Logo
Natalie Nixon Headshot
Report a problem with this profile
[email protected]

Natalie Nixon          

Future of Work Expert, Author of "The Creativity Leap," Innovation, Creativity & Leadership Strategy Consultant

Natalie Nixon, PhD is recognized for her expertise in creativity strategy, guiding leaders to foster transformative business outcomes through the application of wonder and rigor. She is a global keynote speaker, valued for her practical insights on creativity, the future of work, and innovation.

Nixon was recognized on Real Leaders' "Top 50 Keynote Speakers in the World for 2022" and has been featured in prominent publications including Forbes, Fast Company, and Inc. She authored "The Creativity Leap," which was honored in the creativity category of Fast Company's 2021 World Changing Ideas Awards. Her consulting firm, Figure 8 Thinking, was named among the top 20 women-led innovation firms in 2021 by Core 77. In 2022, LinkedIn unveiled Nixon’s course “Lead with Inquiry, Improvisation & Intuition.” Her client roster includes notable firms such as Microsoft, Salesforce, Comcast, Citrix, Morrison & Foerster, Living Cities, VaynerMedia, and Bloomberg.

Nixon leverages her diverse background in cultural anthropology, fashion, design thinking, and dance as a hybrid thinker, engaging in early-stage investments in two social impact ventures where she contributes her unique perspective at the intersection of commercial value and stakeholder equity. She serves as a trustee for the Smithsonian's Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, Vassar College, and Leadership+Design. Having resided in Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Israel, and Sri Lanka, Nixon is proficient in Portuguese and Spanish and holds a Foresight Practitioner certification from the Institute for the Future. She earned her BA with honors from Vassar College and her PhD from the University of Westminster in London.

Outside her professional life, Nixon enjoys participating in dance, ranging from hip-hop to ballroom styles like salsa, foxtrot, and tango. She resides in Philadelphia, her hometown, with her husband, John Nixon, and takes pride in her role as stepmother to Sydney.

Speech Topics

The New I in AI: Imagination, Inquiry and Intuition

Worried about how you’ll find your edge in AI? At its BEST, AI enhances human qualities at work. Natalie Nixon, a renowned creativity strategist, advocates for leveraging curiosity, imagination, and intuition to navigate this evolving landscape. Her keynote offers practical insights to redesign work and thrive in the changing paradigm.

AI is Your Co-Creator

Just as we have IQ and EQ, we also have a CQ- or a creativity quotient. This talk explores the links between creativity and leadership and how leaders with a high CQ behave, interact with stakeholders, and co-create a strategic vision.

L.E.A.P! : The Extraordinary Method for Boosting Productivity and Navigating Uncertainty

When ambiguity arises, you can either flee, pause, or charge ahead blindly. Natalie Nixon, a creativity strategist, presents the L.E.A.P Method™, a straightforward approach to confront uncertainty. By Leveraging, Envisioning, Asking, and Prototyping, attendees gain clarity and actionable strategies to move forward. Remember, progress only happens in one direction: forward!

Adapt & Disrupt: Build Creativity’s Business ROI in the Imagination Era

In the age of AI dominance, creativity is not optional—it’s essential. Natalie Nixon, a creativity expert, reveals how imagination drives business success. Learn from pioneering leaders, adopt dynamic methods, and unleash creativity to secure your organization’s strategic edge. Embrace innovation, wield imagination, and thrive in disruption.

Curiosity is the Currency of the Future: Building a Culture of Inquiry

Do you know how to ask really, great, provocative questions? That matters not just for the increasingly basic ways we interact with AI technologies like ChatGPT, but also for executing on a compelling strategy. Natalie Nixon emphasizes the significance of questions in driving innovation and fostering dynamic cultures. Learn various question types, how to ask them effectively, and normalize a culture of inquiry.

The Future of Work is Jazz: Applying Improvisation, Collaboration and Foresight

Embrace business improvisation for success. Join creativity strategist Natalie Nixon for a keynote that envisions work as a jazz ensemble—dynamic and harmonious. Discover the parallels between jazz improvisation and agile collaboration, fostering innovation and team synergy. Gain strategic foresight tools for proactive planning. Let’s orchestrate a unified business future!

News

Your “invisible work” is key to your most productive self
Creativity strategist Natalie Nixon says that time spent thinking, wondering, or doing something else makes us more creative and productive and, ultimately, innovative.

Related Speakers View all

More like Natalie