Austin Walker
Leadership Keynote Speaker

Austin Walker is a leadership keynote speaker and executive coach who speaks nationwide at corporate leadership events, CEO peer groups, and professional association conferences. He is based in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area of Minnesota and travels throughout the United States.

He is a Meta Performance Executive Coach with Novus Global and faculty at the Meta Performance Institute. He holds a master's degree in Transformational Leadership. He coaches C-suite executives, founders, championship teams, and nonprofit leaders, and he brings that same work to the stage.

Austin speaks on leadership capacity, ownership and accountability, performance conversations, and bold decision-making. Typical audiences run from 200 to 750 people. Formats include a 45 to 90 minute keynote, a keynote paired with breakout sessions, or a half-day or full-day team session.

The speaking fee ranges from $5,000 to $15,000.

Austin Walker, leadership keynote speaker and executive coach

Most of the rooms I walk into are full of people who are already good at what

they do. That’s the hard part. When you are failing, the next step is obvious.

When you are succeeding, it is not.

So the question I keep asking is the one

nobody in a high-performing room wants to say out loud: what do I do after I am

good at what I do?

I am not there to hand anybody a motivational afternoon. I am there so that on

Thursday, somebody has a conversation they have been avoiding since March.

— Austin Walker

What Austin speaks on:

Most leaders drastically underestimate what they and their teams are capable of, and then build systems around that underestimate. Austin works the gap between where a leader is and what they are actually built for.

Leadership Capacity

How leaders create the conditions for radical responsibility instead of compliance, and why culture drifts when the conversations get soft.

Ownership & Accountability

How to turn a review, a check-in, or a hard conversation into something that develops a person rather than grades one.

Performance Conversations & Feedback

The psychology of high-stakes decisions, the invisible limits leaders put on what they will even consider, and how to get clear on what is next.

Bold Decision-Making & Vision

Who Austin Speaks To

  • Corporate internal leadership events, hosted by CHROs, VPs of People, and L&D teams

  • CEO Peer groups and executive forums

  • Professional and trade association conferences

  • Athletic departments and sports organizations

  • Nonprofit and mission-driven leadership teams

SIGNATURE TALKS

Beyond High Performance: What Great Leaders Do That Good Ones Don’t

“Beyond High Performance” is a provocative invitation for leaders and teams who are already great at what they do…and know there’s still another level. This keynote unlocks the mindset and momentum needed to move from success to transcendence, and sparks the kind of transformation that doesn’t just improve performance, it redefines it."

The One Conversation That Changes Everything: Building a Culture of Bold Ownership

For leaders tired of dragging teams forward or watching culture drift off-course, this keynote delivers a wake-up call: it’s not better strategy that drives transformation…it’s better conversations. When leaders embrace and model bold ownership, it creates the conditions for radical accountability, deeper engagement, and lasting cultural change. This keynote equips organizations to move from compliance to commitment, and from passive frustration to proactive momentum one conversation at a time.

Your Next Bold Move: How Visionary Leaders Decide What’s Next

The most pivotal decisions don’t come from spreadsheets. They come from identity, imagination, and the courage to choose a different future. This keynote is designed for high-capacity leaders and organizations who want to figure out what’s next. It unpacks the psychology of bold decision-making, reveals the invisible fences that limit vision, and helps you clarify the path ahead.

Watch Austin Speak

Watch Austin open "Beyond High Performance" at a speaker showcase.
Ten minutes, condensed from the full 45 to 90 minute keynote.

Formats & What Is Included

  • Keynote ranging from 45-90 minutes

  • Keynote plus workshop breakouts

  • Multi-session days

  • Half-day team intensive

  • Full-day team intensive

Speaking Fee

Austin's speaking fee range is $5,000 to $15,000. A single keynote sits at the lower end of that range. The top is for multi-session days and keynote-plus-breakout formats, where Austin is building and delivering several distinct pieces of content for the same audience. Travel is quoted separately.

Austin is available for a limited number of engagements each year, set by his coaching and client travel schedule. A small number of dates are held each year at a reduced or no fee for CEO peer groups and mission-aligned nonprofits.

Austin is currently booking engagements for 2027.

  • "Austin is a gifted communicator and storyteller. He is well prepared and has a knack for presenting complicated subjects in a way that brings an audience along for the ride, allowing them to grasp the content that’s as natural as an everyday conversation. Austin brings together humor, research, personal anecdotes and a Socratic style thats tremendously effective at connecting with audiences of any size.”

    Mike Bernard, Chief Marketing Officer, Vendavo

  • “You can always count on Austin to deliver with engagement, inspiration, and humor. His relatable authenticity shines through every talk, leaving listeners motivated and eager for more.”

  • "Most speakers give motivation. Austin gave transformation. His message hit the heart of our leadership challenges and sparked conversations that are still shaping our direction months later."

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Austin Walker speaks on leadership capacity, ownership and accountability culture, performance conversations, and bold decision-making. His three signature keynotes are "Beyond High Performance," "The One Conversation That Changes Everything," and "Your Next Bold Move." All three come out of his work as a Meta Performance Executive Coach with Novus Global, where he coaches C-suite executives, professional athletes, and nonprofit leaders.

  • Austin speaks to corporate leadership audiences, CEO peer groups, and professional association conferences. The people who book him are usually CHROs, VPs of People, learning and development leaders, peer group chairs, and association program chairs. Audiences typically range from 200 to 750 people, from emerging leaders through executive teams.

  • Austin's speaking fee range is $5,000 to $15,000. A single 45 to 90 minute keynote sits at the lower end. Multi-session days and keynote-plus-breakout formats sit at the top, because they involve building and delivering several distinct pieces of content for the same audience. Travel is quoted separately.

  • A standard Austin Walker keynote runs 45 to 90 minutes, with or without Q&A. He also offers a keynote paired with 60 to 90 minute breakout sessions, multi-session days of two or three sessions, half-day and full-day team intensives.

  • Austin Walker speaks nationwide and travels to engagements throughout the United States. He is based in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area of Minnesota and flies out of MSP, so travel is quoted from there.

  • Austin's typical audience runs from 200 to 750 people. He has spoken to rooms of eight and to crowds of several thousand, and audience size is not a constraint on booking him.

  • Austin is a working executive coach and speaker. He coaches C-suite executives, high level VPs, and nonprofit leaders every week. His keynotes are a compressed version of that Meta Performance work rather than a separate product. He is a Meta Performance Executive Coach with Novus Global and faculty at the Meta Performance Institute, and he holds a master's degree in Transformational Leadership. His talks combine storytelling and humor with a specific ask, and audiences leave practical next steps rather than just a feeling of motivation.

  • Email austinwalker@novus.global with your event date, location, audience size, and format, and Austin will confirm availability and fee. He also holds a small number of dates each year at a reduced or no fee for CEO peer groups and mission-aligned nonprofits.

BOOK AUSTIN