Available to book
Ben Hunt-Davis
High Performance
Team Building
Dealing With Pressure
Transform team performance with Ben Hunt-Davis, speaker, Olympic gold medallist and leadership expert. Ben works with organisations to drive high performance, goal clarity and behaviour change, delivering proven methodologies from his bestselling book and consultancy.
Coach
After Dinner Sports
Professional Development
Business Consulting
Mindset
Olympian
Sport
Author
Executive
Inspirational
Motivational
Athlete
After Dinner Speakers
Ben Hunt-Davis is an Olympic gold medallist and the co-founder of the leadership consultancy Will It Make The Boat Go Faster?. Through his transition from elite sport to executive development, Ben has become a trusted figure in the world of leadership performance, known for helping organisations and individuals define ambitious goals and embed the habits needed to reach them.
Ben’s journey to Olympic success was not straightforward. For years, he and his team sat outside the medal positions, repeatedly falling short despite their efforts. In 1998, the British Men’s Eight took a new approach, driven by a single, focused question: “Will it make the boat go faster?” This mindset led to profound changes in the way they worked and made decisions, culminating in their gold medal win at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.
Since retiring from professional sport, Ben has applied the principles behind that turnaround to the business world. He co-authored the bestselling book Will It Make The Boat Go Faster? to bring these techniques to a wider audience, and he continues this work through the consultancy of the same name. His work is grounded in real-life experience and focuses on clarity of purpose, behaviour change, and practical tools for measurable improvement.
Ben works with leaders and teams across industries to challenge assumptions, streamline focus, and build a culture of high performance. His approach helps clients translate vision into action, establish meaningful goals, and stay aligned with what really matters, making his insights relevant to organisations navigating complexity and change.
Topics, sessions and talks
Ben Hunt-Davis shares the transformative journey of the Great Britain Men’s Eights leading up to the Sydney Olympics, evolving from a seventh-place team to champions. He emphasizes the importance of Performance Principles: focusing on what matters, prioritizing performance for results, and effective teamwork. His engaging speech inspires attendees to tackle their own challenges by simplifying processes and enhancing performance. Participants will learn how a clear focus can drive success and foster a winning mindset.
Olympic gold medalist Ben Hunt-Davis transforms underperforming teams into champions through his proven "Will It Make The Boat Go Faster?" methodology that has already empowered 200,000 professionals across 50 countries. Book Ben today to equip your team with Olympic-winning strategies that deliver extraordinary business results in challenging times.
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frequently asked questions
Something we've not covered here?
To book Ben Hunt-Davis, email ben.hunt.davis@getapeptalk.com or call PepTalk on +44 20 3835 2929 (UK) or +1 737 888 5112 (US), and one of our speaker agents will contact you within hours to confirm Ben's availability and speaking fee. If you can, please include your budget upfront – it helps us fast-track your request. It’s also helpful to know the date, format (virtual or in-person), location, and about your audience.
Ben Hunt-Davis structures his talks around the central question “Will it make the boat go faster?”, using it as a decision-making framework to walk audiences through the step-by-step transformation of the GB Men's Eight from seventh place to Olympic gold. He applies this narrative arc directly to organisational challenges, giving attendees a replicable filter for prioritising actions and aligning team behaviour with measurable outcomes.
Ben Hunt-Davis MBE speaks on high performance, goal clarity, behaviour change, teamwork under pressure, and leadership development. He won Olympic gold as part of the Great Britain Men's Eight at the Sydney 2000 Olympics and co-founded the leadership consultancy Will It Make The Boat Go Faster?, co-authoring the bestselling book of the same name.
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Three to six months ahead is comfortable for most events, and 12 months is better for large conferences, peak-season dates or one specific in-demand speaker. Shorter timelines are workable, and PepTalk regularly fills last-minute and replacement bookings within days. Availability is the constraint, so get in touch as soon as you have a date.
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