Why I'm Launching a Next Gen Speaker Agency

By Kelly Stickel, Founder of Born to Disrupt

After decades of helping trailblazers and visionaries step into the spotlight, it’s time for something new—a speaker agency designed for the leaders of tomorrow. I'm Kelly Stickel, and I’ve spent my career connecting the dots between emerging leadership, disruptive ideas, and the stages that shape industries. Launching a next-gen speaker collective isn’t just a business move—it’s a calling.

You may know me from Women2Watch, the global platform I built to elevate and spotlight rising female executives across retail, technology, and consumer sectors. Through that work, I placed over 500 women on global stages, from CES to Shoptalk, creating access and visibility for those solving the hardest challenges behind the scenes. I witnessed firsthand the power of representation—not just for those watching, but for the women brave enough to lead the conversation.

That experience taught me two things:

1. Stages shape industries. Who we see speaking often determines who we think belongs in power.
2. There’s a gap between the people doing the work and the people getting the mic. And I know how to close it.

What sets Born to Disrupt apart is that we’re not building a speaker agency rooted in fame—we’re building it on substance. We represent the thinkers and leaders who have spent the last decade with their heads down, solving for what’s next while speaking in boutique visionary circles. Now, they’re ready to share with a larger audience —and the world is ready to hear them.

My background spans corporate strategy, women’s leadership, conscious capitalism, and platform building. I’ve helped launch companies, shape thought leadership agendas, and drive transformation across sectors. I also bring something less common in this space: a deep intuition for energy and timing. I read the market the way some people read code—and I move when I feel the current is right. That time is now.

We’re curating a collective of speakers who embody what’s next in leadership—visionaries with lived experience, clear frameworks, and transformative stories. People who don’t just inspire; they activate.

This agency is a platform for those voices. And it’s a home for the audience that’s been waiting to hear them.

​​Meet Three of Our Powerhouse Speakers. This trio forms a cohesive journey through rewiring high-performance systems, remembering the inner self, and reclaiming ancestral and future wisdom. This arc is designed for organizations and institutions ready to meet this era of change with depth, clarity, and innovation.

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