40 plus countries. One conversation.

Speaking & Media

From Harvard to Tokyo to corporate boardrooms, Karen brings a combination of deep research, applied practice, and a rare ability to make the invisible visible: the behavioural patterns, power dynamics, and social currents that determine whether a negotiation succeeds or stalls.

She does not just present frameworks. She creates the conditions for people to see themselves differently.

Karen is also a sought-after podcast guest on topics including negotiation, social intelligence, leadership under pressure, and the shift from power-over to power-with. If you are looking for a guest who brings both academic depth and real-world application, she is available for conversation.

Karen S. Walch speaking at the Harvard Negotiation Leadership Conference

Signature topics

Available as keynotes, half-day workshops, or immersive facilitated sessions.

The negotiation you are actually in

Most people do not realize they are negotiating until it is too late. This session reframes negotiation as the skill at the heart of every professional relationship and gives participants a clear model for showing up to any high-stakes moment with calm, clarity, and strategy.

Style shifting: decoding how people connect

How to read behavioural cues, adapt your communication approach, and get more traction with anyone — in meetings, negotiations, or everyday leadership.

Masters of energy: harness your full negotiation power

The invisible forces in any room. How to recognize them, work with them, and use social intelligence to shift the dynamic in your favor.

The influential leader: negotiating for maximum impact

For leaders who need to influence without authority, navigate organizational complexity, and get results through other people.

Power with: from friction to collaboration

A session built around applied improv and the core shift from power-over to power-with. Experiential, energetic, and designed for teams that are stuck in adversarial patterns.

Selected speaking & podcast history

Harvard Negotiation Leadership Conference

Boston — 2011

Global Leadership Keynote, EY

Tokyo — July 2019

Quantum Negotiation, Interview with Alex Searle

Humble Mind — April 2024

The Business of Power

Experience Accelerator — March 2025

Social Intelligence and Negotiation

Conscious Mind Summit — January 2025

Applied Improv Live Sessions

Monthly series — 2024 to 2025

Cultural Intelligence, Haleon

Canada — August 2023

Thunderbird Alumni Conference

Dubrovnik, Croatia — 2014

Kwame Christian, American Negotiation Institute Podcast

October 2020

PBS Arizona, Political Commentary

July 2018

National Contract Management Association

International and US chapters

Get in touch

For speaking, workshop, retreat, and podcast enquiries, use the form below and Karen's team will be in touch within two business days.