Sara Ross

Sara Ross and her company, BrainAMPED, provide brain-based tools to decrease stress and exhaustion and increase Leadership Vitality by strengthening the skills of energy management, emotional intelligence, and resilience. Her ideas and research have earned her a reputation as a fresh and thought-provoking voice in discussions focused on the future of work.

Before founding BrainAMPED, Ross spent a decade immersed in the neuroscience of Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and Performance at a leadership training company where she served as their Vice President and Global Head of Leadership Innovation, Research and Training. Here, she led the development and delivery of award-winning leadership programs, assessments, coaching, and accreditation programs helping leaders from across the globe be their best, even in the most complex and pressure-filled moments.

Ross has worked with Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, UnitedHealth Group, Verizon, Sprint, Rogers, Allstate, Procter and Gamble, New York Life, tech companies such as Adobe and Salesforce; financial firms such as Scotiabank, Fidelity, BMO, TD Bank and PwC; pharmaceutical companies such as Sunovion and Bayer; educational institutes such as Smith College and the University of Toronto; Healthcare as well as various associations across North America; and as diversely as the leadership team of the NBA’s Orlando Magic. Her clients have ranged from surgeons, bankers, lawyers, air traffic controllers, and engineers to government agencies, nurses, non-profits, start-ups and entrepreneurs. This broad perspective and diverse experience help explain why she is often called on to work with some of the most senior, technically sophisticated, and skeptical audiences.

Balancing relevance and practicality with contagious energy, Ross integrates cutting-edge science with real-life stories of success and failures. Her approach is guaranteed to challenge the status quo, provide new insights and inspiration, and most importantly, leave audiences with a blueprint of actionable strategies. Ross has also authored the book "Dear Work, something has to change," and has developed keynotes such as "Igniting Your Leadership Vitality" and "Stand Out without Burning Out By Increasing Your Stress Vitality Quotient," focusing on sustainable leadership practices and vitality management.

Ross holds a Master of Science (MSc) Graduate Degree. Outside of work, she is a coffee-loving, meditation rookie who can’t help but slip in the occasional Canadian "eh" at the end of a sentence. Her husband describes her career as professional eavesdropping-people-watching. She argues that she is merely a dedicated street scientist doing her professional duty to better understand why people do what they do, and why they don’t do what they know they should!