KSW monogram emblem of Karen S. WellsKaren S. WellsBring Karen to Your Stage

Leadership Practitioner · Keynote Speaker · Enterprise Strategist

Lead. Boldly.™

Two words. Two decisions. Every day. The periods are the practice.

Karen S. Wells

Bring Karen to Your Stage
Karen S. Wells in a pink dress
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Former McDonald's Corporate VP and Make-A-Wish America COO. Three-time CEO. TEDx speaker. Author of the forthcoming book, Own Your Seat.
20+

Years at McDonald's

$1B

Revenue responsibility

13,000

U.S. restaurants

26M

Customers served daily

100,000+

Hours of leadership practice

A rare vantage. A lasting impact.

Watch Karen
in action.

Karen has led at the highest levels of corporate, nonprofit, and entrepreneurship, and she brings that rare vantage to the stage with galvanizing storytelling, humor, and data-driven insight. Audiences leave not just inspired, but equipped with a grounded view of leadership and how to practice it intentionally to elevate how they lead.

As Seen In

CNNFORTUNEBLACK ENTERPRISEChicago Tribune
Karen S. Wells in an olive blazer

Meet Karen

Leadership isn't performed.
It's practiced.

A first-generation college graduate and NCAA Division I scholar-athlete, Karen has led across the Leadership Trifecta: corporate, nonprofit, and entrepreneurship. Over 100,000+ hours of practice, she learned that the most powerful thing a leader can do is Lead. Boldly.™

Read her story

Signature Keynote

Own Your Seat

The Leadership Truths That Change How You Lead

View all keynotes

The forthcoming book. The signature keynote.

Stop performing leadership.
Start practicing it.

Karen's signature keynote, drawn from her forthcoming book, Own Your Seat. Stop performing leadership. Start practicing it, intentionally, every day.

Preorder the book Explore the book

The Lead. Boldly.™ Framework

Three shifts that turn
ambition into impact.

From performing leadership to practicing it.

With conviction and purpose, not just performance.

Lead Yourself

Leadership begins within. When you know who you are, what you stand for, and how you want to show up, you lead from conviction, not just performance.

Explore the shift

What it looks like in practice

  • Name what you stand for before deciding what comes next.
  • Own your story, including the chapters that stretched you.
  • Choose one intentional action that reflects the leader you want to be.

Keynotes in this shift

Be in A.W.E. of Failure

Failure isn't fatal, and it isn't a verdict. It's fuel. Karen reframes setbacks through A.W.E., the practice of choosing to Accept what happened, Welcome what it has to teach, and Embrace who it's making you. Drawing on her own pivots across corporate, nonprofit, and entrepreneurship, she shows leaders how to turn the moments they'd rather forget into the foundation of how they lead next. Audiences leave seeing failure not as something to survive, but as the raw material of reinvention.

Discover Lead. Boldly.™
Karen on stage with a large audience

The words that stay

“I was nothing short of impressed with Karen's perfect balance of stories, wit, and powerful delivery. I highly recommend Karen for any organization looking to truly connect with their audience and make a difference.”
Jacqueline S. Ruiz
33x Author, Serial Entrepreneur, Pilot

The next chapter starts here

Leadership leaves a mark.
The question is: what kind?

Bring Lead. Boldly.™ to your stage, and send your leaders back ready to practice it.

Bring Karen to Your Stage