Patrick Schwerdtfeger is a leading authority on technology trends including big data, artificial intelligence and blockchain. He’s the founder of Trend Mastery and the host of the Strategic Business Insights video blog (with over 28,000 subscribers and six million views on YouTube). He discussed “Learned Intuition” at TEDx Sacramento.
Patrick is a keynote speaker who has headlined events for dozens of Fortune 500 companies in a wide variety of industries as well as government and association events all around the world. His programs focus on technology trends including big data, artificial intelligence, Fintech, blockchain, and digital marketing.
Patrick is the author of Anarchy, Inc.: Profiting in a Decentralized World with Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain (2018, Authority Publishing) as well as the award-winning Keynote Mastery: The Personal Journey of a Professional Speaker (2016, Authority Publishing), Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed (2011, John Wiley & Sons), Webify Your Business: Internet Marketing Secrets for the Self-Employed (2009), and Make Yourself Useful: Marketing in the 21st Century (2008). He has been featured by the New York Times, LA Times, San Francisco Chronicle, CNN Money, Reader’s Digest, Fortune, Bloomberg Businessweek, the Associated Press, MONEY Magazine and Forbes, among others.

Patrick has covered technology trends at corporate events, association and industry conferences, and government summits all around the world. While he lives in the USA, he regularly keynotes events in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. He is best known for his keynote programs about technology, digital marketing, and global business trends, and their impact on consumer behavior and market leadership. Patrick’s strategic perspectives make his programs inspiring and thought-provoking for attendees.
Patrick is a passionate and dynamic speaker who focuses on delivering thought-provoking content that encourages strategic thinking and disruptive innovation. His keynotes highlight practical strategies that people can implement immediately and see results quickly. His programs consistently receive enthusiastic reviews and leave attendees burning to put their new ideas and strategies to work.
Patrick was born in Vancouver, Canada, and received his Bachelor of Commerce (Marketing and Finance) from Carleton University in Ottawa (1993). At the age of 27, he discovered that he was an American citizen and moved to Los Angeles just six days after receiving his first American passport. Patrick now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Embracing Disruptive Innovation
Disruptive innovation invalidates existing business models. That’s why it’s become so important for business executives around the world. Technology is evolving along an exponential curve, and entire industries are collapsing as new (mostly digital) business models provide better outcomes for fewer dollars. Disruptive innovation generally comes from the edges of industries, not the centre. It comes from ‘adjacent markets’ often catching executives by surprise. Patrick explains the topic and provides two (2) models and a strategic framework for executives to both anticipate and PROFIT from disruptive innovation.
Big Data and Artificial Intelligence
The explosion of big data technologies and the Internet of Things (IoT) have led to dramatic advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning. These technologies are fueling innovation in predictive analytics, autonomous driving, image recognition, virtual reality, and countless other fields. Patrick has accumulated dozens of case histories and success stories in a variety of different industries, allowing him to explain the trends in a way that people understand. His technology keynotes don’t get into technical specifications. Instead, they highlight trends and strategies for business executives to exploit within their own respective business models.

Anarchy and Decentralization
Technology enables decentralization, and decentralization enables anarchy. Today’s media environment is a case in point. Everyone has strong opinions, and they all accuse each other of “fake news.” All industries will trend towards this model over time. Success amidst anarchy requires defiant leadership. Business executives need to identify their target market and ignore the haters and trolls. Those who  like  you will  love  you! Those who  hate  you don’t matter.

Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin
Bitcoin was the first application of blockchain protocol. Since 2009 when it was officially launched, the bitcoin blockchain has never been hacked. This distributed public ledger technology is now finding its way into hundreds of different applications. In particular, supply chain management, capital formation, and digital identity are leading use cases. Its popularity is part of a larger trend from centralized to decentralized structures. Ironically, the industries that are most threatened by blockchain technology (banks and insurance companies) are the ones investing most aggressively in its development. Patrick explains both the risks and opportunities for business executives.

Digital Marketing and Social Media
Marketing has been forever changed by the Internet and social media, but online channels are converging with offline channels. The secret to successful marketing is to convey compelling stories on both online and offline channels simultaneously. This is done with (1) event-based ‘launch’ campaigns or (2) ongoing ‘drip’ campaigns. Patrick has dozens of fascinating and entertaining success stories for each strategy. His programs leave attendees inspired to revolutionise their businesses with cutting-edge marketing techniques.
Think Bigger! (leadership)
Build a culture of innovation! Build a team of leaders! These are exciting times. The next ten years will be nothing like the last ten! That’s the primary message in Patrick’s ‘think bigger’ leadership program. By reviewing technology developments at a strategic level and identifying the trends tying them all together, the ‘think bigger’ program energizes attendees and gets them thinking more expansively about modern technology as well as the leadership opportunity they have in exploiting it. Patrick’s ‘think bigger’ keynote is a great opening session to get your attendees thinking bigger right from the opening bell.
Predict the Future … Today!
Patrick also facilitates interactive strategy sessions for senior executive teams. Not only will we identify the seeds of disruption in your industry, but you will also be introduced to a series of predictive models and proprietary frameworks that Patrick uses to filter technology developments and anticipate where the trends are leading. The agenda consists of a 60-minute presentation followed by a coffee break and then an interactive workshop-type session where we apply the models and frameworks to your specific business environment. This powerful program can reshape your entire business strategy in a single three-hour session.

“A big thank you for participating in our Summit this past week! I continue to receive high praise for your presentation. I was impressed that you spent quality time preparing up front, as well as engaging with our licensees for the day. That preparation really allowed the presentation to come to life for the agricultural sector and made the speech all the more relevant to the audience of licensees.”  Andy Higgins, CEO, International Food Genomics (IFG)
“Thank you again for a great event! I’m still receiving calls from folks that attended wondering when we’ll have you in town again. The tips and tricks that they took away were “priceless” and many can’t wait to implement them. I too took much away from the event. The products we sell are fully capable of providing the features needed to put your ideas to work right away for the customer. Many of my reps are already using your ideas to help sell our products. I’d almost say that we gained more from the event than our customers. But after some of the calls I have received, I’d say it’s a tossup.” Brian Gray, SMB Manager, Comcast Business Class
“We have truly had rave reviews about him, and I believe he is absolutely the best speaker we have had during the series. He provided exactly the kind of information our small business members needed – easy-to-understand, easy-to-do social media tips with excellent case studies to really bring the ideas alive.” Laura L. Williams, Charleston Regional Chamber of Commerce
“Patrick Schwerdtfeger is the most mesmerizing speaker I’ve ever encountered. His uncanny talent to explain complex business concepts utilizing digital social media in such a simple, easy to understand format is impressive. Patrick is genuine and fun!” Betty Tam, MetLife Financial Services

“Patrick’s presentation regarding leveraging social media with our broker advisory council was outstanding. He is very professional, provided useful and valuable points and examples that can be quickly applied to today’s business environment. Working with social media can be overwhelming for some and Patrick had a way of demonstrating how easy it can be and what possible results can be had when his techniques are applied. Our senior executives were very engaged and have asked Patrick to speak to our corporate marketing team.” Kate Moher, National VP of Broker Strategy, United Healthcare
“I thoroughly enjoyed your presentation last month. Your delivery was so engaging that I lost track of time. By any measure, you are a very effective speaker and educator”  Mitzy Russom, Blue Shield of California
“The session on social networking prompted me to look more deeply into using iTunes as another vehicle for providing though leadership about my prac­tice. I am seriously looking into this and planning to FINALLY actively use at least iTunes to get more visibility to the Bay Area Consulting Group LLC and our deep expertise in IT management. ”  Harry Chap­man, BACN founder
“I learned that I had underestimated the power of YouTube and its rightful place at the Big Kids table of social media. It is in fact now part of the Big Four: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn AND YouTube.”  Kerry Rego, Kerry Rego Consulting
“OW! Patrick Schwerdtfeger presented a one-hour energy Social Media workshop packed with scores of tips and tricks to create social media success. He motivated me to take action and create Executive Coaching YouTube videos to attract more clients.”  Dr. Maynard Brusman

Patrick is a passionate and dynamic speaker who focuses on delivering thought-provoking content that encourages strategic thinking and disruptive innovation. His keynotes highlight practical strategies that people can implement immediately and see results quickly. His programs consistently receive enthusiastic reviews and leave attendees burning to put their new ideas and strategies to work.
Patrick was born in Vancouver, Canada, and received his Bachelor of Commerce (Marketing and Finance) from Carleton University in Ottawa (1993). At the age of 27, he discovered that he was an American citizen and moved to Los Angeles just six days after receiving his first American passport. Patrick now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Margaret Heffernan is a charismatic and authoritative speaker who takes little at face value and regularly challenges received wisdom. With an unerring ability to highlight the talent that often lies underutilised in organisations, this five-time CEO and six-time author consistently questions common business practices in ways and from angles that never fail to surprise. Her aim? To show organisations how to ‘get out of their own way’ and release the talent already in their ranks.
Originally a producer for the BBC, Margaret moved to the US in the 1980s where she became a renowned media executive through her work at The Learning Company, Standard & Poor’s, and others. To date she has written six books.
Her latest, Uncharted: How to Map the Future Together, invites us to adapt to a world in which uncertainty is now the default rather than the exception. It could not be more timely as Covid19, Brexit, AI and other volatile forces bring unprecedented disruption to lives and businesses across the globe.

Among her other roles, Margaret is a Professor of Practice at the University of Bath, Lead Faculty for the Forward Institute’s Responsible Leadership Programme and, through Merryck & Co., she mentors CEOs and senior executives of major global organizations. She also writes for the Financial Times and Huffington Post.
She was shortlisted for a Thinkers50 Strategy Thinking Award in September 2021.

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