Call for Speakers

Have you been practicing Lean Startup methodology in your organization? Are you interested in sharing your insights and best practices with hundreds of other innovators and entrepreneurs?

Submit your application to speak at the 2019 Lean Startup Conference! You’ll have the opportunity to share your story with some of the world’s leading innovators. You don’t have to be a Lean Startup all-star to apply. You just need a great story, useful tips, compelling advice, real-life case studies and/or practical applications to share. Check out the list of speakers from the 2018 Lean Startup Conference here.

What We're Looking For

You can submit a proposal to speak at the conference by filling out this form by Friday, June 21. There are a limited number of speaking slots available so here are some things to keep in mind when preparing your submission:

  • Your topic should be educational, not a sales pitch. Speak to a problem or challenge that entrepreneurs and/or executives encounter in their work and, where possible, offer up strategies and tools that they can bring home with them.
  • We hand-select most of our mainstage speakers. You’re far more likely to be accepted to speak if your topic can be presented in one of the following formats:

Workshops

 75-90 minutes
  • These sessions involve a mix of lecture, discussion, and exercises. Workshops should be highly interactive and offer actionable tools to help participants address a specific challenge.
Example Workshop

Case Studies

60 minutes
  • These engaging sessions highlight a real-life situation or problem that can be analyzed and used for discussion and learning.
Example Case Study

Ignite Talks

5 minutes
  • These talks are ideal for illustrating a big idea, a series of lessons learned, or a compelling story. Speakers get 5 minutes on stage and must use 20 slides with each slide advancing automatically after 15 seconds.
Example Ignite Talk

When to Submit

The Call for Speakers deadline is Friday, June 21. We'll do our best to notify you on the status of your submission by mid-July. If you have any questions, please contact Jenna Elkins at [email protected].

Need Inspiration?

We’ve been out talking with our customers about their current challenges and here’s what Lean Startup Conference attendees are interested in tackling this year:

Practical strategies and tools for how to:

  • Design experiments to test your riskiest assumptions
  • Identify actionable metrics
  • Define your customer problem
  • Validate your business model
  • Collect and manage data effectively
  • Measure innovation
  • Build and coach successful Lean teams
  • Create startup conditions in large organizations

Have an idea to share? Make sure to send in your application to speak at the conference by Friday, June 21.

“I found the keynotes to be diverse and inspiring. The deep dive breakout sessions were filled to the brim with content. I liked that speakers divulged real tactics and experiences, rather than just ‘fluffy’ 101-level knowledge and theory. I walked away with several tactics/strategies I'm planning to implement as early as today.”

— Megan MacKenzie, Innovation Manager,
Meridian Credit Union, attendee in 2018