studies from those making the switch to Vested Outsourcing

You can trust Kate for her expertise. University of Tennessee supply chain professor Kate Vitasek
—lauded by World Trade Magazine as one of the Fabulous 50+1 most influential people impacting
global commerce—is an international authority on outsourcing. Her pioneering research on Vested
Outsourcing has sparked a movement to flip conventional outsourcing on its head with over 10,000
people from over 500 companies taking her Executive Education courses with dozens who have
gone on to achieve award-winning results from their outsourcing partners.

Attendees walk away:

• Knowing what Vested Outsourcing is—and why outsourcing does not have to be a dirty word
• Understanding the Five Rules of Vested Outsourcing and how they help organizations shift from transactional to transformational outsourcing
• Inspired by real stories from real companies with real results
• Motivated to rethink how they are working with outsourcing partners