Ken Schmidt

It’s an impersonal, copycat world, where so many products and services are seen as easily-replaced, indistinct commodities. Standing out is a choice fueled by the right mindset and a willingness to tackle complacency. Ken Schmidt knows these challenges firsthand and gained acclaim for his role in the extraordinary turnaround of the legendary Harley-Davidson Motor Company. Schmidt helped transform the company’s competitiveness by proposing three key strategic questions and shifting its narrative to distinguish their brand. While times have changed, what humans want and need from the businesses they buy from and work for hasn’t. But most businesses don't know how to capitalize on those basic human needs and leverage them for competitive advantage. In his high-energy speeches, Schmidt inspires companies and individuals to shift their thinking and ride a path to success by becoming memorable – not for what they do or what they make, but who they are. Because when customers can't associate human qualities with a business, they're quick to jump to lower-priced alternatives.

Schmidt’s career in the motorcycle industry began in 1985 as a specialist in corporate positioning and media relations for the then-struggling Harley-Davidson. He was tasked with helping the company restore its image, improve its competitiveness, and create demand for its motorcycles. Within a few short years, sales of Harley-Davidson motorcycles skyrocketed, and the company returned to prominence as one of the most respected, profitable, and frequently reported-on companies in the world.

In 1990, Schmidt became director of Harley-Davidson’s corporate and financial communications, working directly with the company’s CEO and CFO to radically reposition every aspect of the company’s go-to-market strategies to move the company from its historic product-first mentality to its now famous people-first mentality. Serving as Harley’s primary spokesperson to the media and the financial communities, he frequently appeared in mainstream and business media to offer insights on leveraging human behavioral drivers to attract customers, build loyalty and foster passionately vocal marketplace advocacy. His expertise and success at Harley-Davidson ultimately led to consulting assignments and speaking invitations from all over the world.

In 1997, Schmidt left Harley-Davidson to take an ownership position with a highly successful Chicago-based marketing firm, VSA Partners. In addition to Harley-Davidson, VSA served a virtual who’s who of the world’s best-known brands. In 1999, he sold his portion of VSA to start his own business, Ken Schmidt Company, to combine two of his greatest passions, motorcycling and speaking. He uses motorcycles as a metaphor to expose people to proven ideas and concepts they’ve likely never imagined.

In addition to speaking and consulting, Schmidt is co-founder of Torque Sessions Leadership Training and is also the host of the popular podcast Tailgating with Geniuses, wherein he talks with some of the most innovative and successful leaders in a variety of industries to discuss their unique perspectives on leadership, major challenges, and success.

Schmidt authored “Make Some Noise: The Unconventional Road to Dominance,” which gives business leaders an easy-to-follow roadmap for improving their competitiveness, using many of the techniques he championed at Harley-Davidson. He considers his work on “100 Years of Harley-Davidson,” a global bestseller, to be one of his greatest and most rewarding achievements.

After all he has accomplished, Schmidt remains committed to his philosophy of standing out, taking risks, and having fun in both his personal and professional life. He says, “Never do what’s expected, make yourself as noticeably different as possible, and have a lot more fun than you’re supposed to.”