Dr. Andrea "Andi" Simon

Dr. Andrea "Andi" Simon Speaking Topics

• The Culture Advantage: How Anthropology Can Transform Your Business for Fast-Changing Times

  In today’s volatile and uncertain world, businesses need more than traditional tools to stay competitive—they need a deeper understanding of their people, customers, and cultures. This is where anthropology comes in. In this dynamic and insightful keynote, Andi Simon, a corporate anthropologist and award-winning speaker, will share how the anthropological method—observation, storytelling, and cultural analysis—can help companies uncover hidden opportunities, adapt to rapid changes, and foster innovation. Drawing on her years of experience working with organizations across industries, Andi will provide real-world examples of how anthropology has been used to drive growth, improve employee engagement, and better serve customers in times of disruption.

  What Attendees Will Gain:

  • Actionable Insights: Learn how to apply anthropological tools to identify and adapt to changing market dynamics, customer needs, and workplace trends.
  • Practical Strategies: Discover how to map your organization's culture to align it with your strategic goals.
  • Fresh Perspectives: Gain a new lens to see challenges as opportunities, uncovering the cultural "blind spots" that may be holding your business back. Inspiration to Innovate: Leave empowered with ideas to create a culture of adaptability and resilience in your organization.

  This keynote will inspire leaders and teams to think differently, act boldly, and use the power of anthropology to build purpose-driven, future-ready companies

• Creating Your Blue Ocean: Discovering New Markets, Building Value & Driving Innovation

  In today’s fast-paced, competitive world, businesses often find themselves trapped in the "red ocean," fighting for market share in crowded spaces with diminishing returns. What if, instead of competing, you could create new markets and unlock untapped opportunities? In this engaging and thought-provoking talk, Andi Simon, a Blue Ocean Strategist with over 450 workshops and client engagements, will guide you through the powerful framework of Blue Ocean Strategy. By shifting your focus from competing to creating, you’ll learn how to identify unmet needs, attract new customers, and build demand by innovating on value rather than price. Packed with real-world examples and actionable insights, this session will inspire leaders to rethink their strategy, embrace creativity, and make competition irrelevant.

  Key Takeaways for the Audience:

  1. The Blue Ocean Mindset: Understand the fundamental difference between "red oceans" of fierce competition and "blue oceans" of opportunity creation.
  2. Tools and Frameworks: Learn key frameworks such as the Value Innovation Canvas to identify gaps in the market and craft winning strategies.
  3. Seeing Nonusers as Opportunities: Discover how to turn non-customers into new markets by addressing their unmet needs.
  4. Shifting from Competing to Creating: Learn to break free from traditional industry boundaries and explore how innovation can open up entirely new market spaces.
  5. Practical Steps to Start: Gain actionable steps to begin identifying and executing a Blue Ocean Strategy within your organization.

  This session is ideal for leaders and organizations seeking to grow, innovate, and thrive by unlocking new markets, creating value for customers, and leaving competition behind. Prepare to be inspired, equipped, and ready to chart your own blue ocean journey.

Women Mean Business: An Anthropologist’s Perspective on Building Inclusive Workplace Cultures

In this compelling talk, Andi Simon, Ph.D., award-winning author, corporate anthropologist, and business culture expert, explores the transformative power of gender diversity in the workplace. Drawing on insights from her acclaimed book Women Mean Business and her extensive research as an anthropologist, Andi dives into how men and women experience work differently—and how organizations can leverage those differences to create stronger, more innovative teams.

Through the lens of anthropology, Andi illuminates how cultural norms, unconscious biases, and societal expectations shape workplace dynamics. She highlights actionable strategies to build a culture where men and women can thrive together by embracing their unique strengths and learning to collaborate more effectively. Attendees will gain insights into:

• The anthropological roots of gender dynamics and their impact on workplace cultures.
• The value of diverse perspectives in driving innovation and business growth.
• How to build purpose-driven cultures where men and women work together to achieve extraordinary results.
• Practical tools to empower women as leaders while fostering an environment where men actively champion their success.

Whether you're an executive, HR professional, or emerging leader, this talk will leave you inspired to reimagine your workplace culture and harness the collective power of men and women working in harmony. Let’s rethink how we work, lead, and succeed—together.

Key takeaway: Inclusive, purpose-driven workplace cultures aren’t just good for business—they’re essential for building a future where everyone’s potential is realized.