My colleague Anna Gumbau wrote an article “Kill the keynote“. I agreed with her wholeheartedly.
Most keynotes are dreadful. Too long, not inspiring, not what the audience wants. And for the speaker? Often a ton of work and stress, while failing to show them at their best.
That’s why I often argue for replacing the keynote with a different format—one that inspires more, helps the speaker shine and creates real impact.
But sometimes… a keynote is fantastic.
I recently moderated a conference for FMO – Dutch entrepreneurial development bank on climate risk for financial institutions. A difficult and technical topic. It had not one, but three keynotes on the program. And all three were a hit.
1 – Director Michael Jongeneel opened with a great keynote: short, full of questions for the audience, connecting the day’s themes and giving everyone a clear assignment for the day. It set the scene greatly.
2 – KNMI – Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute director Maarten van Aalst followed. His presentation? Just visuals—no text. He told us what we already knew and believed. But he told it so well and in such a flow that the audience was hooked. People ended up more convinced than ever about the urgency (and complexity) of climate action.
3 – Irene Heemskerk of the European Central Bank explained how they challenge and supervise banks on fighting climate change and integrating climate risk into their risk models. Again: a compelling story, clear structure, full attention from the room.
What made these keynotes work?
1) They were under 30 minutes. That’s the max attention span of any audience.
2) they did not look on their papers to read, they looked into the audience to connect and see if their message hit home.
2) They included interaction. The first speaker asked questions during his key note – With slido, show of hands and with the microphone. After the second, we made people bring the lesson to practice in a case study. And the 3rd set the scene for 3 rounds of debate afterwards. Zoning out was not even an option.
4) They were spaced out. Not three in a row, but spread over the day and each followed by something interactive, so that also the last speaker had full attention.
5) They were well-targeted, tailored to what the audience wanted to hear—and what the speaker wanted them to hear. Not a complete summing up of everything – spoken at double speed to fit in the time, but a few clear key messages.
the exception for exceptional speakers
So yes, in most cases, the keynote isn’t the best option. But if the message is strong, the delivery sharp, and the format part of a well-designed program, we shouldn’t forget it can be incredibly valuable. Don’t make the keynote your default. But the exception for exceptional speakers. Only if you are sure the speaker can 1) deliver a great key note
the 3 golden rules to see if someone is allowed a key note:
1 – You are sure they can deliver a great speech
2 – You are sure they will stay on message and will deliver what you asked them for, and what the audience needs.
3 – You are sure they will stick to their allotted time
