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Jay Samit Profile

  • Jay Samit draws from his 25 years as a serial disruptor and digital innovator to guide you and your business through necessary transformation so that despite economic turbulence and accelerated change, you'll still be profitable and relevant.

  • As a former senior leader at EMI, Universal, and Sony, Samit springboarded each one to new levels of prosperity by spotting new market opportunities and developing thriving e-commerce platforms.

  • The author of the international best-seller, Disrupt You!, Samit has advised an impressive list of prominent organizations from the White House to the Vatican on how to turn obstacles into opportunities.
  • A highly respected agent of change, Jay Samit is globally renowned for his expert advice on launching products, building successful businesses, and transforming careers and entire industries. With a fascinating career that spans more than three decades, Samit has been at the helm of some of the most profound shifts in the music, video, and digital worlds. Jay is currently the Vice Chairman of Deloitte Digital where he leads the firms consulting efforts around new technologies, including AI, robotics and virtual reality.

    From negotiating with Steve Jobs over iTunes to spearheading the first million-member social media platform, animalhouse.com, Samit has pioneered numerous technologies and multi-million dollar collaborations in the entertainment industry, social media, and eCommerce space. Samit’s company, Jasmine Multi-media publishing was responsible for some of the breakthrough laserdisc and CD-ROM titles that defined the emergence of video and music on the personal computer, including the first video on a PC. After successfully selling his company, Samit went on to hold senior leadership positions at EMI, Universal, and Sony. While at EMI in 1999, he made the label’s entire inventory available digitally, the first model of its kind in the music industry, and carved a new niche selling and distributing songs as mobile ringtones, a novelty product that grossed over $1 billion in sales its first year.

    Samit served as Senior Strategy Advisor for LinkedIn in its early days and also helped set up the first online auction site which went on to become eBay. As President of ooVoo from 2011 to 2013, he turned the start-up into a top teen App with more than 100 million registered users worldwide.

    Dedicated to fostering the next generation of entrepreneurs, he co-teaches the course “Building the High Tech Start-up” at the University of Southern California. Samit is the author of the international bestseller Disrupt You!, which he wrote to help individuals and businesses break the patterns which limit personal and professional success.

    • View Extended/Alternate Bio

      Jay Alan Samit is a dynamic entrepreneur and intrepreneur who is widely recognized as one of the world’s leading experts on disruption and innovation. He launches billion dollar businesses, transforms entire industries, revamps government institutions, and for over three decades continues to be at the forefront of global trends.

      Everyone from the Pope to the President calls on Samit to orchestrate positive change in this era of endless innovation. Samit helped grow pre-IPO companies such as Linkedin and eBay, held senior management roles at Sony and Universal Studios, pioneered breakthrough advancements in mobile video, internet advertising, ecommerce, social networks, ebooks, and digital music that are used by billions of consumers every day. Combining innovation with commercial success, Samit is the consummate dealmaker; his list of partners and associates reads like a who’s who list of innovators, including: Bill Gates, Steven Spielberg, Steve Jobs, Reid Hoffman, David Geffen, Richard Branson, Paul Allen, and Pierre Omidyar. A proven trend spotter, Samit accurately predicts the future because he is constantly working with those who create it.

      An adjunct professor at USC, Samit teaches innovation at America’s largest engineering school and is author of the internationally best-selling book Disrupt You! Master Personal Transformation, Seize Opportunity, and Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation (available in seven languages including Chinese, Russian, Japanese and Korean). He is a regular contributor to the Wall Street Journal and host of its documentary series WSJ Startup of the Year. Samit frequently appears on ABC, Bloomberg, CBS, CNN, Fox, MSNBC, NBC and tweets daily motivation to the over 100,000 business professionals who follow him on twitter @jaysamit. An expert on transformational corporate change, Samit has been quoted in The New York Times, The Economist, Businessweek, Forbes, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Fast Company, and TechCrunch.

      Samit is a change agent, who combines his bold vision and humor, to motivate audiences to become disruptors within their organizations. Samit gets people passionate about innovation, overcoming obstacles, and teaches them how to think bigger and embrace change. Samit motivates and delights audiences from Moscow to Mumbai, London to Las Vegas, Phoenix to Philadelphia, Berlin to Beverly Hills, Toronto to Tokyo, Seoul to San Francisco, with compelling keynotes that leave the crowd wanting more. Samit provides disruptive solutions for such corporate clients as American Express, AT&T, Best Buy, Clinique, Coca Cola, Disney, Ford, GE, Intel, Linkedin, McDonalds, Microsoft, Proctor & Gamble, Starbucks, Unilever, Zynga and dozens more.

      His talk “It’s Time to Disrupt You!” is a high energy presentation on how to create and embrace change in any field. Designed to be as entertaining and inspiring as it is informative, Samit customizes each presentation to highlight the sales, marketing, and leadership goals of the audience before him. Samit delivers a speech that stays with the audience long after the conference has ended.

    Jay Samit Speaking Videos

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    Jay Samit's Speech Descriptions

    From the sharing economy to 3D printing, Jay Samit helps your organization understand how it can benefit from change or drive it. Samit’s 25 years of collaborations with companies like Apple, IBM, Intel, Facebook, Linkedin ,and Microsoft has provided him with unmatched knowledge and insights on disrupting industries. Whether you’re part of an established company or an individual entrepreneur, Samit proves that you can achieve success and prosperity by challenging assumptions, pinpointing your unique value, and identifying weaknesses in the structure of current industries. You’ll leave equipped and inspired to do that very thing you were told was impossible.

    Samit is a globally-recognized technology pioneer, futurist, and speaker who Wired Magazine described as “having the coolest job in the industry.” Samit writes a column on the future of technology for Fortune magazine, hosts the Wall Street Journal’s Startup of the Year series, and teaches at America’s largest engineering university. Considered by many as the foremost expert on technological disruption, Samit is a sought after speaker for major conferences and management retreats.

    For the past decade, Samit has delivered his high-energy keynotes across 6 continents, in dozens of countries, and continues to advise CEOs, government leaders and many of the world’s largest corporations on how to thrive in this era of endless innovation.

    Disrupt You! – Strategies for Billion Dollar Success in this Era of Endless Innovation

    In today’s ever-changing and often-volatile business landscape, adaptability and creativity are more crucial than ever. It is no longer possible—or even desirable—to learn one set of job skills and work your way up the ladder. Rather, today’s business leaders must anticipate change to create opportunities for professional success and personal satisfaction. In Disrupt You!, Samit shows how the strategies that help the world’s fastest growing companies flourish can be applied at an individual level. By challenging assumptions, pinpointing one’s unique value, and identifying weaknesses in the structure of current industries, anyone can achieve success and prosperity.

    Takeaways:

    • 3 Biggest Disruptions Facing Businesses in 2017
    • 4 Largest Opportunities for Double Digit Growth
    • 5 Actions You Can Do to Personally Thrive in a Changing Economy

    Intensive workshop to teach business leaders and professionals how to master transformation, seize opportunity & thrive in this era of endless innovation:

    FULL DAY WORKSHOP, Master Class: How to Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation

    Event Description:

    In this master class, How to Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation, Jay Samit, a digital media expert who has launched, grown, and sold start-ups and Fortune 500 companies alike, describes the unique method he has used to invent new markets and expand established businesses. Samit teaches the disruptive techniques he used to effect positive change in such companies as Coca Cola, McDonalds, Microsoft, Ford, Verizon, Apple, P&G and dozens of other global corporations. This engaging, perspective-shifting presentation will demystify the mechanics of disruption for individuals and businesses alike.

    You will learn:

    • How personal transformation can reap entrepreneurial and professional rewards.
    • Clear and empowering advice for anyone looking to break through with a big idea, but with no idea how to apply it.
    • Five specific strategies that can be applied to help anyone or any organization, achieve success and lasting prosperity.
    • Three techniques to anticipate disruptions and stay at the forefront of coming trends.
    • The 10 trends that will alter the global economy the most and how to profit from these disruptions.

    All participants will leave with elevated creative confidence, practical ideation skills and innovative mindsets emboldened to overcome any market challenges.

    How does a Disrupt You! Master Class work?

    A Disrupt You! Master Class is an interactive conversation, where business experts are engaged in a dialogue with Jay Samit around their subject of expertise. Based on Samit’s course which is taught at one of America’s top universities, lectures, handouts and group exercises are all designed to impart tactical approaches to problem solving and explore the range of useful toolsets and methodologies for creating disruptive innovation. In our master classes, questions are encouraged and listeners are guaranteed to come away with clear business principles they can apply to their own company and career.

    Training sessions are customized to each group’s needs and are specifically curated to impart knowledge and tools that are both relevant and applicable after the workshop has finished. Participants of our workshops leave energized with great reflective, analytical and productivity skills.

    A curated experience that involves a mix of direct instruction, integrated thinking challenges and active workshop sessions. We use a unique method of facilitation that keeps participants actively engaged and cerebrally stimulated, while laying the foundations for further self-initiated transformation. Most of our workshops involve the transfer of hard and soft skills, from thinking frameworks to techniques for disruption mapping and discovery.

    Blockchain, Cryptocurrencies, and the future of Banking
    An early proponent of cryptocurrencies, Samit has been speaking about and working with Blockchain technology since 2013. The former independent Vice Chairman of Deloitte, Samit has worked on Blockchain projects for financial services, digital supply chain, retail, security, medical, and real estate, impacting millions of citizens around the globe (Goldman Sachs estimated that one fintech Blockchain project has already saved its banking clients over $12 billion). Samit has advised the European Union and US regulators on Blockchain matters and has spoken at major financial services conferences in the US, Canada, Europe and Asia. His keynote Banking Disrupted is a thought provoking look at the near-future and the impact Blockchain and other technology solutions will have on how we work, live and thrive.

    Artificial Intelligence and Automation
    Algorithms already determine the majority of information we consume, products we buy, and entertainment we watch. According to Oxford University, as Artificial Intelligence agents such as Siri, Alexa and Cortana get exponentially smarter and automation eliminates nearly half of all jobs globally during the next decade, AI will disrupt most aspects of society.

    Should humans fear robots replacing us or embrace the coming singularity? As the independent Vice Chairman of Deloitte, Samit and his team worked across a wide range of industries applying AI, robotics, IoT, and deep learning to not only improve efficiencies, but to innovate whole new services and products enhancing how we live work, and play. From self-driving cars to virtual reality enhanced surgery and bioinformatics, Samit incorporates his experience into Exponentials Disrupted – an entertaining and inspiring look at our future and what we can do today to thrive tomorrow.

    Executive Chairman of Singularity University Peter Diamandis describes Samit’s advice as invaluable for anyone who wants to “solve big problems, and thrive in today’s rapidly changing, constantly innovating world.” This speech will stay with audiences long after the conference has ended.

    Sales Growth in the Age of Big Data
    As Samit wrote in his internationally bestselling book, “the only competitive advantage a company has in the 21st century is its ability to gain insights from its data faster than the competition.”

    As the independent Vice Chairman of Deloitte, Samit and his team worked with the world’s leading corporations to show them how to use analytics, deep learning, data visualization, and real-time supply chain information to gain a competitive edge. With most organizations analyzing less than one percent of their data, Samit’s presentation Sales Data Disrupted provides both large and small companies with five clear and effective techniques for increasing sales and innovative new products.

    Today’s sales leaders will learn how to think beyond their experience and integrate real-time data into every aspect of their organization. Packed with entertaining and eye-opening real world case studies from retail, hospitality, manufacturing, travel, and consumer packaged goods, Samit’s speech how data can be the best teammate any "non-techy" ever had.

    Samit will even share how he leveraged data to turn-around a failed startup to a $200 million exit in less than 18 months. As motivating as it is informative, Samit customized his presentation to highlight the sales, marketing, and leadership goals of each conference audience. Having helped clients ranging from Coca Cola to Warner Bros, McDonalds to Visa, it’s no wonder CNBC labeled Samit as a “visionary across industries.”

    Jay Samit on Speaking

    Whether by choice or circumstance, every career gets disrupted. Disruption though isn’t about what happens to you – it’s about how you respond to what happens to you.

    SPEAKING.COM: What do you want people to learn and take away from your presentations?

    SAMIT: I want people to learn that they have the power within themselves to succeed at their job, with their company, and with their personal life. I want it to be the spark that sends them on a transformational process to get the most out of their life. Lastly, I want people to understand that whether by choice or circumstance, every career gets disrupted. Disruption though isn’t about what happens to you – it’s about how you respond to what happens to you.

    SPEAKING.COM: What kind of special prep work do you do prior to an event? How do you prepare for your speaking engagements?

    SAMIT: To me, speaking is not a monologue; it’s a dialog. If the audience doesn’t embrace the message or connect specifically to the individual, the engagement won’t be successful. I really try to dig into who’s the audience, why they are there, what challenges they are facing – either as an industry, company, or skill-set team – and how I can take this message and personalize it so that long after the speech is over, the points we discussed will stay with them, nurture them, and inspire them to achieve more.

    SPEAKING.COM: What types of audiences would most benefit from your message?

    SAMIT: I’ve had audiences ranging from CEOs to college students. I’ve spoken in approximately 40 countries around the globe. We are living in an era of endless innovation where disruption is happening faster than most of us can adjust. My message, then, probably resonates the most with those industries and audiences that feel embattled by disruption, and will stay the longest with audiences that are willing and looking to change.

    I personally enjoy when a message can touch a person and move them into action, because ultimately they’re going to get more enjoyment out of life as a result.

    SPEAKING.COM: Which of your keynote speaking topics are your favorites, and why?

    SAMIT: My favorite topic is personal disruption. The changes that are affecting business and almost any form of life today stem from individuals learning how to embrace disruption and personally benefit from personal introspection. All disruption begins with the individual. Self-disruption is like plastic surgery, but you hold the scalpel.

    I personally enjoy when a message can touch a person and move them into action, because ultimately they’re going to get more enjoyment out of life as a result. That’s why I traverse the globe speaking – to help people with that process and help them in their personal journey to success in life.

    When I look at the biggest problems facing us right now…none of this is about race, religion or culture. It’s about the lack of jobs for the largest generation this planet has ever known: 2.3 billion Millennials.

    SPEAKING.COM: What inspired you to start doing speaking engagements?

    SAMIT: If you would’ve told me at the start of my career that dozens of friends would become self-made billionaires, I would’ve asked you what you were smoking. We weren’t special. We didn’t go to the right schools and we didn’t know the right people, but the world changed, and we were part of making that change.

    I personally feel extremely blessed to have had such an amazing career, to have worked with so many amazing people, and to have helped create technologies that are used by hundreds of millions of people every single day. My success in part came on the backs of previous generations, so how then can I pay that forward and help others achieve? That’s what drives me.

    On a personal level, when I look at the biggest problems facing us right now – what’s happening in the inner cities of the US, the failing economies of Greece and Spain, and what’s happening with ISIS – none of this is about race, religion or culture. It’s about the lack of jobs for the largest generation this planet has ever known: 2.3 billion Millennials.

    I can help teach people to become job creators, which will in turn contribute to a more stable society, more stable governments, and a better quality of life for an expanded middle class. I’m dedicating what will hopefully be the last third of my life to that mission by speaking, writing, and sharing. The message isn’t, “Look at us, look what we achieved.” The message is “I’m an average Joe.

    There’s a self-made billionaire in their 20s happening every month. How are these people spending their 24 hours a day differently than you are? What can you do to be empowered and transform your future and achieve your goals?” I’m insatiable in that quest to try to make a difference with the time I have. I don’t get to live forever, but maybe something I create, or ideas that I inspire can.

    SPEAKING.com Exclusive Interview with Jay Samit
    Becoming a Successful Disruptor, with Innovation Speaker Jay Samit
    In this interview, Jay Samit discusses:
    • Tapping into your ability to turn obstacles into opportunities.
    • Acting on your business ideas.
    • Effectively connecting with investors and consumers.
    Read the Full Interview

    "Every month we have a new self-made billionaire in their 20s. They have the same 24 hours in a day that you and I do, but they are doing something different."
    - Jay Samit

    What People are Saying about Seeing Jay Speak

    Rating Entries

    “The hospitality industry seems to be at the leading edge of the spectrum of engaging the disruption wave (i.e. transport-Uber, booking rooms- Airbnb, in-room technology, virtual event engagement – Skype, periscope, etc…) Your insight validated much of what the audience believes to be true… simply we need to be ready to adapt and adopt to these new opportunities. I enjoyed the flow and the storytelling of your presentation as well. Thank you for offering such a timely reminder that our economic and professional well-being resides in a willingness to learn and evolve regardless of where we are in our careers!”

    – Kevin G. Kirby,
    Chairman of International Board, Meetings Professionals International

    “I really had no idea what to expect when I heard Jay was presenting to our group on ‘disruption’. I mean, seriously, the concept of disruption can be a little unsettling to those of us who attempt to live our lives according to ‘the plan.’ But when you hear the message and all the sage counsel he shares culled from his wildly fascinating and successful career path, you have no choice but to sit up, listen, and be prepared for some detours because, as he points out, disruption is how you respond to what’s happened to you. In order to change who you are you must change who you think you are. Jay drops pearls of wisdom faster than you can take notes so pay attention. You’ll want to stay seated for the full ride, and then accept the challenge to go out and change the world. Excellent speaker, and thought-provoking presentation. Sign me up as a fan, please.”

    – Terry Matthews-Lombardo
    TML Services

    “The information you provided on how “disruption” leads to ‘opportunity’ can be applied in so many industries, especially hospitality. Meeting professionals and suppliers (e.g. Convention Centers, convention & visitors bureau, hotels, attractions, etc.) can serve as a catalyst to change how attendees/guests think about conducting business, networking or offering a service/product. 3D printing will have a tremendous impact on the meetings industry especially in the trade show world. Exhibitors will have the opportunity to print product on the show floor for potential customers. Then there is the endless capabilities of the mobile devices.”
    – Rodney Gutierrez,
    ORANGE COUNTY CONVENTION CENTER

    “You did a wonderful job! I thank you very much!”

    – Jordan Clark,
    Caesars Entertainment

    “Jay Samit gave a brilliant lunchtime keynote on decoding disruption. His mantra for cannibalizing one’s business in favor of disruptive product development would be lost on other big firms notorious for product managers defending their turf.”

    – Anthony Alfidi,
    Alfidi Capital

    “I can’t begin to tell you how much I enjoyed your speech. I was in awe over the things that you shared and the things you have been involved with during your career. I can’t wait to read your book and hoping to hire you to come speak at an event this spring at the Academy. I think your insight would inspire our students and constituents to really consider their future careers.”

    – Kalena Meyers,
    Montverde Academy, Director of Events and Community Relations

    “Samit is an expert on disruptive innovation, which he now applies to leadership self-development. His empowering advice will help any leader make the important breakthroughs they seek.”

    – Inspiring Leadership Now

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    Books by Jay Samit:

    Disrupt You!: Master Personal Transformation, Seize Opportunity, and Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation

    In today’s volatile business landscape, adaptability and creativity are more crucial than ever. It is no longer possible-or even desirable-to learn one set of job skills and to work your way up the ladder. At the same time, entrepreneurs with great ideas for new products or technologies that could change the world often struggle to capture the attention of venture capital firms and incubators; finding the funding necessary to launch a start-up can feel impossible. The business leaders of our future must anticipate change to create their own opportunities for personal satisfaction and professional success. In Disrupt You!, Jay Samit, a digital media expert who has launched, grown, and sold start-ups and Fortune 500 companies alike, describes the unique method he has used to invent new markets and expand established businesses.

    Incorporating stories from his own experience and anecdotes from other innovators and disruptive businesses-including Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, YouTube, Circ du Soleil, Odor Eaters, Iams, Silly Putty, and many more. Samit shows how personal transformation can reap entrepreneurial and professional rewards. Disrupt You! offers clear and empowering advice for anyone looking to break through; for anyone with a big idea but with no idea how to apply it; and for anyone worried about being made irrelevant in an era of technological transformation. This engaging, perspective-shifting book demystifies the mechanics of disruption for individuals and businesses alike.

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