“We are a company that holds customer service to the highest level possible and expect the same from those we work with. Cy exceeded our training expectations. We were so impressed that we’ve had Cy provide training for two of our subsidiaries. Our management team desires training that provides them with real-life tools they can use immediately on the job. They got just that from Cy and much more valuable information as well. Cy has a way of telling stories that grabs your interest and that people talk about well after the training has ended. Employees and managers quote Cy even 1-2 years after the training took place. Cy can be distinguished from other trainers in that participants have enjoyed her presentations, applied the training to their job, and asked for her to present again.

In the 23 years I have been in Human Resource management I have seen trainers from across the country. I value the time we have employees and managers devote to training and make sure our trainers are top notch. Cy is on top of my list of exceptional trainers. She is professional, yet personal and more importantly provides training that is sustained.”

—  

“Cy Wakeman understands her audience! Cy did a wonderful job of recognizing our team members for their above and beyond performance. What was so great; however, was that she really got to the core of what it takes to perform in the job to continue to excel and be considered a role model, etc. Our team members in the audience— and their guests—took something away that evening above and beyond feeling recognized. They thought about how their actions can drive results in the workplace and take them to the next level in their career. They were recognized, they learned and they were motivated! This is exactly what we wanted our team members to take away from the evening.

Following each dinner, several of our guests stopped Cy and wanted to talk with her one-on-one. She gave each person who asked her undivided attention and spent as much time with them as they needed. Many of our guests came up to me and told me how much they appreciated what she had to say. Cy is the epitome of a dynamic speaker who understands her audience and will do what it takes to give the client what they need.”

—  

“Cy’s engaging, energizing and motivating keynote address with the WIN Nevada group earlier this year really hit the mark. She had a strong message and an entertaining delivery style that made all of us think twice about the lessons she delivered. It was great to see the audience stay after the meeting to talk and share stories that aligned with her message. I believe they learned and enjoyed— a home run with this organization!”

—  

“What was gained was beyond what I could have imagined. I found myself, as well as my staff, growing in a variety of ways. I get so excited when I think of where ‘we’ were, how far ‘we’ have come, and where ‘we’ can be.”

—  

“Cy brings a high level of energy and insight into challenges organizations are facing today. Our participants enjoy her humorous approach to serious problems, her energy, and the real-life examples used to illustrate the points she is making. Cynthia can break problems down in a straightforward, easy-to-understand way and then provide the tools and solutions needed to accomplish goals.”

—  

“Cynthia clearly understood our goals going into the session and with her thought-provoking and energetic style. She managed to create a stimulating flow of ideas. She was masterful in keeping participants attentive and involved. Board members left the sessions feeling good about the process and energized with new ideas.”

—  

“Cy was able to manage this diverse group of strong personalities to achieve the stated meeting objectives AND she did so within the time and budget allowed for this event. Cy has a unique ability to challenge individuals’ thought processes in a non-threatening and friendly way—and she easily interacts with employees on all levels. Cy is a high energy, motivational, thought-provoking and results-oriented speaker.“

—  

“To say that she is effective in getting a group excited and involved in thinking about their past, present and future is an understatement. Cy’s ability to challenge our thinking, make us laugh and get us to be a part of a solution is amazing, consistent and a joy to be a part of. She is a catalyst to any organization that needs motivation and help with strengthening teamwork and getting a job done!”

—  

“Cy’s facilitation skills are amazing. She quickly builds rapport with her audience and produces results beyond what we imagined possible in the short time provided and limited resources available. I recommend her often to business and associations wanting to truly recreate themselves.”

—  

“Cy Wakeman’s presentations to the Burlington Capital Group have been honest, engaging, and relevant. Her humor and straight-forward style make immediate connections with her audience while her knowledge and experience bring credibility and respect. We have received consistent positive feedback, from seasoned associates to new hires and from entry level associates to our executives, on how applicable and enjoyable her presentations are. One person commented that ‘Cy says what you’re thinking and are too afraid to say out loud.’ In a business climate of constant change, Cy has equipped members of our organization with the information and skills necessary to manage change and help manage people who must manage change.“

—  

“Cy’s sessions are enlightening, thought-provoking, and practical. We’ve made great changes in our organization over the last three years, and often I’ll hear people long after her programs say, ‘Well, as Cy said…'”

—  

“Cy Wakeman amazes and dazzles audiences with her sincerity, authenticity, frankness, and humor. Whether serving as a keynote presenter or an emcee, Cy has been a tremendous asset to ICAN’s programming. If you are looking for a bright, talented speaker who can move an audience to action, I would give Cy Wakeman ‘two thumbs up.’“

—  

“Cy Wakeman’s presentation was a great success. Cy’s explanation of change management made a lasting impression with everyone. She has the unique ability to ‘teach’ complex issues in a fun environment. Her sense of humor was extremely engaging and her use of real-life examples kept everyone focused. To this day, employees continue to use the concepts discussed at the meeting. Cy Wakeman’s enthusiasm and excitement only added to the success of our event!”

—  

“Cy has provided clear direction and substance to the changes required for Burgess to become a truly great company. Cy has the ability to lead an organization through a brutally honest assessment of current status, the development of desired state, the development of an aggressive action plan, and to lead the leadership through the implementation of the action plan. I believe Cy’s greatest strength comes from her ability present educational material to leadership in such a way that challenges current beliefs resulting in open and honest discussion of current status of an organization and the definition of the desired state. Cy combines real life experiences, knowledge, and her sense of humor to present organizational, human resource, and leadership theory in manner which resonates with both new and experienced leaders.

I would and have recommended Cy to other organizations which are seeking a energetic, humorous, knowledgeable, and engaging speaker in the areas of organizational development, human resources, and leadership. She is the best I have had the pleasure to hear in these areas.”

—  

“Cy commits energy and valuable content to her presentations. She provides practical solutions to problems burdening businesses in the face of change. Her motto, ‘Helping organizations thrive in challenging times!’ mirrors what she provides to attendees. I highly recommend attendance at these engaging seminars.”

—  

“Whether it’s enhancing professional development through the ‘Leadership Lessons of Lewis & Clark’, or instituting organizational change by ‘Succeeding in Spite of the Facts’, Cy’s explicit energy, compelling anecdotes, and creative facilitation style provided Iowa State University and University Extension Staff with the tools to affect positive change. Post-conference conversation was buzzing with plans to implement Cy’s strategies within and across colleges and departments.”

—  

“Your discussion and presentation on ‘Reality-Based Leadership’ topic led our group through a fun-filled ride of excitement and knowledge based learning that everyone is still talking about in the chapter.

The meeting, while accredited for one continuing education unit for our HRCI recertification, sparked a commitment by our group to be more involved this year and by comparison to other speakers in the past, the education unit of recertification we received was surpassed by the engagement that you created with our group in a short hour.

Thanks Cy for a dynamite presentation that was real-time education and for helping set the tone for what we believe will our best year in programs and education.”

—  

“Cy Wakeman has been a great help to Wayne State College in strategic planning and as a human resources consultant. Her intelligence, experience, insight and humor are appreciated by the officers and employees with whom she has worked.” ­

—  

“Cy has a tremendous ability to understand her audience on a personal level and thereby structure a program that is nonthreatening and right to the point. Over a course of time and through a variety of fun and engaging learning and listening techniques, she was able to take our management team through a process that allowed us to work and think as a unified and effective team. Today that team is providing the leadership necessary to take our organization to levels they never thought imaginable before. I have listened to and worked with quite a number of motivational and developmental speakers and consultants, and without a doubt, Cy is in the top of the class!”

—  

“Cy is awesome—a very captivating speaker. Cy is one of the most sought after speakers in the Midwest. Her presentations ‘Leading Successful Change—The Competency of Competitive Advantage’ and ‘Coaching Leaders to Lead Successful Change Efforts’ were extremely well received with 96% of attendees rating the lunch session Excellent-Good and 98% of the tech session attendees rating it Excellent-Good.”

—  

“Cy Wakeman is a top notch presenter. When Cy first spoke at the State Conference in 2004, her speaker ratings were the highest, with an almost perfect overall score. Her packed break-out sessions were a tribute to Cy’s success. In fact, we consider Cy’s name on the agenda as one of the enticements that bring professionals to the conference. Her name on the program means an outstanding session.“

—  

“We thoroughly enjoyed Cy at our annual conference. Her original insights on reality-based leadership were right on target, and were presented in a light, witty tone that was truly inspiring and relevant to employees at all levels in the company. She was a breath of fresh air in the dreaded ‘after lunch’ slot, keeping the audience fully engaged while leaving us with insightful tools that we can apply in both our personal and professional lives.”

—  

“Cy is consistently the highest-rated speaker at any event we host. This is especially notable when one considers the caliber of speakers who present at Women Lead Change events! She is also a speaker that provides ongoing opportunities for development, beyond her keynote. It is not uncommon for us to hear from organizations who use her books, podcasts, and videos as regular components to staff meetings and employee resource groups long after the conference.”

—  

“Through the simple-yet-profound philosophies & tools that Cy shared during her engaging keynote, each of us was equipped to become our best and most-evolved selves at work, at home, and in our world. Our team was challenged to foster higher levels of self-reflection and self-accountability, both of which are critical to creating success in the present, as well as into the future – no matter what business or human endeavor we are engaged in. Cy’s keynote was truly one of the most impactful presentations I have ever experienced.“

—  

“Cy Wakeman’s virtual presentation was a gift to our very exhausted audience of nurse leaders. Her message was spot-on, providing pearls of wisdom and actionable tools that participants could immediately begin using in their day-to-day work as they press on through such challenging times.  We could not have asked for a better speaker for a virtual format where our audience felt as though they were in the same room with her and each other.”

—  

“All I can say is – WOW! Yesterday was my first time hearing Cy Wakeman present. I’ve heard amazing things to date about her; most of the reviews I heard were from folks who read her books or heard her live. I wasn’t sure what to expect, as our presentation was virtual. She was amazing! The audience – including myself – was incredibly engaged, and Cy made the entire presentation very interactive with two-way dialogue and chats. Cy made the presentation’s content personal at times, which made her seem so familiar and relatable. I can’t say it enough – Cy was engaging, fun, creative, smart and so powerful! I know she made an impact on me and so many others!”

—  

There were so many ‘ah-ha’ moments in your speech that almost made it sound too simple or drew the reaction of ‘why didn’t I think of that?’.  That’s when it really hit me that the change we need in our company can be as simple or as complicated as I allow it to be. 

While there were many high-points during your presentation, the most memorable ones were where you tailored your keynote just enough to remind us of how it all tied-in with the changes the [software company] was making behind the scenes.  Making whatever tiny adjustments to your speech to customize it for the audience made you seem much more credible as a speaker and that you were not there just to deliver the same slides and words as you do everywhere else.  Once I checked off your creditability-box, the keynote seemed as though you were talking to me… not the other 270+ people in the room. 

—  

“Cy provided incredible value to our leaders during her virtual session. Her reality-based philosophies are always relevant, but particularly useful as we navigate the challenges of leading at a distance.”

—  

“Cy Wakeman is a dynamic speaker with an uncanny ability to communicate a message to an audience. Cy understands human behavior and has the ability to get to the heart of the subject in such a way that everyone in the audience relates to her. I see audiences highly charged for action when Cy has completed her presentation.”

—  

“Cy Wakeman came highly recommended as a keynote speaker and she didn’t disappoint. Our luncheon event sold out and we had people on a waiting list looking for an open spot to hear Cy speak— and nobody cancelled! What our audience enjoyed was how candid she was and people could relate to that. She didn’t talk down or over our heads— it was like she was kicking our backside with some solid leadership skills that we could really use in both our business world and everyday life. Cy received high marks from our post-survey results and members want her back for more!”

—  

“Cy has made such a powerful impact on our company. Engaging a group of construction workers, office workers and the management team in the same setting is certainly a challenge. Cy’s energy filled program and presentation set everyone at ease and started the process of an open dialogue, a common language, an appreciation of each groups challenges and truly made everyone understand we were one team with many needed roles. Cy really connected with our entire company. By the end of our initial training everyone was still very energized and relished the new knowledge we had just acquired. We have seen both immediate and long-term results in attitude, retention, production and profitability. Cy has truly provided us a ‘company life-changing experience’. This experience has been so profound that Cy is now a regular resource for our company.”

—  

“Cy is truly amazing, such an inspirational leader and speaker, even in the virtual space! I am getting flooded with praise for her.”

—  

“Cy ‘WOWED’ everyone in attendance! Cy Wakeman has been one piece of a significant investment over the last five years in developing our organization’s leaders. One very important piece! Cy is dynamic, engaging, on point, and does a great job getting at the proverbial ‘elephants in the middle of the table!'”

—  

“Alex is one of the best speakers I’ve ever worked with. He resonates with even the most difficult audiences because his content is REAL and REFRESHING. His energy is infectious and he makes you want to be a better leader.”

—  

—  

—  

—  

“Alex is an exceptional speaker and teacher. He is lively, keeping the audience engaged by his energy and activities. He makes learning easy using key points and clear examples. He leaves the audience with practical tools for future use. Alex received high ratings from over 400 leaders in our organization. Those present are requesting his return for other audiences. I have not had a speaker so well received in my 24 years of doing this work.”

—  

“I’ve read more books and attended more leadership conferences than I care to admit over the past 35 years and Alex’s message and delivery are best in class. Absolute gold – and so appropriate to our specific moment in time. Thanks for bringing him to us!”

—  

“Alex worked with our executive team around the Reality-Based Leadership philosophy for a full day. His presentation was compelling, engaging and got our entire staff participating! Many of the executives mentioned that not only was the content eye-opening on the cost of drama in the workplace, but they were excited about the practical tools they now had to be able to recapture energy that is about to be lost to drama and, in the moment, redirect that energy into adding value to the situation. Not only was this training helpful at work, it really opened my eyes up to ways the Reality-Based philosophy could be used in settings other than the workplace.“

—  

“We brought Alex in as a virtual keynote with the goal to inspire our audience that was at a variety of levels in their career. His message not only provided concise and transformative snippets of wisdom for our audience, it left them with actionable tools they could take to their work environment literally that afternoon that could transform their team dynamics for the better. The energy from the session and interaction with the group created a wave of positivity throughout our entire conference that was hard to describe. If you’re looking for a speaker with a timeless message that can be tailored to the challenges of your audience – Alex is the speaker to go with!“

—  

“As someone with 17 years of experience in training and development that knows the challenge of keeping an online presentation engaging, I had operated by the learning and development gospel that you shouldn’t do a virtual session longer than 90 minutes and because of our time together. Alex had me questioning all that have believed about that belief. If you are looking for a captivating virtual experience that teaches, transforms and moves teams to action, I highly recommend gathering with Alex and your group on your favorite virtual platform of choice in the future.“

—  

“What has been most exciting about the time that has passed since Alex’s session is how the language of Reality-Based Leadership has entered our work culture. Quite often I hear people say, ‘don’t argue reality’ when discussing a complicated issue. In my own practice, I find that it has led to quicker decision making, innovation of process, and a swifter path to a solution. In many ways, the concepts are quite freeing and have allowed people to move on to what will be rather than what has been. We are certainly not yet transformed, but language is powerful and you can see the pockets of the team that have accepted the ideas and work to ingrain them in their thinking. The activities from Alex’s session seem to be particularly memorable and they come up as examples for how to focus on our reality.”

—  

“I had the opportunity to experience a virtual 3-day leadership development workshop conducted by Alex and with 18 hours of content planned I wasn’t if I was going to be able to learn in that environment and stay engaged – boy was I wrong! From start to finish, RBL was taught with professionalism, patience, and high energy! You don’t even realize you are in the comfort of your own home while learning this awesome content. I was able to ask my questions in the chat setting and we had lots of great group discussions. The pace of the course was great, we took appropriate breaks to stretch and refresh and anything we didn’t understand fully could be discussed during the break or at the end of the day. Overall, my virtual experience with Alex was incredible and mindshifting!“

—  

“Alex actually had our leaders on their feet by the end of his Reality-Based Leadership presentation! His examples really resonated with our directors on how ditching the drama with team members could naturally open up opportunities for more collaboration, innovation and solutions-based problem-solving. Not only did he provide some eye-opening insights throughout the presentation, he was sure to leave our leaders with specific tools they could use the very NEXT DAY to start redirecting the time and energy lost to venting and drama with their staff and put it towards better results for our customers. His presentation was engaging and spot-on for today’s rapidly changing workplace.“

—  

“Alex presented with our organization of credit professionals and we couldn’t have been happier with the presentation. He was really able to hit the right notes for people and had everyone intensely interested in each concept and story presented. The group was already discussing how many takeaways they were eager to implement the very next day.”

—  

“Alex’s Reality-Based Leadership had our entire audience engaged from the start! Not only was he able to relate to our diverse range of HR professionals in the audience, but his stories and examples were extremely relevant to the challenges we are facing in our industries today. Attendees left with practical tools they were already talking about implementing with their teams the moment they returned to the workplace that would help them change the energy in their interactions away from drama into conversations about what they wanted to create and how could they get there. Alex did an incredible job of interacting with the audience throughout the day through Q&A, table exercises and a final activity that had the entire crowd of 90 people interacting and participating. I highly recommend Alex for any conference you are planning in the future!”

—  

“We were halfway through a 4-part leadership series with Alex where he was facilitating full-day on-site sessions when the COVID crisis hit. In response, we quickly pivoted and moved the remaining two sessions to a virtual experience to support our leaders as we felt this training was more important now than ever during these unprecedented times. We just finished our first virtual experience and our leaders feedback was very positive. Alex was able to mix the Reality-Based concepts with relevant examples giving our leaders simple tools to facilitate even more clarity and problem- solving. The session was interactive as Alex kept the audience involved with Q&A, tools, and activities that are tailored to the specific needs of our business.“

—  

“Alex presented a half-day Reality-Based Leadership course with 23 of our directors. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. The tools Alex gave us new energy and taught us new ways of problem-solving. The concepts and activities of his presentation are powerful and Alex presents them in a specific way that helps the training stick.”

—  

—  

“We had Alex pop in virtually for a one-hour keynote at our executive team retreat to introduce the research around navigating drama in the workplace, cultivating accountability and increasing readiness for change. Alex’s presentation added a perfect dynamic around our leadership development theme and he was able to tailor the core content to match our specific needs as well as give some actionable ways to lead our people during the ever challenging environment of COVID. The session was naturally interactive and what was most impactful was that, in an hour, each executive left with 2-3 actionable tools/strategies that they were able to use to coach and manage the energy of their teams in a more effective way moving forward!“

—  

“I’ve read more books and attended more leadership conferences than I care to admit over the past 35 years and Alex’s message and delivery are best in class. Absolute gold – and so appropriate to our specific moment in time. Thanks for bringing him to us!”

—  

“Cy Wakeman’s virtual presentation was a gift to our very exhausted audience of nurse leaders. Her message was spot-on, providing pearls of wisdom and actionable tools that participants could immediately begin using in their day-to-day work as they press on through such challenging times.  We could not have asked for a better speaker for a virtual format where our audience felt as though they were in the same room with her and each other.”

—  

“Through the simple-yet-profound philosophies & tools that Cy shared during her engaging keynote, each of us was equipped to become our best and most-evolved selves at work, at home, and in our world. Our team was challenged to foster higher levels of self-reflection and self-accountability, both of which are critical to creating success in the present, as well as into the future – no matter what business or human endeavor we are engaged in. Cy’s keynote was truly one of the most impactful presentations I have ever experienced.“

—  

“As someone with 17 years of experience in training and development that knows the challenge of keeping an online presentation engaging, I had operated by the learning and development gospel that you shouldn’t do a virtual session longer than 90 minutes and because of our time together. Alex had me questioning all that have believed about that belief. If you are looking for a captivating virtual experience that teaches, transforms and moves teams to action, I highly recommend gathering with Alex and your group on your favorite virtual platform of choice in the future.“

—  

“We brought Alex in as a virtual keynote with the goal to inspire our audience that was at a variety of levels in their career. His message not only provided concise and transformative snippets of wisdom for our audience, it left them with actionable tools they could take to their work environment literally that afternoon that could transform their team dynamics for the better. The energy from the session and interaction with the group created a wave of positivity throughout our entire conference that was hard to describe. If you’re looking for a speaker with a timeless message that can be tailored to the challenges of your audience – Alex is the speaker to go with!“

—  

“All I can say is – WOW! Yesterday was my first time hearing Cy Wakeman present. I’ve heard amazing things to date about her; most of the reviews I heard were from folks who read her books or heard her live. I wasn’t sure what to expect, as our presentation was virtual. She was amazing! The audience – including myself – was incredibly engaged, and Cy made the entire presentation very interactive with two-way dialogue and chats. Cy made the presentation’s content personal at times, which made her seem so familiar and relatable. I can’t say it enough – Cy was engaging, fun, creative, smart and so powerful! I know she made an impact on me and so many others!”

—  

“I had the opportunity to experience a virtual 3-day leadership development workshop conducted by Alex and with 18 hours of content planned I wasn’t if I was going to be able to learn in that environment and stay engaged – boy was I wrong! From start to finish, RBL was taught with professionalism, patience, and high energy! You don’t even realize you are in the comfort of your own home while learning this awesome content. I was able to ask my questions in the chat setting and we had lots of great group discussions. The pace of the course was great, we took appropriate breaks to stretch and refresh and anything we didn’t understand fully could be discussed during the break or at the end of the day. Overall, my virtual experience with Alex was incredible and mindshifting!“

—  

“Cy provided incredible value to our leaders during her virtual session. Her reality-based philosophies are always relevant, but particularly useful as we navigate the challenges of leading at a distance.”

—  

“We were halfway through a 4-part leadership series with Alex where he was facilitating full-day on-site sessions when the COVID crisis hit. In response, we quickly pivoted and moved the remaining two sessions to a virtual experience to support our leaders as we felt this training was more important now than ever during these unprecedented times. We just finished our first virtual experience and our leaders feedback was very positive. Alex was able to mix the Reality-Based concepts with relevant examples giving our leaders simple tools to facilitate even more clarity and problem- solving. The session was interactive as Alex kept the audience involved with Q&A, tools, and activities that are tailored to the specific needs of our business.“

—  

“Cy is truly amazing, such an inspirational leader and speaker, even in the virtual space! I am getting flooded with praise for her.”

—  

—  

“We had Alex pop in virtually for a one-hour keynote at our executive team retreat to introduce the research around navigating drama in the workplace, cultivating accountability and increasing readiness for change. Alex’s presentation added a perfect dynamic around our leadership development theme and he was able to tailor the core content to match our specific needs as well as give some actionable ways to lead our people during the ever challenging environment of COVID. The session was naturally interactive and what was most impactful was that, in an hour, each executive left with 2-3 actionable tools/strategies that they were able to use to coach and manage the energy of their teams in a more effective way moving forward!“

—