Chris Hadfield Profile Picture

Keynote SpeakerChris Hadfield

Astronaut, Business Leader, Tech Entrepreneur, Bestselling Author

Colonel Chris Hadfield is an astronaut, business leader, hi-tech entrepreneur, five-time bestselling author, and global speaker on leadership, change, and managing life. Having commanded the International Space Station and directed companies, he has deep experience with best practices and tactics on guiding teams through extreme circumstances of complexity and change,... Read more

Biography

Colonel Chris Hadfield is an astronaut, business leader, hi-tech entrepreneur, five-time bestselling author, and global speaker on leadership, change, and managing life. Having commanded the International Space Station and directed companies, he has deep experience with best practices and tactics on guiding teams through extreme circumstances of complexity and change, while also recognizing the importance of sharing the marvels and wonders of science and spaceflight.

Formerly NASA’s Director of Operations in Russia, Hadfield spent more than three decades serving the military, NASA, and the Canadian Space Agency. Throughout his distinguished career, he been a fighter/test pilot, flown three space missions, built two space stations, performed two spacewalks, crewed the Shuttle and Soyuz, and commanded the International Space Station. His many awards include the NASA Exceptional Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Cross (twice), and the Order of Canada.

Today, Hadfield serves as a director and advisor to multiple tech companies, including SpaceX and Virgin Galactic. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of Waterloo, chair of the Open Lunar Foundation, and is assisting King Charles III with space business practices for the Sustainable Markets Initiative. Hadfield also co-founded the Space Stream at the Creative Destruction Lab tech incubator, which has created $1.6B of new business equity value in the past five years.

Hadfield’s keynote presentations have been called “an astonishing display of visual storytelling” by Harvard Business Review, and his TED talk, “What I Learned from Going Blind in Space”, has been viewed over 20 million times. He is frequently featured on national and global media outlets, has taught a MasterClass, and is the co-creator and host of the internationally acclaimed BBC series, Astronauts: Do You Have What It Takes? as well as co-host of National Geographic’s One Strange Rock documentary series.

Hadfield is the author of five internationally bestselling books: two non-fiction, An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth and You Are Here; a children’s book, The Darkest Dark, which has been adapted as an award-winning stage play for young audiences; and two fiction books, The Defector and The Apollo Murders, now under contract to become a television series. A musician, Hadfield has also released an album called Space Sessions: Songs from a Tin Can. It is the first album to be recorded in space and includes the video version of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” that has been seen over 50 million times.

"The event was outstanding and your help with organizing Chris Hadfield’s speaking engagement was professional and very appreciated. It was the best event we have ever held. Chris and Evan helped to make the event stress-free, being so calm, kind, and friendly, open and attentive to us, our students and guests both before and after the event. They were a pleasure. It goes without saying that Chris’ presentation was beyond wonderful. Inspiring, humorous, insightful, surprising. What a shining example of leadership he is for all of us. We were thrilled to have him in London!" Ivey Business School At Western University

Popular Talks by Chris Hadfield

  • Extreme Leadership
    Commanding a spaceship takes superb leadership. The vehicle is complex, the team is international, the crew is on their own, and the stakes are at their highest — huge financial consequences and perpetual life or death situations. Only one Canadian has ever held that command — Colonel Chris Hadfield. Through...
  • Preparing for the Unexpected: How to Manage Through Complexity and Change
    Being a commander of a spaceship means facing the highest of stakes — human lives, irreplaceable and expensive equipment, and worldwide scrutiny. Colonel Chris Hadfield commanded the International Space Station for six months off planet, and is experienced in managing people, complexity, and change under extreme circumstances. Surrounded by life-threatening...
  • The Business of Space
    In the past 10 years, there has been $264 billion invested into 1,750 different space companies and, as technology continues to improve, this is only going to accelerate. With governments enabling commercial space stations and tourist spaceflights, a global demand for Earth observation and high-speed telecommunication, and private companies landing...
  • Stories Behind "The Apollo Murders"
    Colonel Chris Hadfield’s The Apollo Murders is a bestselling Cold War thriller set in 1973, that explores the dark heart of the space race. While it was Hadfield’s first fiction title, the inspiration behind the book is based on true stories that only an insider could ever know. Hadfield takes...
  • STEM
    Colonel Chris Hadfield has worked with countless students and teachers, from pre-school to post-doctoral, for decades. Speaking in schools and at education conferences throughout his 35-year-career as an engineer, pilot, and astronaut, his rare mixture of personal experience, memorable ideas, and a warm, fun, interactive style has influenced a generation....
  • A Musical Evening with Chris Hadfield
    Colonel Chris Hadfield shares a selection of stories, images, songs, and ideas in a musical presentation that delights audiences of all ages. Performing songs like his evocative “Beyond the Terra”, which looks away from the land to the skies, Hadfield ties his presentation together with incredible tales from over the...