Unlocking the brilliance in people and ideas.
Organisations are full of talented people with extraordinary creative potential. Yet too often, their best ideas go unheard, their brilliance goes untapped and the energy that drives businesses forward gets lost.
That's because people are hired for their brains, but too often only asked to use their hands.
Jo Bird: Breaking the Brilliance Bottleneck
Keynote speaker. Award-winning creative marketer. Former Gymshark creative.
For 10+ years, Jo Bird has helped shape the creative direction of some of the UK's biggest brands, including Gymshark during its rise to a billion-dollar business. Along the way, she's become fascinated by one question: Why do some brands bring out extraordinary creativity in their people, while others let it go to waste?
While many businesses focus on hiring the best talent, Jo believes the real opportunity lies in unlocking the creative brilliance of the people they already have.
Through energetic, story-led keynotes on creativity, brand and confident communication, Jo inspires people to share bold ideas, contribute with confidence and become passionate brand champions who move businesses forward.
Because the difference between an ordinary business and an extraordinary brand is what its people bring to it.
SEE JO IN ACTION
“I'm a firm believer that a keynote can make or break the event - and Jo delivered the WOW factor for us.”
— The Network Group Annual Conference
KEYNOTE TOPICS
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THE BRILLIANCE BOTTLENECK
You've hired them for their brains. Why are you only getting their hands?
The Core Focus:
Why talented people stop sharing ideas, lose their passion and become executors rather than contributors. Drawing on her experience inside fast-growing brands including Gymshark and Lounge, Jo explores how fear of failure, rigid processes and permission-seeking hold people back — and how to rebuild the confidence, creativity and initiative needed to turn brilliant thinking into real business impact.Session Style:
Energetic, empowering and packed with honest stories, humour and practical tools to help people speak up, challenge convention and make ideas happen.Perfect For:
Leadership conferences, company-wide events, employee engagement days, creative teams, innovation summits, women's leadership events and internal kick-offs. -
UTTERLY UNCOPYABLE
Stop competing on sameness. Become a category of one.
The Core Focus:
How to break out of the copy-and-paste era, build meaningful differentiation and create a brand customers actively choose. Drawing on the cult-brand strategies behind Gymshark and Lounge, Jo shows teams how to escape the race to the bottom, strengthen brand preference and create the kind of distinctiveness that protects growth and pricing power.Session Style:
Strategic, commercially sharp and packed with practical frameworks teams can apply immediately.Perfect For:
Marketing conferences, CMO events, leadership teams, growth conferences, sales kick-offs and product strategy sessions.
TESTIMONIALS
“Jo ROCKED the stage! We get thousands of posts online about ATOMICON, and it seems like they ALL mention Jo's talk as a decisive moment that brought them clarity and immediate ROI. Jo is one of our new fav people, easy to work with, reliable, and a big draw for attendees.”
— Andrew & Pete: ATOMICON“Our group chat was lighting up throughout the full hour of her talk, and we saw more questions than we ever have for a single speaker. And if you don't believe this, believe the direct message we got immediately after from one of our attendees: 'Best personal brand talk ever.’”
— WOMEN IN BRAND SUMMIT“Her keynote became one of those moments people kept talking about long after the conference ended. We saw it mentioned again and again in attendees’ posts and reflections across social media.”
— LADIES WHO TECH CONFERENCE
WHY JO GETS BOOKED
✔ SHE'S BEEN IN THE ROOM. Jo doesn't just talk about building brands. She's helped build them. Her stories come from real experience inside fast-growing businesses, not recycled theories.
✔ NOT A TALK, AN EXPERIENCE. Jo lights up the stage with humour, warmth and sometimes a bit of salsa dancing. She leaves audiences inspired, energised and ready to act.
✔ SHE MAKES YOUR EVENT HER PRIORITY. Every keynote is tailored to your audience and objectives, with a collaborative, organised approach from the first conversation to the final applause.
✔ BUILT-IN EVENT VISIBILITY. Tap into Jo's highly engaged community of 100,000+ brand professionals to create buzz around your event and extend its digital reach.
Planning an event?
Planning a conference, leadership event, company all-hands or corporate keynote? Tell Jo a little about your event and she'll come back with availability, options and a tailored quote.
FAQ’s
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Yes. Every keynote is tailored to the audience, context and goals of the event. While the core thinking remains consistent, the examples, emphasis and delivery are shaped so the talk feels relevant, practical and specific to the organisation.
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A great keynote should do more than entertain. Jo's talks give audiences clearer thinking, stronger confidence and practical tools for moving ideas forward. That can translate into better decision-making, fewer stalled projects and teams who are more willing and equipped to back good ideas — not just discuss them.
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The booking process is straightforward. Send your enquiry to hello@justjobird.com with your event date, location and a little about your audience and objectives.
Jo will then arrange a short conversation to understand the brief, audience, goals, dates, fees and logistics. She'll follow up with a formal proposal and, once everything is agreed, a 20% deposit secures the booking date.
From the initial conversation through to the event, Jo provides clear communication, timely delivery of materials and a seamless speaker experience.
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In most cases, yes. Recording and usage are agreed in advance so there's clarity around how the keynote will be recorded, distributed and used. Any details are discussed openly as part of the booking process.
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Yes. Jo regularly contributes to panels, fireside chats and podcasts, particularly around creativity, leadership, brand and the future of work. She brings the same energy, insight and clarity to conversation as she does to the keynote stage.
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Yes. Jo can host conferences, company events, panels and other live experiences.