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Chief Heart Officer & culture expert

Claude Silver

Transform workplace culture with Claude Silver, speaker and world's first Chief Heart Officer. Claude works with global organisations to build emotional intelligence, foster belonging, and develop empathetic leadership, recognized by Adweek and featured in the New York Times, Forbes, and Wall Street Journal.

Trusted by US Navy, The Ad Council, Carter Myers Automotive

Claude Silver, Speaker | Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX
Claude Silver

Claude Silver

New York City, United States

Typical fee range

$6k–10k

This is an estimated fee range for local in-person events. Location and format affect the final fee.

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New York City, United States

Starting from

$6k–10k

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loading@getapeptalk.com

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+44 203 835 2929

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Claude Silver's biography

At a glance

  • World's first Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX
  • Award-winning brand and advertising executive
  • Creator of Emotional Optimism leadership philosophy
Claude Silver is the world’s first Chief Heart Officer, a pioneering role she helped shape at VaynerX to foster a culture of empathy, belonging and emotional intelligence across a global workforce. With over two decades of experience in advertising and brand strategy, she is now recognised for redefining the future of leadership by placing people at the heart of organisational success. Claude’s career spans senior roles at major agencies including JWT London and Publicis, where she worked with Fortune 50 brands. But it was her deep interest in human behaviour, team dynamics and emotional wellbeing that drove her to reimagine how businesses can grow through human connection. At VaynerMedia, she helped guide the company’s expansion from 400 to 2,000 employees worldwide, while shaping a workplace culture centred on trust and emotional awareness. Her leadership philosophy is rooted in the idea of emotional optimism — the belief that acknowledging and working through complex feelings enables teams and individuals to thrive. Drawing on her training in transpersonal and positive psychology, as well as her background as an Outward Bound instructor and business owner, Claude supports people to find clarity, purpose and confidence in both their personal and professional journeys. She has received accolades such as Adweek’s Changing the Game Award and Campaign US’s Female Frontier Award, and her insights have been featured in leading publications including the New York Times, Forbes and the Wall Street Journal. Claude’s work continues to inspire a new generation of leaders to prioritise authenticity, empathy and courage — helping organisations not only perform better, but feel better from the inside out.

Claude's showreel and videos

Topics, sessions and talks

Building Trust, Stability, And Results At Scale
For years, leaders were told to be more empathetic. Then they were told to be more decisive. Most are swinging between the two — and losing trust in the process. This keynote introduces a new leadership standard: integrated authority. Not dominance. Not softness. Stability. Claude Silver shares how emotional fluency, clarity, and visible backbone build cultures that move fast without burning out. Because authority doesn’t remove warmth — it stabilizes it.
The Leadership Shift That Scales Results
High-performing organizations don’t treat coaching as a perk. They treat it as infrastructure. In a high-speed, AI-accelerated world, managing tasks is not enough. Leaders must develop thinking, adaptability, and emotional regulation in others. Claude Silver breaks down the difference between managing and coaching, when to toggle between the two, and how coaching builds trust, accountability, and sustainable performance. Because urgency creates action. Capacity creates scale.
The Human Edge: What AI Can’t Scale
Automation can accelerate output. It cannot replace emotional fluency. In this keynote, Claude Silver makes the case that the competitive advantage of the next decade isn’t technical skill — it’s regulated leadership. Leaders who can stay steady under pressure, tolerate discomfort, and create psychological safety without sacrificing standards will outperform. Emotional maturity is no longer a soft skill. It’s a multiplier.

Why we recommend booking Claude

Claude Silver, the world's first Chief Heart Officer, transforms organisations through her pioneering "emotional optimism" approach that has helped expand VaynerX globally and earned industry recognition. Book Claude to revolutionize your leadership culture and unlock your team's full potential by creating an environment where people feel genuinely seen, heard, and valued.

Check Claude's availability

Trusted by US Navy, The Ad Council, Carter Myers Automotive

Testimonials

Claude was truly a genuine, approachable, and engaging presenter at our conference. She gave a crucial, intelligent, and inspiring talk on why focusing on culture works from a human-to-human perspective and also from a practical perspective on how to concretely develop a happy, productive, and creative work environment.

Core Connect Conference

Her session touched the whole audience and it was the perfect way to end our two-day conference... she really made an impact on our team that we will never forget.

CPHR

Claude delivered a high-energy presentation that really brought our theme of empathetic leadership in action to life. Claude is an amazing force and a much-needed voice in the conversations that are going on about corporate culture and leadership today.

Carter Myers Automotive

Featured Projects

Claude Silver - Emotional Optimism: Living In The Silver Lining podcast cover
Claude Silver - Be Yourself At Work book cover

frequently asked questions

Something we've not covered here?

How do I book Claude Silver for my next event?
Email claude.silver@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 Claude's availability and fees. 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 a bit about your audience.
What is Claude Silver's speaking style like?
Claude Silver structures her keynotes around a reframing device, presenting a widely held leadership assumption — such as the directive to be more empathetic or more decisive — before introducing a counter-position grounded in her Emotional Optimism philosophy and her experience scaling VaynerMedia's workforce from 400 to 2,000 employees.
What topics does Claude Silver specialise in?
Claude Silver's sessions address integrated authority and regulated leadership, coaching as organisational infrastructure, and human emotional fluency as a competitive advantage in an AI-accelerated workplace. She holds the title of world's first Chief Heart Officer, a role she created at VaynerX where she guided the company's growth from 400 to 2,000 employees while building its people-centred culture.
Can PepTalk help plan the speaker programme for my event?

Yes. Beyond booking a single speaker, PepTalk helps shape a full programme, matching voices to your agenda, audience, and goals across a day or a series. It is a consultative service, not just a booking. Tell us about your event at getapeptalk.com.

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Yes! At PepTalk, you can absolutely bundle entertainment and speakers into one seamless package. It's a great way to create a fuller event experience while enjoying simplified booking and better value. Our team handles everything together, making the process effortless for you.

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Book a motivational speaker at least 3–6 months in advance, especially for popular speakers or large events. Top speakers get booked quickly, so earlier is always better. For major conferences or peak seasons, booking 12 months ahead ensures you secure your first choice.

Help, I need a last-minute speaker for my event!

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