Top 12 Team Building Speakers for Offsites, Retreats and All-Hands Meetings

Speakers, performers and fee ranges, sorted by the kind of gathering you are planning.

By . Published . Updated
Team building speakers David Kwong, Erica Dhawan, Cory Richards and Jody Carrington

Cory Richards has stood on top of Everest twice, once without supplemental oxygen. Yet the program he built for teams is called “No Summit Solo.” That contrast is what a good team building speaker brings: a big story, pointed at how your people work together.

This guide sorts 12 speakers by the gathering they suit best: offsites and retreats, all-hands meetings and kickoffs, and sessions for teams that must perform at a high level. Each entry also shows what the speaker charges in person and the city they travel from.

How to choose a team building speaker

Answer five questions first. Together they shrink the field to a short list.

  • Decide between a talk and an experience. Some speakers deliver a keynote; others run puzzles, improv or poetry sessions where the team takes part. Pick the format before the name.
  • Size the room. Interactive formats shine at a retreat with a smaller group. A company-wide meeting may need a stage show or a keynote built for scale.
  • Name the friction. Low trust, poor collaboration across locations and burnout each point to a different speaker. Say which one your team feels most.
  • Plan the rest of the agenda. A speaker can open the offsite, close it or anchor a working session. Ask how each one fits around your own content.
  • Set the budget. Across this list, in-person starting fees range from about $15,000 to $65,000. Raise the virtual option when you ask about dates.

Offsites and retreats where the team takes part

These four turn a retreat into something the team does together, through puzzles, poetry, mountain stories or a psychologist’s tools for reconnecting.

David Kwong: puzzles that make teams collaborate

David Kwong was head magic consultant on the film “Now You See Me” and builds crosswords for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Wall Street Journal. His show “The Enigmatist,” about the history of American codebreakers, had sold-out runs in New York City and Washington, DC.

For offsites, his “Puzzle Hunt” is a team event tailored to your company that rewards creative thinking and problem-solving. “The Magician and the Crossword,” one of his most requested performances, brings teams together through wonder, and he also works as an MC.

Best for: Retreats and corporate off-sites that want shared problem-solving instead of a lecture. It also fits a dinner or evening slot. David Kwong’s speaking fee: $35K–$40K in person. Travels from: Los Angeles, CA. View David Kwong’s profile and check availability.

IN-Q: poetry that helps people open up

IN-Q is an Emmy-nominated poet, multi-platinum songwriter and National Poetry Slam Champion. He was named to Oprah’s SuperSoul 100 and was the first spoken word artist to perform with Cirque du Soleil. He also has a stand-up poetry special on Amazon Prime Video.

Alongside a poetic keynote on growth, possibility, love and courage, he runs workshops and team-bonding sessions, in person or virtual, for teams that want to build trust. He can also write a custom poem for your brand or company, and his bestselling book is Inquire Within.

Best for: Leadership retreats and culture-focused offsites where people need to open up with each other. Less suited to a tactical training day. IN-Q’s speaking fee: $52.5K–$55K in person. Travels from: Los Angeles, CA. View IN-Q’s profile and check availability.

Cory Richards: resilient teams at high altitude

Cory Richards, a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, is the first and only American to climb an 8,000-meter peak in winter. He also works as a photographer, has been an Artist-in-Residence at Oxford University and wrote the bestseller The Color of Everything.

His team program is “No Summit Solo: Building Resilient Teams.” In “Breaking the Story of Broken,” he argues that mental health is a leadership skill, not a liability. Other programs cover resilience and inside-out leadership, and he has spoken at SXSW and the World Economic Forum.

Best for: Outdoor or destination retreats, and teams ready for a candid conversation about pressure, mental health and support. It also works as a closing keynote after a demanding year. Cory Richards’s speaking fee: $35K–$40K in person. Travels from: Boulder, CO. View Cory Richards’s profile and check availability.

Jody Carrington: reconnecting teams that drifted apart

Dr. Jody Carrington is a psychologist with a PhD in clinical psychology and the founder of Carrington & Company. She spent ten years helping children in a locked psychiatric inpatient unit and has written three bestselling books, including Feeling Seen.

Her keynote “Reignite: Building Resilience in the Age of Burnout” offers specific strategies to shift culture and combat burnout. “Decoding Emotional Intelligence” helps people read and manage emotions in themselves and others, and her podcast is called Unlonely. For sports and performance groups, “Greatness” covers the psychology of winning teams.

Best for: Retreats for teams worn down by burnout or conflict, and leadership groups who want practical emotional tools. Her fee suits mid-size budgets. Jody Carrington’s speaking fee: $25K–$30K in person. Travels from: AB, Canada. View Jody Carrington’s profile and check availability.

All-hands meetings and kickoffs for the whole company

Big rooms need a speaker who can reach everyone at once. These four bring improv, collaboration research, a survivor’s story and a ship captain’s lessons.

The Colin & Brad Show: improv the audience helps write

Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood, stars of “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”, have teamed up to bring interactive improv comedy to audiences around the world. Their act runs on audience participation, so the whole room shares the experience instead of just watching it.

In the live show, audience members yell out suggestions and Colin and Brad build scenes from them, sometimes bringing people up on stage. For remote teams, “Stream of Consciousness” is an all-new live improv show done completely over Zoom. Keynotes, workshops and fireside chats may be available depending on the engagement.

Best for: All-hands meetings, award nights and kickoffs that need a high-energy break between business sessions. The Colin & Brad Show’s speaking fee: $65K–$75K in person. View The Colin & Brad Show’s profile and check availability.

Erica Dhawan: collaboration across screens and silos

Called the “Oprah of Management Thinkers,” Erica Dhawan is founder and CEO of Cotential and a Wall Street Journal bestselling author. She holds degrees from Harvard, MIT Sloan and The Wharton School and appears often in Harvard Business Review.

“Collaborate Faster and Further, Together” teaches which communication signals still build trust when messages are polished but impersonal, the subject of her book Digital Body Language. A newer keynote, based on Get Big Things Done, shows how to break down silos through human relationships.

Best for: Hybrid and distributed companies, and all-hands meetings where teams in different places need to work better together. Her program on critical thinking with AI suits teams adopting new tools. Erica Dhawan’s speaking fee: $55K–$60K in person; $30K–$35K virtual. Travels from: New York, NY. View Erica Dhawan’s profile and check availability.

Matt Newman: connection, risk and resilience

Diagnosed with grade three astrocytoma, a brain cancer, at 39, Matt Newman had spent almost 20 years in financial services. He tells that story in Starting at the Finish Line, written while he was a financial services wholesaler and father to three small children.

He leads sales teams, financial advisors and organizations through his philosophy of risk management and motivation. Talks such as “Change Breeds Opportunity” and “Planning and Preparing for the Unexpected” suit kickoffs, while “Increasing Revenue Through Personal Connection” focuses on deeper client relationships. Testimonials on his profile come from leaders at Transamerica and EisnerAmper.

Best for: Sales kickoffs and financial services meetings, and companies working with a smaller budget. Matt Newman’s speaking fee: $15K–$20K in person. Travels from: NJ. View Matt Newman’s profile and check availability.

Mike Abrashoff: giving every crew member ownership

Since leaving the Navy, Mike Abrashoff has worked with more than 1,200 organizations and founded Aegis Performance Group. He has written four books, and the bestseller among them has passed 1.4 million copies sold.

Commanding the USS Benfold is where his lessons began. “It’s Your Ship: Achieving Breakthrough Performance” turns them into practical ways to lift a whole organization’s performance, and “The Virtual Leader’s Roadmap” carries the same principles to teams that work remotely, away from a shared office.

Best for: Company-wide meetings and kickoffs for organizations with frontline or remote teams. Half-day and full-day programs let managers go deeper, and “No Limits” covers setting goals that do not become ceilings. Mike Abrashoff’s speaking fee: $35K–$40K in person; $25K–$30K virtual. Travels from: Washington, DC. View Mike Abrashoff’s profile and check availability.

High-performance teams that cannot afford mistakes

These four come from Navy SEAL teams, the Blue Angels and the Formula One pit lane, where trust and precision are tested in seconds. Choose one for leadership teams and groups with demanding goals.

Rich Diviney: the hidden traits of elite teams

As Officer in Charge of Training and Selection for an elite SEAL Command, Rich Diviney revolutionized how special operators were trained. He retired from active duty in 2017. He wrote The Attributes: 25 Hidden Drivers of Optimal Performance, published by Random House in 2021.

“Leading Superheroes: The 5 Secrets to High-Performing Teams” covers what separates elite teams, including trust, hiring and adapting to uncertainty, drawing on his SEAL experience and research. His clients include the San Francisco 49ers and American Airlines.

Best for: Leadership offsites and teams building a hiring or performance culture, including sports organizations. A strong choice when you want research and field experience side by side. Rich Diviney’s speaking fee: $35K–$40K in person. Travels from: Virginia Beach, VA. View Rich Diviney’s profile and check availability.

Greg Wooldridge: precision and trust at speed

Greg “BOSS” Wooldridge is the only commanding officer to lead the Blue Angels for three separate tours. He earned his place with the team by showing he could build teams, and he is an executive producer of Amazon Prime’s Blue Angels documentary.

“Extreme Focus & Precision” looks at how a team manages the risk in every maneuver. “The Tip of the Spear” makes the case that leadership rests on trust, confidence and open communication. “The .01%” covers the leadership elite performers need to reach their potential.

Best for: Leadership retreats and operational teams where small errors carry real costs. His “Glad To Be Here” talk on gratitude and purpose suits a closing slot. Greg Wooldridge’s speaking fee: $30K–$35K in person. Travels from: OR. View Greg Wooldridge’s profile and check availability.

John Foley: aligning a team around one goal

Six times named a “Top Ten Carrier Pilot,” John Foley later flew the Blue Angels’ lead solo jet and piloted jets in the film “Top Gun.” Since then, Microsoft, Cisco, IBM, Merrill Lynch and Coca-Cola have been among his clients.

“Mastering Teamwork” uses the Blue Angels’ “centerpoint strategy” to build alignment and better decisions, and “High Trust, High Execution” shows how trust and clear communication let teams perform reliably under pressure. His book Fearless Success: Beyond High Performance covers preparation, teamwork and accountability built on disciplined habits.

Best for: Large kickoffs and leadership meetings for teams that must coordinate across functions. “Inspiring Leadership” is a fit when managers are the main audience. John Foley’s speaking fee: $63K–$73K in person. View John Foley’s profile and check availability.

Marc Priestley: teamwork lessons from the pit lane

As pit lane manager at McLaren Racing, Marc Priestley was part of teams that won World Championships with drivers like Lewis Hamilton. He has since become an F1 commentator and reporter and a TV presenter for the BBC, Sky Sports and ESPN.

“Teamwork Lessons from the Formula One Pitlane” is available as a keynote or workshop and uses the high-pressure, split-second pit stop as a masterclass in teamwork. His book Pitlane Lessons applies what F1 taught him to life and work, and The Mechanic takes readers into the secret world of the pit lane.

Best for: Offsites with a workshop slot, and teams where handoffs between roles decide the result. Marc Priestley’s speaking fee: $40K–$60K in person. Travels from: United Kingdom. View Marc Priestley’s profile and check availability.

This list covers 12 names, not the whole bench. Browse our team building directory for every option on our roster, each shown with a fee range and home base.

Price tiers across our team building roster

Team building speakers on our roster start near $12,500 for an in-person event, the top of the range reaches $300,000, and half start at $35,000 or less.

  • Under $25,000: Matt Newman starts in this band.
  • $25,000 to $39,999: the core of the roster, including Jody Carrington, Greg Wooldridge and David Kwong.
  • $40,000 to $59,999: Marc Priestley, IN-Q and Erica Dhawan all start in this band.
  • $60,000 to $99,999: John Foley and The Colin & Brad Show open at this level.

Two more start at $100,000 or above. Your date, location, format and any custom content shape the final quote, and in-person travel is normally added on top.

Fees from the Mollie Plotkin Group speaker database as of October 21, 2026.

Pairing a speaker with your team’s situation

  • Destination retreat: Cory Richards brings mountain stories that fit naturally away from the office.
  • Hands-on offsite activity: David Kwong’s Puzzle Hunt gets everyone solving problems together.
  • Burned-out or divided team: Jody Carrington offers a psychologist’s tools for reconnecting.
  • Company-wide celebration: The Colin & Brad Show or IN-Q gives the room a shared experience to talk about afterward.
  • Hybrid or remote workforce: Erica Dhawan focuses on trust in digital communication, and Mike Abrashoff has a program for virtual leaders.
  • Sales kickoff on a tight budget: Matt Newman speaks directly to sales teams and financial advisors.
  • Executive leadership team: Rich Diviney and Greg Wooldridge know how elite teams are selected and led.
  • Cross-functional operations group: John Foley and Marc Priestley show what precise coordination looks like under pressure.

The criteria behind these 12 picks

We started from our team building roster and kept those whose profiles show a team-focused program or experience and a current in-person fee. Because format matters as much as message on this topic, we grouped them by the event they suit best rather than ranking them.

What planners ask about team building speakers

How much should we set aside for a team building keynote?

Most team building speakers charge between $25,000 and $40,000 for an in-person session, while the full range runs from about $12,500 to $300,000. Your date, location and format all affect the number, as does any custom content. In-person bookings usually carry travel on top, so have your agent confirm the full figure before the agenda is locked.

What does a team building keynote usually cover?

Most focus on trust, communication and how people work together under pressure. Some speakers teach through stories from elite teams, others through research on collaboration, and others through a shared activity like improv or puzzles. Tell your agent what your team struggles with, and you will get a shortlist of speakers who address that problem directly rather than general morale.

When should a team building speaker appear at an offsite?

An opening slot sets a shared tone and gives people a common language for the working sessions that follow. An evening slot suits performers and interactive shows, when people are ready to relax together. Book as soon as your dates are set, since retreat seasons fill quickly, and share the full agenda so the speaker can build on it.

Should we book a keynote or an interactive session?

It depends on your group and goal. A keynote works for large rooms and gives everyone the same message. An interactive session works best at a retreat, where people can take part and see each other differently. David Kwong, for example, offers both a keynote and a team puzzle event, so you can compare formats with one speaker.

Can team building speakers work with remote teams?

Yes. Several speakers here have virtual formats, from interactive shows on Zoom to workshops built for distributed groups. Inquire about the virtual fee when you check availability. For remote teams, shorter sessions with participation and time for questions usually hold attention better than a long talk, so ask each speaker how they keep an online audience involved.

Getting your team building speaker on the calendar

The right speaker leaves your team with a shared story and a few habits for the week after. Pick a format, fit it to the occasion and trim your list to a small handful of candidates.

Your MPG agent will confirm open dates, the fee and travel. Begin on each speaker’s profile: hit Check Availability and fill in your dates, venue and group size. Team building often sits inside a bigger push on culture or engagement, and our corporate culture speakers, employee engagement speakers, leadership speakers and motivational speakers pick up those threads.