Keynotes 
Future Proof: Managing Disruption as an Organization
How do we innovate once we know the glimpse is here? The glimpse happens when we see the future and sense that our industry, its assumptions, and the ways it operates will change for better or for worse. Organizations, especially those that are incumbents in their respective industries, are always challenged by new and ambitious players that wish to overtake their market share. In this keynote, futurist Cherry Rose Tan talks about what it takes to be the leader that can introduce, manage, and sustain innovation and disruption. Evolving as a company is not a solo activity, but one that requires buy-in from multiple stakeholders. What does it mean to scale innovation from leader to organization to industry? Learn how you can evaluate and create your organization’s culture to sustain this innovation.
One Percent-Her: The Age of Inclusive Leadership
Do bias and stereotypes overlook skills? Cherry Rose Tan comes from five generations of entrepreneurs, where her success as a Woman of Colour represents less than 1% of all tech founders. As a Filipino-Chinese Canadian woman who has carved her own path as a C-Suite executive, she shares her first-hand experience of entering, surviving, and flourishing in male-dominated industries like tech and academia. In this keynote, Tan speaks about the advantages of diversifying your leadership and your workforce to open the doors for the next generation of leaders. By challenging organizations to confront the norms, behaviours, and language that can lead to discrimination or exclusion within the workplace, tangible action can be taken on inclusive strategies and diverse teams.
The Future of Work: Retaining Millennial and Gen Z Talent
With the Great Resignation, how do we engage and retain our best talent? Cherry Rose Tan is an expert on the Future of Work, advising and investing in startups who are solving this problem. With organizations balancing in-person, work-from-home, and hybrid work, they must learn to become 21st century organizations: able to recruit, retain, and grow a workforce that wants hybrid and/or remote work to stay. In this keynote, Tan demonstrates research, strategies, and frameworks for being the employer of choice. As the Entrepreneur in Residence at the Schulich School of Business, she has a unique and intimate view into Millennial and Gen Z talent, where she prepares BBA and MBA alumni to enter the workforce. Organizations must be responsive to the trends of work, in order to stay competitive in their industries.
The Future of Community: Metaverse, eSports, and Gamification
What is the metaverse and why should we care as a company? Cherry Rose Tan is a tech Investor and Advisor that specializes in the Future of Community, where Millennials and Gen Z are native to the metaverse. In these digital and immersive worlds, entire storylines, communities, and even economies are created that represent billions of unrealized revenue for companies. In the keynote, Tan shares the trends and insights that have shaped the emergence and takeover of the metaverse. It means leveraging Tan’s 25-year history as a gamer, where she ranked #17 (out of 25 million users) on Neopets, a virtual pets website that served as a precursor to the metaverse. This talk is especially relevant to companies in Media, Entertainment, and Sports, where fans want to engage with your organizations digitally.
The Future of Money: Blockchain, NFTs, and Digital Assets
What is possible with blockchain and how will this affect my organization? Cherry Rose Tan has been a crypto Investor since 2015, partnering with her brother and resulting in the creation of Paycase Financial, a Canadian blockchain pioneer that provides infrastructure and liquidity to global financial markets. Blockchain has taken over industries and headlines, challenging the way we conceptualize value and money. In this keynote, Tan shares the latest research and trends on blockchain, with a particular focus on digital assets like non-fungible tokens (NFTs). As a first mover in this space, she brings unique and historic insights as to why retail investors and underrepresented customers (e.g. Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour) have mobilized on blockchain and what this technology means for organizations.
