DigitalNow: Association Leadership in the Digital Age

Polly LaBarre brings a fresh voice and a stylish sensibility to business storytelling. With a sharp eye for the texture of working life and a well-tuned ear for the themes that mark the economic moment, she has contributed to the business conversation in a range of forums for over a decade.

Her current project is Mavericks at Work: Restoring the Promise of Business, Transforming Your Company and Career, a major book to be published by William Morrow (Fall of 2006). Mavericks chronicles a new generation of leaders, a special breed of companies, and an exciting mix of disruptive experiments that represent a remarkable force for growth and innovation in business today. LaBarre takes the audience on a vivid journey into the world of these companies and leaders-whose unique approaches to strategy, service, innovation, and organization are redefining the agenda for business. In the process she provides a cutting-edge curriculum on building a state-of-the-art company and becoming a high-impact leader.

LaBarre is also a contributing writer for Fast Company magazine. As a core member of the original Fast Company team, LaBarre played a central role in the remarkable success of the fastest-growing business magazine in history-a magazine that changed the way leaders think and talk about competing, working, and winning. In her eight years as senior editor, LaBarre helped to shape Fast Company's thematic agenda and wrote many of the magazine's most talked-about articles. She also produced Fast Company's "Report from the Future," a monthly "magazine within the magazine" equal parts dispatch from the leading edge and grounded guide to working and competing.

At the same time, LaBarre established herself as a well-known idea merchant in the wider business community. She was instrumental in extending Fast Company's influence across new platforms and contributed to the strategic development and content design of a range of Fast Company events. She co-hosted the magazine's signature annual Real Time conferences-agenda-setting gatherings where business leaders debate and shape the future-and helped to create a high-level roundtable series, "Fast Talk," which she moderated around the globe. Most recently, she designed and hosted Fast Company's first women's leadership event, Woman to Woman: Setting the Agenda for Business.

LaBarre is a sought-after speaker, moderator, and commentator, known for spirited presentations that spark new ideas, inspire, and entertain. She has delivered keynote addresses around the world and worked with top companies on their leadership and learning agendas. LaBarre makes regular appearances on Good Morning America, CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, Bloomberg, Today NY, and PBS's Nightly Business Report.