Jesse Ross
Jesse is an international speaker, executive coach, & a diversity, equity, & inclusion leader, that works with leaders and organizations specializing in personal and professional development. He focuses on transformation from the inside out and believes that everyone he encounters should expect ascension.
Jesse has a keen ability to apply his education, training and certifications, over 15 years of business, nonprofit, and practical experience to motivate others to greatness, increase productivity, and to take their rightful place as a leader. Jesse has delivered over 600 speaking engagements at colleges, conferences, corporate and nonprofit companies, with a large number of Fortune 500 companies.
Jesse offers trainings, workshops, evaluations, assessments, and strategy development for your school, business or organization. Jesse has been engaging his audience with his Morning Minute call-to-actions on his Instagram and LinkedIn social media pages.
Eric Perkins
Never truly good enough to play college or professional sports, Eric Perkins decided to talk about them instead. Perk as he’s better known, grew up immersed in sports, but also in television. His father Jack was an NBC Nightly News correspondent for decades before becoming the host of Biography on A&E. Perk combined his two passions and became a sportscaster where he worked in Tupelo, Memphis and Atlanta before finding his way to Minnesota where he currently serves as the sports director for the NBC station (KARE-TV) in the Twin Cities.
Since joining KARE in the late 90’s, Perk has won several Emmy Awards for TV work. He’s covered Super Bowls, Final Fours, All Star Games and even five Olympic Games. But he’s perhaps best known for his Perk at Play segment, in which he’s taken part in everything from Skydiving to Demolition Derby, playing tennis with John McEnroe and being body slammed by Brock Lesnar during the decade long run of the segment.
Perk is very involved with local charities and often can be found serving as an emcee for galas, fundraisers, or awards ceremonies throughout the state. Over the last few years, Perk has emceed events for Gillette Children’s Hospitals, Children’s Cancer Research Fund, Second Harvest Heartland, Spare Key Foundation, St. Jude and many others. He even created his own charity event, Perk’s MessFest. The “slopstacle course” for kids is now in its fifth year, and benefits the Pinky Swear Foundation which helps families dealing with childhood cancer. Perk also regularly emcees that Foundation’s annual gala as well.
Perk lives in the western suburbs of the Twin Cities with his wife, three children and cockapoo.
Elizabeth Ries
Elizabeth Ries is a television and radio personality in the Twin Cities. She spent years as a news anchor/reporter, but is now the co-host of Twin Cities Live weekdays at 3 pm on 5 Eyewitness News (KSTP). She chats about pop culture, celebrity gossip and manages to get a few pro-kale statements on the air when she co-hosts the Margery & Elizabeth show on myTalk 107.1. Elizabeth also frequently contributes articles on food and urban farming to Edible Twin Cities magazine.
Elizabeth is an uplifting speaker who inspires attendees and she is an excellent Emcee as well!
Ian Leonard
Ian has been Chief Meteorologist at FOX 9 in Minneapolis since 2006. His science is the great outdoors and his passion is forecasting the weather. His passion has taken him from Alberta, Canada to Mississippi, Iowa and finally Minnesota. For over 20 years he has used the phrase “stay sky aware” to help viewers stay ahead of the storm. It now is a regular “hashtag” in Ian’s social media updates during severe weather season to his 35 thousand Facebook and Twitter followers. He calls his work at FOX 9 a dream job because of the 4 incredibly diverse and always entertaining seasons of the Upper Midwest. Ian graduated from the Broadcast Meteorology Program at Mississippi State University and is a member of the American Meteorological Society, The National Weather Association and The Canadian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society.
Ian is an extremely active supporter of persons with intellectual disabilities. He is on the road every month supporting the incredible athletes of Special Olympics Minnesota. You can find him “freezin’ for a reason” on most late winter weekends taking the Polar Plunge into lakes across Minnesota. In the past 8 years he has plunged 103 times and helped raise over 15 million dollars.
Ian has had his share of personal storms – making it through a traumatic brain injury in 2013 and adding the line “cancer survivor” to his resume in 2016.
Ian is a humorous and impactful Speaker who motivates organization’s teams to move through their business and personal storms – toward finding passion and purpose.
His high energy and quick wit also makes him the perfect Emcee or Live Auctioneer for your next event. He has assisted organizations in raising millions of dollars at their Fundraiser Events over the years. Attendees love him!
Paul Douglas
Paul Douglas is Penn State meteorologist with over 45 years of television and radio experience. A serial entrepreneur, Douglas has launched 7 businesses. Founder and Chief Meteorologist at Praedictix, providing weather services, consulting and briefings for media and corporate interests. Developers and engineers create unique streams of weather data, imagery and API’s for corporations via AerisWeather. The latest science and models are leveraged to provide insight for corporations factoring climate trends into investment, resilience and sustainability via ClimaTrends. Douglas is a member of the Climate Science Rapid Response Team. In 2017 he co-authored a book on climate, focused on matters of faith and science: “Caring for Creation, the Evangelical’s Guide to Climate Change and a Healthy Environment”. A frequent contributor to MSNBC, Douglas was featured in NOVA’s “Decoding the Weather Machine”, Douglas has spent the last 25 years connecting the dots between climate volatility and weather disruption.
Paul uses weather as a metaphor to track the “storms of business”, telling his unique story, and the lessons he’s learned from starting up 6 companies – often the hard way. He is also the perfect Emcee for your next event.
Daniel Shannon
Throughout his meteoric rise with top companies in the CPG, Financial Service and Retail industries, Daniel has accumulated nearly two decades of executional and thought leadership experiences. Inspired by his desire to enhance the value proposition of spaces where he has influence, by leveraging his uncommon combination of professional and personal experiences, Daniel has developed an exceptional competency in the areas of B2B sales, marketing, business development, and an UNMATCHED expertise on matters of diversity, equity and Inclusion.
Daniel’s corporate successes translate beautifully into his work as a speaker. Carefully customizing each of his presentations, based on his clients’ specific needs and goals, his approach is reflective of actual experience and proven solutions, rather than theory. On top of that, Daniel is beloved by his audiences for his signature style, combining entertainment with tangible takeaways!
Erik Therwanger
Erik is the founder of Think GREAT and the Think GREAT Foundation, which awards scholarships to
military spouses. He draws from his experiences as a U.S. Marine, executive business leader, sales
professional, and entrepreneur to help organizations achieve new levels of success. He uniquely
combines leadership development, sales performance, and strategic planning into strategies and
techniques that empower team members and leaders to exceed expectations.
Erik has inspired audiences across the country in nearly every industry Think GREAT is a Certified
Veteran-Owned Business and Erik is also author of The Think GREAT Collection.
Steve Patterson
Steve Patterson is a veteran entertainment television and radio show host, whose energy and quick wit keeps audiences engaged from beginning to end! His ability to read a room and go off the cuff, combined with his skill to smoothly execute a show flow sets him apart as a truly unique talent.
Patterson hosts the long-running afternoon TV show Twin Cities Live, in addition to co-hosting the Donna and Steve radio show on MyTalk 107.1FM. He’s gained national recognition for his numerous appearances on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, where his subzero weather reports have gone viral. Before coming to the Twin Cities, Steve spent 4 years working for Hubbard Broadcasting in Los Angeles, California and Albuquerque, New Mexico for the company’s entertainment cable news network REELZ. During his time there, Steve served as a correspondent and anchor for the network’s daily entertainment news program, interviewing many of the biggest stars in Hollywood along the way.
Steve enjoys writing in the third person. He doesn’t think anyone actually reads an entire bio. So if you haven’t given up on this just yet, kudos! You done good, kid.
Karla Hult
Karla offers the style, substance and rich perspective of an award-winning journalist, a mother “trying to do it all,” and a dedicated daughter dealing with the darkest of diseases.
As a graduate of both St. Olaf College and Columbia University (Master’s in International Affairs), Karla has worked as an anchor and reporter in several markets, covering diverse topics that touch our community: from the international refugee crisis, to local political clashes, to those who leave a lasting legacy. She translates that education, empathy and understanding of diverse issues to delivering the most personable, compelling and passionate delivery as an emcee.
But Karla hasn’t stopped there… after losing her own beloved dad to Alzheimer’s disease, Karla uniquely captures the challenges of what she calls, “So Many Goodbyes,” saying goodbye to your loved one’s ability to talk, walk, remember. We promise… you have not yet heard an Alzheimer’s speaker describe the emotional pain, the financial toll, and the need to “savor what you still have,” with as much compassion, sincerity and power… as Karla.
And even while Karla has become a leader in the fight against Alzheimer’s, she also always reassures others on the journey, “you’re not alone.”
Amy Dee
Amy Dee is recognized by audiences across the country as a master storyteller and brilliant comedian. She combines her background in standup comedy and theatre with her RN degree and experience as a successful business owner to deliver hilarious stories and valuable content on the brain and behavior. Her message and music rise above the boundaries of gender, age, and occupation. Amy’s hilarious stories coupled with her phenomenal content propels audiences to live, act, and work better. Her authentic spirit and down to earth approach have made her one of the most sought-after speakers throughout the United States. She is truly one of the best speakers in the country at combining message and humor.
Amy’s background is as diverse as her audiences. She once ran a non-profit where she managed five hundred volunteers and organized multiple fundraisers that culminated in an eight-hour telethon.
Amy lived in Norway from 1994-2003, and while learning to speak, read and write in Norwegian, she started a photo calendar business in her home. Her company grew to become Xerox’s largest customer in Scandinavia.
Amy returned to college at age forty-three to obtain her RN degree. She was nominated for Nurse of the Year several times during her nine years as a Psychiatric RN. Amy has been a monthly guest expert on NBC affiliate ND Today. She has written four books and numerous song parodies.