Adam Kreek
Adam Kreek is one of North America’s top executive business coaches, a two-time Olympian, and a specialist in high-stakes performance for organizations doing hard things.
For nearly two decades, Adam has coached and trained leadership teams at some of the world’s most respected organizations—Amazon, Microsoft, Mercedes-Benz, and more—helping them perform under pressure and lead through challenge, change, and complexity. He understands what today’s top companies are facing: shifting markets, workforce constraints, AI disruption, rising costs, and the relentless demand to do more with less.
An Olympic gold medalist in rowing and one of the first people to attempt—and survive—an unsupported row across the Atlantic from Africa to North America, Adam brings unmatched experience in resilience, pressure, and perseverance. But it’s his work in the boardroom, not just the boat, that makes him indispensable to senior leaders navigating hard realities.
Speaking topics
- Built for Hard: A Leadership Playbook
Hard is Here. Turn Challenge into Opportunity. Deliver Results.
Complexity, uncertainty, and change used to be challenges. Now, they’re the job.
From global volatility to shifting markets, workforce constraints, AI disruption, and rising costs—leaders in energy, infrastructure, industry, and finance are under relentless pressure to deliver. And failure isn’t an option.
The hard is here. What happens next is a choice.This keynote is built for leadership teams navigating high-stakes environments—where the pressure is real, the pace is relentless, and the margin for error is razor-thin.
Through the lens of challenge, choice, and opportunity, Olympic gold medalist, roughneck-turned Stanford-trained engineer, and leading business coach Adam Kreek delivers a bold, practical playbook for leading through disruption—and turning adversity into momentum.
This isn’t just about how you lead yourself. It’s about how you lead your people.
Built for Hard equips leaders to:- Apply clear mental models for navigating uncertainty and complexity
- Use proven systems to drive focus, execution, and accountability
- Cultivate a high-performance mindset that delivers results—without burning out their teams
Adam’s approach is grounded in real-world experience—from Olympic pressure and global expeditions to executive boardrooms. He brings the clarity, composure, and credibility leaders need when the stakes are high.
If your organization has big goals and is facing hard things, this keynote delivers what’s required: insight, strategy, and tools to lead through disruption—and bring your team with you.
Breakout WorkshopFrom Insight to Action: Leading Through the Hard | Duration: 60 minutes
Built as a direct extension of Adam Kreek’s keynote Built for Hard, this workshop gives your team the playbook to take action—right now.
It’s not about theory. It’s about what comes next. In a high-pressure world where leaders are being asked to do more with less, this session delivers the clarity, connection, and commitment required to lead forward with purpose.
Participants will learn to:- Reframe External Change into Internal Opportunity – See market shifts, political turmoil, and industry slowdowns as fuel for cultural, structural, and procedural growth.
- Lead Above the Waterline Through Change – Cultivate self-awareness and emotional control to stay creative, flexible, and focused—even in reactive environments.
- Mobilize Your Team to Embrace the Opportunities of Change – Build a values-aligned, opportunity-focused culture that thrives on learning, communication, and execution.
Session Format:- Welcome & Framing — Adam reconnects the room to the keynote’s message and frames this session as the bridge to action.
- Guided Reflection — Leaders complete a focused worksheet to surface leadership strengths and gaps.
- Peer Conversation — Cross-functional groups share challenges and uncover shared opportunities.
- Opportunity Mapping — Each participant identifies a leadership move they can act on immediately.
- Group Close — Final insights, aligned commitments, and a strong send-off.
Best for: Leadership teams, change champions, and cross-functional groups navigating complexity, pressure, or transition.- A Reset For Leaders & Teams: A Gold Medal Guide To Delivering Results Alone, Together
In today’s competitive business landscape, effective teamwork and leadership are more critical than ever. Leaders must work as a team yet will often do their most productive work alone. Top leaders know how to work alone, together. Delivered by bestselling business author, executive coach and Olympic Gold Medalist, Adam Kreek, this keynote provides a unique perspective on these essential skills.
- Uncover elite motivation, the best tools to energize leaders and team dynamics
- Optimize your team dynamics with the right people in the right seats
- Upskill leaders with effective tools for influence, achievement and engagement
Drawing from his experience in elite sports, Adam presents practical strategies and tools to improve team collaboration, enhance leadership, and align goals within organizations. This keynote addresses the everyday challenges of disengagement, ineffective leadership, and misalignment of goals, all of which hamper productivity and growth. Adam’s compelling narrative, enriched with real-life stories and proven strategies, leaves audiences inspired, equipped and ready to transform their teams and organizations.
- Change is awkward, and it hurts so be ready
- In a time marked by rapid change and uncertainty, Adam Kreek’s keynote provides crucial guidance to navigate this constant uncharted terrain. Drawing on his diverse experiences as an Olympic athlete, seasoned expedition leader and award-winning executive business coach, Kreek offers ways Leaders and Employees can prepare for change through resilience and embracing a growth mindset.Audiences will hear Adam’s personal stories and be given the practical tools that foster a growth mindset,to navigate the ebbs and flows of work and life. Audiences are empowered to embrace change as an opportunity for grh, enhanced productivity, well-being, and success.
- The Resiliency Reset: Navigating The Uncharted Waters Of Transformation
In an era marked by rapid change, uncertainty, and less personal responsibility, Adam Kreek’s keynote provides crucial guidance to navigate uncharted terrain. Drawing on his diverse experiences as an Olympic athlete, seasoned expedition leader and award-winning executive business coach, Kreek offers real-world wisdom to help individuals and organizations become more resilient and adaptive.
- Build a map to navigate the peaks and troughs of change
- Create the ability to respond more effectively to change with toughness and resiliency
- Move from drama to individual empowerment in the unpredictable
Audiences are lifted by a blend of personal stories and practical tools that foster a growth mindset, effectively change management and navigate the ebbs and flows of work and life. This transformational experience empowers participants to embrace change as an opportunity for growth rather than a threat, leading to enhanced performance, well-being, and success.
- The High-Performance Reset: Unleash Your Inner Olympian
A meticulously designed anecdote to the persistent stress of high-demand environments that addresses burnout and reduced productivity issues. Adam – an Olympic Gold Medalist and seasoned Executive Business Coach – brings unique, battle-tested perspectives on sustaining high performance while maintaining personal well-being.
- Reset your physical, mental and spiritual health
- Research-backed and empirically driven tools
- Personalize your self-care to combat stress
Drawing on researched-backed personal experience from professional athletics, business, and adventure – the audience gains a dynamic, inspiring, and profoundly transformative keynote tailored for mid-level managers, sales teams, and entrepreneurs. His mission: equip you with the tools to navigate and thrive amidst the pressures of your demanding roles.
- Optional Keynote Add-on: Fitness Session with Olympian Adam Kreek
Join 2x Olympian, Olympic Gold Medalist and Executive Business Coach Adam Kreek for an invigorating and ‘all levels welcome’ 45-minute fitness session! Adam tailors the workout to the interests and goals of the group and ensures everyone leaves energized, refreshed and ready to kick off their conference experience. The Fitness program is offered in the early morning before the conference day begins either indoors or outside as weather permits.
Video clips
Speaker testimonials
Adam’s keynote was absolutely phenomenal and exceeded all of our expectations! Adam delivered on every single bullet point we outlined, and more. He masterfully tailored his presentation to the specific needs of our team, making it an incredibly memorable and impactful experience. The return on investment from Adam’s session is still evident as we continue to integrate his powerful concepts, like ‘noble failure’ and ‘Gold Medal moment,’ into our leadership team culture. His energy, commitment, and willingness to share his life story, accomplishments, failures, and even his actual Gold Medal, resonated deeply with our engineering leaders. We highly recommend him to any organization seeking a dynamic and transformative speaker.
Adam was a huge success at our event! His presentation was relevant to our overall conference theme and set the tone for the remainder of the day. I can truly say that he connected with all of our guests and made quite the impression.
I’ve seen dozens of Olympians speak at off-sites in the last 19 years, and Adam was by far the best. He was relevant to our business and had a fascinating story. He wasn’t spewing business dogma. He spoke to the people in the room, leaving a lasting and positive impact that traveled through our office.
Adam was masterful at integrating our core themes from the day into an energized, motivating, involving presentation. Hundreds of team members were committed to identifying and taking bold action towards their ‘gold medal moment.’ Adam was the highlight of our rally!
By Far the Best! I have seen dozens of Olympians speak at off-sites in the last 19 years, and Adam was by far the best. He was relevant to our business and had a fascinating story. He wasn’t spewing business dogma. He spoke to the people in the room, leaving a lasting and positive impact that travelled through our office. I have heard nothing but rave reviews from all our employees.
Truly a Gold Medal Performance! Adam’s greatest strength is his authenticity. His enthusiasm is not rehearsed or forced – it is true to his personality and it is impossible not to be affected by his strong presence. Our attendees ranged in age from early 20′s to late 60′s, and they are all “hardened lawyers” – a tough crowd! Adam connected with each and every one of them, using a combination of humour, humility and inspiration. Weeks after the event, people are still talking about the retreat and Adam’s role in showing us how it takes different players to form an effective team. His message is that it is only through failure that we can find ultimate success. That we need to move past our comfort zone, was particularly resonant. In fact, several attendees were so impressed by Adam’s presentation that they prepared a follow-up seminar called: “What I learned from Adam” – This is unprecedented, and a tribute to the impact he had upon us, both individually and as an organization.” “Would we recommend Adam? Without reservation! His story is credible, relatable and his impact is tangible. Truly a Gold Medal performance!
Adam’s Keynote Set a Wonderful Tone! We were very pleased with Adam Kreek’s keynote at FCL’s Path to Performance event for 280 of our management employees. Adam took time, in advance, to get to know our organization, meet our leaders, and build relationships with our employees. He also incorporated our organization and its vision into his presentation. This went a long way to making the presentation unique and personal—we felt as though it was meant for us. Adam’s message about asking ourselves, “Will it make the boat go faster?” is a concept that really resonated with people and has been repeated by our CEO. Another concept that people took from Adam’s presentation and have been using it, “we need to focus on the things that we can control and not on the things that we can’t”. We would recommend Adam Kreek to others because his keynote set a wonderful tone for rolling out our new competency model. Adam inspired our management employees by sharing his own journey on his personal Path to Performance.
From the moment we hired Adam on to deliver the keynote address at our employee conference, we knew we had someone special. Our conference theme of Power with Purpose was strengthened with Adam’s complimentary and relevant presentation. Utilizing company specific examples, Adam had our 200 attendees captivated and engaged from the moment his multi-media presentation began. Illustrating relevant examples of how our day-to-day personal and professional lives can parallel the challenge and rewards of training and competing within a team, Adam’s alluring and inspiring tales of his own experiences not only held the audience to the edge of their seats, but provided inspiration and motivation to use the tools to reflect, learn, grow, and let it go in all areas of our lives. By tailoring and customizing his presentation, Adam ensured our corporate messaging remained on target. Truly a man of his word, Adam spent time with our team both before and following his keynote, intent on learning as much about our company as he could. Adam’s charismatic personality shines through as someone who is warm with passion and excited by life. This translated into several staff members speaking about him for days following the event; true evidence of a gold medal performance! Best wishes for continued success.
Adam was nothing short of spectacular. I’ve talked with dozens of people about his presentation, through whom I’ve gotten feedback from just about all the employees and guests that attended. Words I hear from them: “very motivational,” “inspiring,” “funny,” “smart”… They were thrilled that he shared his medals and the torch with everyone, too. It was a treat to have him join us for the entire evening – he was very generous with his time and attention to all who met him. I’m regularly hearing key words and ideas from Adam’s presentation in normal conversation here at Island Savings – “own it!” – and we all found his closing of the event with singing like Kreek an inspiration. It wasn’t just belting out our anthem, it was putting our arms around our colleagues and singing it TOGETHER that brought us the vibrations we’re still feeling today.
Not having seen Adam present I was nervous of what he would deliver. Now having seen his presentation I know to trust the online videos and recommendations. He was outstanding! Adam really captured the audience’s attention – they were riveted for the full hour he spoke. His stories and candid advice where highly appreciated by the 550 UK business people who listened intently. Feedback following the event called out Adam’s presentation as a highlight with many attendees saying it was the best keynote presentation they had heard!
Adam tailored his presentation to our audience and used light hearted humor throughout. Most impressively he asked 550 senior business people to join him in singing the national anthem… and they did it willingly and passionately! Changing gears from business keynotes to hearing stories of team and personal success resonates with successful leaders. Adam’s presentation created a great buzz and following the presentation it enabled attendees to connect and get to know each other better.
Adam was great to work with and we hope to work with him again in the future.
Adam was a huge success at our event! His presentation was relevant to our overall conference theme and set the tone for the remainder of the day… I can truly say that he connected with all of our guests and made quite the impression.