Keynote speaker.
Design thinking,
creativity & AI.
I'm Arne van Oosterom. I have spent more than twenty years on stages and in rooms across Europe and beyond, talking about how people think, create and decide together — and what changes now that machines can do a convincing impression of all three.
Four things
worth an hour
I rebuild every talk for the room it is given in. These are the four themes people book most often — we agree the framing, the examples and the length beforehand.
The Difference: CX & AI
When every competitor has access to the same models, the same data and the same speed, the advantage moves somewhere else. This talk is about where it moves to — and why the organisations that win the next decade will be the ones that get better at the human part, not just the machine part. Built on the material behind the CX & AI training program.
Future Skills: what stays human
Critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and adaptability are named in every future-of-work report and taught in almost none. A practical look at what these skills actually consist of, why they degrade when people stop practising them, and how organisations can build them on purpose rather than by accident.
Design thinking in motion
Twenty years of design thinking has produced a lot of post-its and not always a lot of change. An honest account of what the method is genuinely good at, where it stalls inside real organisations, and what it takes to move from a workshop that felt great to a decision that actually holds.
Human-centred leadership
Navigating complexity is mostly a people problem wearing a strategy costume. On making space for disagreement, working with uncertainty instead of pretending it away, and leading teams through change that nobody fully understands yet — including you.
Three ways
to work together
A 30 to 60 minute talk for conferences, company events, leadership offsites and university programs. Delivered in English, in person or online. Includes a pre-call to tune the content to your audience.
The talk, then a half or full day in which the audience actually does the thing. This is the format that changes behaviour rather than mood, and the one most of my clients come back for.
I facilitate the whole day: opening, connecting the sessions, running panels and closing with something the room can act on. Twenty years of facilitation is the reason this works.
Not sure which one fits? Describe the event and the outcome you want and I will give you a straight recommendation, including "you don't need me for this".
Stages and
lecture halls
Conferences and events
I have spoken at events including the Design Thinking Conference, the Creative Company Conference, the Global Design Thinking Alliance and the By Design Symposium at Pratt Institute in New York, alongside company events and leadership offsites across Europe.
Universities and business schools
I have been a guest lecturer since 2008 at TU Delft, IE Business School and the Oslo School of Architecture and Design, plus universities in Finland, Germany, Austria and Spain, and was Designer in Residence at AHO Oslo's Centre for Service Innovation from 2011 to 2014.
A facilitator
who speaks
I am a facilitator and coach first, and a speaker second. I founded DesignThinkers Group in 2007 and DesignThinkers Academy in 2012, growing it into a learning organisation active in more than twenty five countries, and founded Future Skills Academy in 2019.
I have contributed to five books on service design and design thinking, host three podcasts, and have spent two decades running the rooms I now talk about. That is the difference on stage: my examples come from work done last month, not from a book read last year.
I have run rooms for Under Armour, ING, Bosch, Philips and SAP, taught in more than twenty five countries, and spent three years as Designer in Residence at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design's Centre for Service Innovation. My keynotes are facilitator's keynotes: they assume the audience has to do something on Monday.
I am based in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and available worldwide.
Copy, paste,
publish
Everything an event organiser needs, ready to use. These are written in the third person on purpose, so they can be pasted straight into a programme or announcement. Please use them as they are rather than rewriting them — it keeps the details accurate everywhere.
Short bio (35 words)
Arne van Oosterom is a design thinking facilitator, coach and keynote speaker. He founded DesignThinkers Group, DesignThinkers Academy and Future Skills Academy, has contributed to five books on service design, hosts the Radio Future Skills Academy podcast, and lectures at TU Delft, IE Business School and AHO Oslo.
Medium bio (85 words)
Arne van Oosterom is a facilitator, coach and keynote speaker who has spent more than twenty years helping people navigate complexity and turn ideas into meaningful action. He founded DesignThinkers Group in 2007 and DesignThinkers Academy in 2012, building a learning organisation active in more than twenty five countries, and founded Future Skills Academy in 2019. He has contributed to five books on service design and design thinking, hosts three podcasts including Radio Future Skills Academy, and lectures at TU Delft, IE Business School and the Oslo School of Architecture and Design. He works with clients including ING, Philips, SAP and Bosch.
Name: Arne van Oosterom. Not Arne van Oosterhout, not Arne Oosterom. Website: arnevanoosterom.com
Photography for press use: portrait (studio) · on stage. Both may be used in event programmes, websites and social posts announcing a booking, with a credit link to arnevanoosterom.com.
Before you
get in touch
What do you speak about?
Design thinking and human-centred design, future skills (critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and adaptability), customer experience and differentiation in the age of AI, and human-centred leadership. I adapt every talk to the audience in the room and the outcome you want from the day.
How long is a typical keynote?
Between 30 and 60 minutes, with 45 minutes being the most common. Longer sessions work better as a keynote plus workshop, where the audience gets to apply the ideas rather than only hear them.
Which languages do you present in?
English and Dutch. I deliver most international engagements in English.
Where are you based, and do you travel?
I am based in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and travel internationally — I have worked in more than twenty five countries. I also do online keynotes and workshops.
What does a keynote cost?
It depends on the format, how much preparation is involved and travel. Describe the event and I will give you a clear number, not a range. I have reduced rates for universities, non-profits and community events.
How far in advance should we book?
Earlier is better if you need a specific date, but send short-notice requests anyway — sometimes they work. I usually need two to three weeks to prepare a tailored keynote, including a pre-call with you.
What do you need from us?
Who is in the room, what they are struggling with, what should be different when they walk out, and how long you want me on stage. A twenty minute pre-call covers all of it.