Photograph By Lisa Berg

Bob Woodward gained international attention when he and Carl Bernstein uncovered the Watergate scandal in 1973. Since then, he’s worked to shine a light on the inner-workings of secret government. Woodward’s factual, non-partisan revelations to readers and speech audiences provide a view of Washington they’ll never get elsewhere. Woodward has written about the last ten U.S. presidents and chronicled how the power of the presidency has evolved. He is author of 22 bestselling books – 16 went to #1 – more than any contemporary nonfiction writer. His 21st book, Peril (co-authored with acclaimed reporter Robert Costa), was a deep dive into a critical time in American history – the transition between the Presidencies of Donald Trump and Joe Biden. His latest work, The Trump Tapes, is an audio book containing the complete recordings of his 20 interviews with Donald Trump over four years. He’s taken this never-before step to give the public a chance to hear for themselves the words of the president and key advisers. In his speeches, Woodward looks at the expanding powers of the presidency and the important lessons that can be learned from the presidents he’s covered. He can also assess the role of the media and how well it is (or isn’t) doing its job. Audiences will be awe-struck by insights from this living journalistic legend. Currently associate editor for The Washington Post where he’s worked since 1971, Bob Woodward has won nearly every American journalism award including two Pulitzers.

Former CIA director and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates wished he’d recruited Woodward into the CIA, “He has an extraordinary ability to get otherwise responsible adults to spill [their] guts to him…his ability to get people to talk about stuff they shouldn’t be talking about is just extraordinary and may be unique.” Therein lays the genius talent of Bob Woodward.
No one else in political investigative journalism has the clout, respect, and reputation of Woodward. He has a way of getting insiders to open up in ways that reveal an intimate yet sweeping portrayal of Washington and the political infighting, how we fight wars, the price of politics, how presidents lead, the homeland security efforts, and so much more. His work is meticulous and draws on internal memos, classified documents, meeting notes and hundreds of hours of recorded interviews with most of the key players, including the president. This is why Fear: Trump in the White House sold more than 1.1 million copies in its first week in September 2018 – breaking the 94-year first-week sales record of its publisher Simon & Schuster – and nearly 2 million copies in hardback, ebook and audio in the first four months.

In October 2022, Woodward did something he’d never done before; he released the complete recordings of his 20 interviews with Donald Trump in audiobook form titled, The Trump Tapes. The audiobook is unique in that the listener gets the opportunity to hear his lengthy and raw interviews as well as exclusive commentary during some of the interviews – to provide vital context or clarification. The Trump Tapes is considered by Simon and Schuster “…as historically important as the Frost/Nixon interviews.”

As a speaker, Woodward pulls the curtain back on Washington and its leaders to captivate audiences with stories that are sometimes surprising, at times shocking, and always fascinating. He blends stories that are both up to the minute and from the past (to provide historical context). Woodward speaks as he writes – crisp and concise – and helps people get behind the spin to understand what’s really going on in the halls of power in an age of 24-hour news, social media, and snarky politics.

Professionally, Bob Woodward is currently associate editor for The Washington Post where he’s worked since 1971. He has won nearly every American journalism award, and the Post won the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for his work with Carl Bernstein on the Watergate scandal. In addition, Woodward was the main reporter for the Post’s articles on the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks that won the National Affairs Pulitzer Prize in 2002.

Bob Schieffer of CBS News said "Woodward has established himself as the best reporter of our time. He may be the best reporter of all time." Lloyd Green wrote in a review for The Guardian that Fear “depicts a White House awash in dysfunction, where the Lord of the Flies is the closest thing to an owner’s manual.” The Weekly Standard called Woodward “the best pure reporter of his generation, perhaps ever.” In 2003, Al Hunt of The Wall Street Journal called Woodward “the most celebrated journalist of our age.” In listing the all-time 100 best non-fiction books, Time magazine has called All the President’s Men, by Bernstein and Woodward, “Perhaps the most influential piece of journalism in history.”

Woodward has co-authored or authored 15 #1 national best-selling non-fiction books. They are: All the President’s Men (1974) and The Final Days (1976), both Watergate books, co-authored with Bernstein; The Brethren: Inside the Supreme Court (1979) co-authored with Scott Armstrong; Wired: The Short Life and Fast Times of John Belushi (1984); Veil: The Secret Wars of the CIA 1981-87 (1987); The Commanders (1991); The Agenda: Inside the Clinton White House (1994); Shadow: Five Presidents and the Legacy of Watergate (1999); Bush at War (2002); Plan of Attack (2004); State of Denial: Bush at War Part III (2006); Obama’s Wars (2010); Fear: Trump in the White House (2018); Rage (2020); and Peril (2021) co-authored with Robert Costa. Woodward’s other national bestselling books are: The Secret Man: The Story of Watergate’s Deep Throat (2005), The Choice (1996), Maestro: Greenspan’s Fed and the American Boom (2000), The War Within: A Secret White House History 2006-2008 (2008), The Price of Politics (2012), and The Last of the President’s Men (2015). Newsweek magazine has excerpted six of Woodward’s books in headline-making cover stories; “60 Minutes” has done pieces on eight of his books; and three of his books have been made into feature films.

In November 2017, the online learning portal MasterClass released “Bob Woodward Teaches Investigative Journalism.” In it, Woodward reveals the lessons he’s learned during his career, teaching students what truth means, how to uncover it, and how to build a story with it.

Anne Stone, CAE is the director of member engagement for Promotional Products Association International (PPAI). In this role, she is responsible for all of the Association’s professional development, legislative and nd government relations efforts and product responsibility programs including the development of industry best practices and the PPAI Product Safety Summit—a two-day education event focused specifically on product responsibility issues. Anne oversees PPAI’s volunteer engagement efforts as well as the Associations awards program. A frequent speaker on the topics of product responsibility and legislative advocacy, Anne also serves on the board of directors for the Small Business Legislative Council and is a former Board member on the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization (ICPHSO). Anne is a graduate of Georgetown University.

Chris Anderson joined the promotional products industry in 2002 with supplier HandStands and became president of the company in 2009 and CEO in 2010. Under his leadership, HandStands expanded its distribution into 138 countries and closed multiple strategic acquisitions, including the sale of the business to HPG in 2018. Anderson became CEO of HPG in 2019.

Before joining PPAI as president and CEO in August 2021, Dale Denham spent ten years at distributor Geiger as senior vice president and CIO responsible for significant growth, including international growth, and successfully led the organization’s digital transformation. Prior to Geiger, Dale was a member of the ASI executive team for ten years where he was responsible for growth, including all technology, strategic partners, and publications. His first experience in the industry came in the 1990s as president of Impact. Denham served on the PPAI Board of Directors from 2015-2020, including as chair in 2018. He has served on numerous other industry boards and has been a consistent volunteer for PPAI and other industry organizations, as well as a sought-after speaker. Dale graduated from the University of South Florida with a bachelor’s in business and a minor in economics.

As an industry veteran, Dana has dedicated over 2 decades to the promotional product industry and SAGE. If there’s one thing Dana is more passionate about than ensuring all of SAGE’s data is top-notch, it’s volunteering and staying active within the industry. She currently serves on the Government Relations Action Council (GRAC) and takes pride in advocating for the industry. She has also participated in Legislative Education Action Day (LEAD) multiple years, served as chair of the Promotional Product Education Foundation (PPEF) Board of Trustees, chair of the PPAI Women’s Leadership Conference and most recently was awarded iPROMOTEu’s A Women’s View 2022 Supplier Visionary Award.

Isaac Stone Fish is the founder and CEO of the research firm Strategy Risks, a China-focused research and consulting firm. Strategy Risks works with companies to help them quietly identify and minimize forced labor and regulatory risks in their supply chains. He is also a Washington Post Global Opinions contributing columnist, a contributor to CBSN, an adjunct at NYU's Center for Global Affairs, a visiting fellow at the Atlantic Council, and a columnist on China risk at Barron's. A fluent Mandarin speaker and formerly a Beijing correspondent for Newsweek, Stone Fish spent seven years living in China. He has traveled widely in the region and in the country, visiting every Chinese province, autonomous region, and municipality, including a five-week trip to Xinjiang. He is a visiting fellow at the Atlantic Council, and was also formerly a senior fellow at the Asia Society's Center on U.S.-China Relations, and a visiting fellow at the German Marshall Fund. Isaac is the author of America Second (Knopf), published in February 2022.

Jenna Quaranta (or better known as JQ to most in the industry) is the VP of Sales & Business Innovation at the emerging Startup, KNOSS Apparel. With over a decade of industry experience as both a Supplier and PPD, JQ's reputation as an industry thought leader and Sales powerhouse is indisputable.

Sales is not just the act of selling for JQ, instead, her no-BS approach combined with a tactical mindset is a key component in her ability to bring value to customers and their businesses. She utilizes her knowledge as a Certified Business Coach to provide a path to success for her customers in a consultative manner. Furthermore, as a Certified Mental Health Ambassador, JQ emphasizes that, to be a strong Professional, you must also possess a strong mind, body and discipline. JQ’s innovative approach creates a unique relationship with her customers where service is supported by the products she sells, not the other way around.
Recognized in the Top 10 by PPAI’s Online18 as one of the industry’s key influencers, many people’s first introduction to JQ is via her social media, give it a follow and you’ll see these words come to life.

Jessica Summers is a Principal in Lerch, Early & Brewer’s Litigation and Employment practice groups. Jessica works with clients to establish and implement effective employment policies, employment policies, agreements, and benefit plans, and advises on legislative and regulatory developments. Jessica is also the Strategic Policy Director for the Small Business Legislative Council.

Prior to joining Lerch Early, Jessie was a principal in Paley Rothman’s Employee Benefits, Employment Law, Retirement Plans, Litigation and Government Relations practice groups.  A cum laude graduate of American University’s Washington College of Law, she served as Topics and Trends Manager on the Administrative Law Review. As a law student, she was admitted to practice and represented low-income clients through the school’s General Practice Clinic. Jessica also interned in the chambers of the Honorable Judge Joan Zeldon in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and in the Office of the General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Jim Thomsen has been the VP, Customer Success at Showdown Displays for the past eight years. His focus is building highly engaged and world-class teams who are driven to deliver legendary experiences with every interaction. In 2020, Jim's team was named Best Medium Sized Contact Center by ICMI, and Jim himself was honored to be named the Contact Center Leader of the Year by CCW. Recently, in 2021, his team was also named a runner-up for Best in Class and two of his managers were identified as up-and-coming leaders by CCW. 

Jo-an Lantz, MAS President/CEO of Geiger. She was named Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI) 2020 Person of the Year, a member of the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) Hall of Fame, and former Chair of the Board.  She was ranked #2 in 2020 ASI Power 50 most influential people in the promotional products industry. 

She is a founder of PPAI Women’s Leadership Conference and represents Geiger as sole US member of World Advertising Gift Exchange.  A Purdue University graduate she is married, mother of 5 children.

A 2021 addition to PPAI, Josh brings nearly two decades of journalistic experience to the Association’s media efforts. Formerly the editor-in-chief of SUCCESS magazine, a national newsstand publication that has served entrepreneurs and businesspeople for more than 125 years, Josh built and led a talented staff that competed for and won numerous national awards, including back-to-back editorial team of the year nominations. In 2017, the trade journal Folio: named him a 30-under-30 honoree and one of the 100 most influential people in the magazine industry. In his role with PPAI, he oversees PPAI magazine, the newsletters PPB Newslink and PromoPro Daily, as well as editorial content across the Association’s digital footprint.

Joshua Pospisil is the National Accounts Manager for top 40 supplier Hirsch Inc. in Houston, TX. Joining the promo industry in 2015, Pospisil leverages social media, his background in graphic design, and his tenured knowledge in retail brands to forge key relationships in the industry. Pospisil has served as a Sous Chef for PromoKitchen, is past president for HPPA, and currently serves on the Regional Relations Committee for PPAI. He is an advocate for diversity and new voices in the industry, and is a proponent of spreading as much kindness as possible in the industry he is most passionate about.

Joshua White is BAMKO’s Head of Strategy. In this role, Joshua focuses on the long-term strategic initiatives that contribute to BAMKO’s top line revenue growth. These efforts include M&A, strategic partnerships, sales and marketing strategy and execution, talent acquisition, expansion into new business verticals and markets, oversight of PR efforts, development of brand strategy, and strategic sales communication.

Since joining the company in 2013, BAMKO has grown from around $20m in annual sales to over $300m, becoming the fastest-growing Top 10 Distributor in the industry during that time. Joshua was named a PPB Magazine Rising Star and to the Counselor Magazine Hot List in 2018 and was the Los Angeles Business Journal's Rising Star General Counsel of the Year in 2016.
A passionate advocate for BAMKO’s unique culture, Joshua takes a particular interest in the preservation and continuous improvement of that culture, describing it as BAMKO’s “core competency.”

Prior to joining BAMKO, Joshua worked as an attorney in private practice in Santa Monica, California. Licensed to practice law in California, Nevada, and Texas, Joshua earned his undergraduate degree in political science at the University of Southern California and his law degree from the UCLA School of Law.

Kate Daniels is a leader of technology partnerships; an Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) and impact investment advisor; and an instructor and author in the field of responsible investment.

Over the last 16 years, Kate has sought to merge the worlds of economic growth and human development, maximizing mutual benefits, working directly with entities from the World Bank to International NGOs and leading projects for African and Latin American companies, European Development Financing Institutions (DFIs) and North American investors. For the last ten years, Kate has invested her time and energy at the intersection of responsible investment and technology. As an ESG and Impact Investment consultant, Kate has advised private equity funds, private debt providers, development financing institutions (DFIs), portfolio companies and international non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). Kate has studied and worked in North America, Latin America, Europe and Africa.

Today, Kate serves Oracle NetSuite as Industry Partnerships Director, leading engagement with industry associations and professional networks, contributing thought leadership and elevating the discourse around technology’s role in responsible stewardship, governance transparency and business growth. Simultaneously, Kate is founder and Chief Impact Officer for Akerblom Advisory, an ESG and Impact Investment consulting firm, offering investment due diligence, ESG benchmarking and reporting, and providing education on ESG at the university and executive education levels.

Kate holds an MBA from GIBS Business School, under the University of Pretoria; an MA in Women’s Studies from University College Dublin; and a BA in Politics from Saint Mary’s College of California. She lives in Morrison, Colorado with her husband and two dogs.

Kevin Walsh has led an impressive career as a business leader and strategist in the Promotional Products industry for more than 35 years.

Serving as the President of Showdown Displays, Kevin devotes his time toward strategic planning, talent acquisition, innovation and stewarding the company culture and values. Through his commitment to this role, he has been a driving force in growing Showdown Displays to become the largest provider of portable displays in North America and a Top 15 supplier to the promotional industry. Kevin’s vision, and Showdown Displays’ success, personify both the entrepreneurial spirit and the evolving nature of the promotional industry.

Kevin joined Showdown Displays in 2011 originally as Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, helping to form the strategy and build the team, brand, and organization. Prior to Showdown, Kevin has held senior leadership roles in operations, product development, marketing and sales for Wrangler Jeans & Shirts, VF Imagewear/RedKap, LeePrintwear and New Buffalo Shirt Factory/ProPlayer.

Throughout his career Kevin has completed presentations at featured industry events to audiences in the thousands and has also been featured in several well-known industry publications, including Wearables Magazine, The Press and Promo+Promo Magazine.

Most recently, he was recognized by Counselor Magazine in its’ Power50 ranking, as #14 of the most influential members in the promotional industry.

Kevin has been a proud member of the PPAI Board of Directors since 2020 and is currently serving as the Board Chair as well as a member of the PPAI Executive Committee.

Through that journey, he counts his greatest accomplishments, being a loving husband to his high school sweetheart and a dedicated dad to two fantastic kids.

Marc co-founded Custom Ink in 2000 at age 23 and has served as CEO as it's grown into the leader in custom gear for groups & communities and earned recognition for marketplace and workplace excellence. Prior to Custom Ink, Marc studied Physics at Harvard and did a brief stint as a financial analyst at an investment bank. The entrepreneurial energy that led him from Wall Street to t-shirts is now focused on company character, strategy, leadership development, and how to WOW customers far into the future! Marc is also an active supporter and board member of DC-area non-profits, including Stop Child Abuse Now and Northern Virginia Family Service. He lives in Northern Virginia with his wife, Leana, and their three children.

Acclaimed for his bold prediction that Europe's turn to austerity would end badly (it did) and then predicting (very early) both Donald Trump's victory and Brexit, Brown University professor Mark Blyth continues to pinpoint the key forces that shape our economic futures. Renowned for making complex topics understandable and refreshingly entertaining, Blyth energizes audiences with his sharp Scottish wit and brilliant insights into what's to come. 

Professor Blyth is the William R. Rhodes '57 Professor of International Economics and Professor of Political Science and currently serves as Director of the William R. Rhodes Center for International Economics and Finance at Brown University. His books include Austerity: The History of a Dangerous Idea, which was translated into 16 languages and won numerous awards, Angrynomics, (with Eric Lonergan) a dialog on why our politics got so angry and what to do about it, and forthcoming in 2023, Inflation: A Guide for Losers and Users. 

Blyth is a contributor to Foreign Affairs and The Guardian and has appeared multiple times on Fox News, NPR, BBC and Bloomberg. He holds a PhD in Political Science from Columbia University.

Scott Berinato, is the author of Good Charts: The HBR Guide to Making Smarter, More Persuasive Data Visualizations, and its companion Good Charts Workbook. He speaks frequently on the power of and need for good data visualization, including at the SXSW conference in Austin, Texas. He consults with companies of all sizes on their data visualization and information design practices and presentation materials. He has directed the data visualization programs for several books. He is a senior editor at Harvard Business Review where he pioneered the use of more visual communication, and where he acquires award-winning business books, and writes about visualization, information design, technology and business.

As Chief of Staff, Shelly works to ensure FLA can efficiently meet its mission, which includes oversight of special projects and strategic communications. She also manages FLA’s Civil Society Caucus, facilitates outreach to labor groups and other stakeholders, and coordinates the organization’s public affairs activities that promote labor rights around the globe.

Shelly’s career has centered on human rights advocacy and corporate social responsibility.

Prior to joining FLA in 2016, Shelly was a senior policy advisor to members of Congress at the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. At this human rights commission she wrote legislation, organized congressional hearings, and launched human rights advocacy campaigns focused on combatting corruption, supporting human rights defenders and journalists, and advancing online freedom. From 2000–06, Shelly held policy positions on trade, national security, and immigration at the Departments of Commerce and Homeland Security. Prior to joining the government, she worked in the private sector helping companies ethically do business in international markets.

Shelly has a master’s degree in international commerce and policy from George Mason University and a double-major undergraduate degree in political science and East Asian Studies from the University of Arizona. She is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, and in her spare time is a professional photographer.

Tom Goos, MAS, is the President of Image Source, a nationally recognized branded merchandise agency known for its purpose driven culture and strategic client approach. Day to day, he leads Image Source’s strategic direction, as well as financial management, operations, and supplier partnerships. With 22+ years of branded merchandise experience, Goos is a true industry leader and expert.

He is a former two-term President of the Northwest Promotional Marketing Association (NWPMA) and a founder and partner of Reciprocity Road, the innovative industry buying and shared learning group comprised of eight elite branded merchandise agencies. He was recognized by the Puget Sound Business Journal’s award program, 40 Under Forty.

Thomas has a B.A. in Marketing and Management from the University of Washington Bothell. He is a current board member for the University of Washington Bothell School of Business where he is a guest speaker and advisor to undergraduate and MBA students.