Michelle Ray

Michelle Ray

Vancouver, British Columbia
Leadership, Management, Change, Workplace Culture and Influence Expert
Michelle Ray is a highly sought-after international business keynote speaker, author & educator who demonstrates a deep understanding of consequences. Michelle Ray helps organizations take the lead, get out of their comfort zones, develop the willingness to take risks & succeed via her dynamic & compelling presentations, coaching & workshops.
  • Change Management
  • Employee Management
  • Health & Wellness
  • Leadership
  • Peak Performance
  • Personal Growth
  • Resilience & Adversity
  • Teamwork
  • Business Growth
  • Business Management
  • Future Trends
  • Certified Speakers
  • Certified Speaking Professionals (CSP)
  • Conference
  • Education & Teachers
  • Finance & Insurance
  • Healthcare
  • Inspirational
  • Managing remote employees

MICHELLE RAY BIOGRAPHY

Michelle Ray has helped thousands of audiences as well as organizations of every description to take the lead, get out of their comfort zones and develop the willingness to risk for more than twenty years. According to a recent Gallop survey, only thirteen percent of employees are actively engaged and satisfied in their chosen vocation. High levels of disenchantment and frustration impact productivity and performance, as many seek a greater connection to their work and life purpose. Delivering her powerful message on self-leadership with insight, humour, and passion, Michelle’s engaging, interactive, presentations resonate with a diverse clientele who are seeking to inspire their teams and take personal responsibility for creating their own reality at work, in business and in life.

Michelle Ray began her career in the media industry with one of Australia’s leading broadcasting networks. Ray worked her way up the management ladder and was responsible for the sales revenues of 25 radio and television affiliate stations, and was subsequently hired by one of the world’s largest cinema advertising contractors to lead the company’s sales team and was also responsible for successfully generating record-breaking revenues during a severely depressed economic climate. In addition to her corporate background, Michelle Ray broadened her leadership experience during her tenure as a program director with Junior Achievement, an internationally renowned non-profit organization committed to educating future generations about business. She secured financial commitments and volunteer support from an array of corporations, facilitating enduring partnerships between youth, entrepreneurs and educators.

Michelle Ray has delivered her powerful messages on leadership, accountability and engaged workplaces to the “C-Suites” of global corporations, academia, diverse associations, government groups, as well as front-line staff. Her client list includes notable brands such as Proctor and Gamble, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Shell, Xerox, PayPal, Qantas Airways, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Playboy Enterprises and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Having addressed thousands of audiences across five continents, Michelle’s combination of wit, masterful humour, practical content and an engaging, interactive style resonates with a diverse clientele seeking to inspire, educate and captivate the imagination of their leaders and teams.

Michelle Ray is the author of Lead Yourself First! Indispensable Lessons in Business and in Life. She has appeared as a guest on numerous news and current affairs programs including CBC Radio, CTV, and Global TV and was featured in esteemed publications such as Investor’s Business Daily, The National PostHuffington PostBC Business and Inc Magazine. Michelle Ray is a regular contributor for The Globe and Mail’s Leadership Lab Column.

Videos

Podcasts

Coming Soon!

Michelle Ray Topic Presentations

leadership - it starts with me - harness the power of personal leadership

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • We’ve often heard the adage “everyone can be a leader”, but what does this mean?  More importantly, how is this relevant to your organization and your people? The most practical answer is to think of leadership in terms of character, not position or title. A leader is someone at any level who has grasped the ability to take charge of their thoughts, and consequently their actions, in any situation.

    We are often tested to be the best version of ourselves, regardless of our job function. Our attitudes directly impact the workplace atmosphere and the quality of our business relationships. We should never underestimate our personal power and ability to control our reality.

no more drama - ditch the dysfunction and engage your workplace

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • The existence of people’s challenges has multiple consequences for your bottom line. Many individuals are working longer hours, and spending more time with managers, co-workers, and computers than with their own families. Stress levels have accelerated as organizations of every description feel the pressure of delivering results for their clients and shareholders in less time, with fewer resources. Teams are expected to be efficient, engaged and happy.

    The demands of today’s workplace often take a toll on the most important resource of all…your people. Under these conditions, it is not uncommon for drama and chaos to reign. Is your business equipped to deal with personality clashes, emotional explosions, “my way or the highway” mindsets, and other theatrics that undermines productivity and success? Are you ready to manage the high cost of low morale?

    Delivered with passion and insight, this exciting, fun keynote offers practical solutions to the most common workplace problems…helping your audience to put a stop to the drama…once and for all.

retain the best - confront the rest - how to shake up your organization in the war for talent

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • The notion of holding one job for life does not hold any appeal for the new generation of talent. Those days are gone forever and unless organizations are willing to invest in them emotionally and financially‚ this savvy group will seize the opportunity and leave you scrambling to replace them. They won’t accept complacency in their leaders or teams‚ and neither should you. In order to retain them, organizations and leaders need to focus on creating an outstanding culture that fosters high engagement, high morale and a happier atmosphere.

    In addition to managing the increasing numbers of retiring baby boomers, building a culture that draws in new talent and fosters engagement for all team members, regardless of age or culture, is a key priority.

    “What is it that people want when they come to our organization? What is appealing about our industry that would attract them to our organization?”

    If you are able to answer these questions, then the process of attracting and retaining new talent becomes easier.

    As leaders, we also must recognize that our own leadership style impacts employee motivation and talent retention. Leaders at all levels can profoundly impact an individual’s decision to stay or leave. Are you doing your best to communicate, connect and demonstrate a genuine interest in your team members?

elevate your influence - how to increase your leverage, strengthen your impact and energize your business relationships

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • There has never been a better time for leaders and managers in all industry sectors to elevate their influence. A higher percentage of senior leaders and CEOs now recognize the importance of including leadership perspectives from a variety of departments regarding overall business strategy. By increasing your visibility and impact, your career flourishes and your organization benefits by having your ideas heard, understood and acted upon.

    How can you leverage your position of strength and captivate the attention and imagination of individuals with whom you have key relationships? The solution lies in demonstrating that you understand their positions, perspectives and their interests, prior to introducing your own suggestions. By acknowledging others first, you are ideally positioned to make a difference; for yourself and your organization.

    When others connect with your ideas, you have achieved “buy-in”. It is much easier to put your own agenda forward by listening to others first. Synchronicity is achieved by acknowledging others, even when we may not agree.

    During this informative, interactive and dynamic keynote session, you will learn how to communicate your vision in a way that gets noticed. You add value to your organization and yourself when you are able to demonstrate the bottom-line benefits to your leaders and stakeholders by speaking their language. As business necessitates human interaction, articulating your goals purposely and powerfully begins with you.

staying power, success strategies for resilient leadership - rethink, respond, rebound - three essential strategies for success

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • What makes a person resilient? Can resiliency be taught or are some people better able to rebound from adversity than others? The answers lay in how we first choose to interpret events that are outside of our control and the manner in which we respond to the inevitable peaks and valleys of life. In order to rise above the challenges of any description, we need to focus on developing a mindset of managing rather than coping.

    Resiliency is the cornerstone of our emotional and psychological survival in challenging times. During her Staying Power! Keynote, Michelle teaches the three essential strategies required to hone a resilient mindset.

    Rethink

    Stop dwelling on destructive beliefs. Make room to expand possibilities, exercise greater resilience, and move forward.

    Respond

    Learn to adapt to discomfort by responding, rather than reacting. Take a step back and ask yourself, “Is there another way?”

    Rebound

    Grow from adversity and become more resilient by recognizing challenges as opportunities for greater insight.

who moved my future - demystifying the fear of change

  • Virtual PresentationKeynote PresentationWorkshop SessionHalf Day TrainingFull Day Training
  • “Why is this happening?” “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” “We’ve always done it that way.” Three clichés have become part of the dialogue when it comes to the topic of change.

    Learning how to manage ourselves around situations and events that are outside of our control is not as complex as you may think, although the process often necessitates a shift in perspective, readiness to let go of the old and willingness to embrace the new.

    Easier said than done.

    During volatile market conditions, it isn’t unusual for organizations to tighten their collective belts and become even more risk-adverse. Adapting to a rapidly changing business environment is expected, yet many people feel even more afraid. On the other hand, it is equally concerning to lull ourselves into a false sense of security during positive times. Innovative thinking is essential, regardless of the economic climate.

    During this dynamic, interactive and content-rich presentation, your attendees will learn the core reasons behind resistance to change, how to achieve greater levels of acceptance in order to move beyond the “status quo” and ultimately, how to implement and communicate new strategies and approaches for long-term results.

Testimonials

We recently had the pleasure of having Michelle Ray speak at our quarterly team meeting for our dental company. Her energy and enthusiasm for her work are abundantly clear in her presentations. She took the time to sit down with us in advance to discuss topics that were most important for us and make sure to focus on them. Michelle also made the topics very relevant to our industry which made it easier for our team to understand and conceptualize. We highly recommend Michelle Ray and would not hesitate to have her back.

Jen Mackinnon

Managing Director
Inspire Dental Group

Michelle crafted a customized educational session for our Chapter Meeting that incorporated inspiring stories, interactive elements, and great takeaways for leadership from within and banishing drama from the workplace. She was an absolute joy to work with and the response from the attendees was overwhelmingly positive and enthusiastic. The board was very happy with the session and I’m glad we achieved our goal with the tight turnaround. I would recommend Michelle to any group looking for a dynamic, high-energy educational session.

Jenny Stanfield

Director of Education & Events
PCMA Canada West

Michelle, it was a true privilege. The insights were invaluable. Thank you for helping us grow an already remarkable leadership team!

Matt Dunfee

President
Global Sales and Customer Operations EMC2

We can’t thank you enough, Michelle! I have heard nothing but positive comments about your presentation! If you ever need a recommendation, please let me know.

Maureen Metz

Vice-President
Marketing Metz Culinary Management

The positive energy that you brought into that room was infectious and your energetic presentation style and sense of humor had our attendees laughing, (and almost crying at one point) and nodding in agreement!

Karen Johnston

CMP
Canadian Payroll Association, Pacific Region

Michelle takes the time to really understand her audience and frame her remarks in a manner that is meaningful and specific to them. Our team came away from her keynote speech feeling heard and understood.

Tim Manning

Regional VP, Commercial Financial Services
Royal Bank of Canada

Articles & Media

Coming Soon!

Books

Coming Soon!

How to book Michelle Ray for an event?

Michelle Ray keynote speaker is an expert presenter and has a wide range of experience speaking to a wide variety of audiences and organizations. Michelle Ray delivers keynotes, workshops & training sessions. They may also host or emcee events. Hire Michelle Ray from Vancouver, British Columbia for your event to inspire the audience to take action and make change in their work and their lives. Your workplace will benefit from our keynote speaker and their keynote talks and speeches will shift the mindsets or behaviours for the audience members in Canada. 

Interested in booking Michelle Ray for an event?

Are you looking to hire Michelle Ray for your event? Michelle Ray Vancouver, British Columbia is a dynamic and engaging speaker that offers audiences researched content paired with expertise and a dynamic speaking ability. Michelle Ray is also a Canadian corporate consultant and coach and facilitates workshops and training sessions for a corporate audience. Michelle Ray is an expert keynote presenter and speaks on wide variety of topics. Hiring a great speaker for your event is important and working with a thought leader like Michelle Ray from Speakers Canada’s roster will engage audiences into the content of the presentation to bring awareness and a fresh perspective for their approach to their work and their lives. Book Michelle Ray to educate, motivate and activate the audience through an interactive and entertaining presentation at corporate meetings and gatherings.

Known as a popular key note speaker in Canada, Michelle Ray creates life changing experiences for the participants with practical insights and strategic advice they can implement right after the session. Working with a one our leading expert speaker like Michelle Ray from Vancouver, British Columbia offers organizations a fresh perspective to assist the people of the organization. No matter if it is a government, association, or business crowd, Michelle Ray is a perfect speaker for your event. Through unique practical insights for trending topics and years experience speaking to different organizations, Michelle Ray focuses on changing individuals to make better decisions at work and their lives. No matter if you are holding an in person or virtual event, having an influential speaker such as Michelle Ray will engage, motivate, and activate the audience to make a change in their lives and inspire action for results to meet organizational goals. Your workforce will benefit from Michelle Ray’s presentations and speeches, with measurable results set to shift the people of the organization and core direction of the company. Book Michelle Ray speaker for your annual general meeting, conference, summit, or convention in Canada.

How much does it cost to hire Michelle Ray for a keynote presentation or virtual event?

Michelle Ray is an expert professional key note speaker with a lot of experience speaking and delivering engaging talks to organizations and audiences in Canada. Each of Speaker Bureau Canada’s talent have different ways to assess their fees, and Michelle Ray speaker fee ranges depending on the size of the audience, event format (in person or virtual), event location, and if the organization booking them is a non profit, association, government department/government agency or business/corporation. The speakers we work with are flexible with their fees, and it is important for us to learn more about your event before we approach them, as it is our role to work for you, and to help you find a speaker within budget. 

Please contact Speakers Bureau of Canada and provide us with your event details so that we can contact Michelle Ray to check availability or confirm the pricing and associated costs to hire a great speaker like Michelle Ray for your event. As Michelle Ray's agent and as a Canadian top speaker bureau and talent agency for speakers, we are able to propose each event opportunity from each host organization’s behalf to try to help you get in touch with Michelle Ray and confirm them for your in person or online meeting/event. We can also provide and advise on the booking process and potentially negotiate their fee. Speakers Canada is a client focused speaker agency, and we work for you in finding good speakers for your team meetings and booking processes.

Michelle Ray Disclaimer
Speakers Bureau Canada assists companies and event planning teams seeking to hire talent like Michelle Ray for speaking engagements, virtual meetings, conference appearances, training sessions and workshops facilitations. Our Canadian speakers bureau does not claim to exclusively represent Michelle Ray, however they are represented by Speakers Canada, and we work with them closely for their Canadian speaking opportunities and bookings. As Canada’s top speaker bureau, we represent Canadian motivational keynote speakers and professional guest speakers that will be available on your upcoming events date and location that are withing the budget. Our talented bureau speaker booking agency can help find business speakers or celebrity speakers that aligns with each organization, audience, event theme and the topic themes you hope for the speaker to address in their presentation. 

When SBC receives a request to book Michelle Ray we provide you with their speaker fees, travel costs and check their schedules. We work closely with the host organization’s event planning team and the speaker to handle the logistics and to relay or negotiate associated costs. Our talented team members then will work with our talent directly or their agent/manager/assistant to confirm the Canadian speaker fee and travel expenses, so that event planning teams can receive an official quote for the speaker appearing at the event. Speaker fees and travel costs vary per speaker and our role is to contact Michelle Ray about your event, after we have connected with the event organizers to learn all the event details and/or conference program. Each booking request is unique since session durations and audience sizes can vary which may affect the speaker’s fees. If you are looking to hire Michelle Ray, we recommend filling out the booking request form so a booking agent from Speakers Bureau Canada can get in touch with our talent to help you coordinate with your team to engage the speaker for a successful event.

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