You Are Capable of a Better Culture.
Build a workplace people never want to leave — the five research-backed drivers that turn disengagement into commitment, and turnover into loyalty.
Culture isn’t the posters on the wall or the values on the website. It’s what your people experience every single day — and every one of those experiences is a choice someone made.
Culture Is Built, Not Inherited
Most organizations treat culture like weather — something that happens to them. The truth: your organization is capable of a better culture, and building it is a set of learnable behaviors, not a personality trait of lucky companies.
Chris Sund has built cultures that won Best Places to Work recognition while scaling fast — in healthcare staffing, one of the hardest retention environments in the economy. This keynote distills that experience into five research-backed drivers — the ones that research and real-world results agree on.
Support. Purpose. Appreciation. Relationships. Knowledge & Growth. When those five are present, engagement stops being an HR metric and becomes how the place feels. When they’re missing, people quit — and they quit people, not companies.
Audiences leave with a clear diagnosis of where their culture leaks energy, and practical moves every leader and team member can make — starting Monday.
Your people want to give more than your culture is getting.
of people believe they’re capable of more than they’re doing now
That’s not a talent problem. That’s untapped energy your culture either unlocks or wastes.
describe their days as somewhat or completely reactive
Only 26% feel highly intentional with their time. Culture sets the default.
second-guess themselves because of their internal voice
Cultures built on support and appreciation quiet that voice. Cultures of fear amplify it.
Source: The Untapped Potential Report — original research from You Are Capable of More, surveying 200+ professionals.
Five Drivers. One Culture.
Five drivers that transform disengagement into commitment — and culture into a lasting competitive edge.
Support
People perform when they know someone has their back — with resources, air cover, and genuine care.
Purpose
Connect every role to the mission. People don’t burn out from hard work — they burn out from meaningless work.
Appreciation
Recognition done right — specific, timely, and personal — is the cheapest, most neglected performance lever there is.
Relationships
People quit people, and they stay for people too. Trust between humans is the infrastructure of culture.
Knowledge & Growth
Show people a path to become more — and they’ll build their future inside your walls instead of outside them.
Five Outcomes. A Culture People Choose.
A Culture Diagnosis
Attendees assess their own team against the five drivers and identify the one lever that will move engagement fastest.
The Retention Connection
Why people really leave — and the leadership behaviors, drawn from the People Quit People playbook, that make them stay.
Appreciation That Actually Lands
Practical recognition habits that feel personal instead of performative — and cost nothing to run.
Culture as Everyone’s Job
Moving culture out of HR’s hands and into daily behavior — every attendee leaves owning one visible culture commitment.
An Engagement Action Plan
A simple 30-day plan leaders can run with their teams to put all five drivers into motion.
This Keynote Is a Fit For
Culture change that outlasts the applause.
Every attendee gets the You Are Capable of More toolkit — free companion resources to the bestselling book that keep the culture conversation going inside your organization.
The Team Playbook
Discussion guides and exercises for turning the keynote into team-level culture commitments.
Original ResearchThe Untapped Potential Report
The full research behind the keynote — share it with your leadership team before the event.
Free ResourceThe You Are Capable of More Framework
The one-page framework every attendee can post at their desk.
You Are Capable of More — Out Now
Every program draws from the book’s ten principles across three pillars — Ownership, Discipline, and Growth — and connects your attendees to free companion resources they keep long after the event.
See it before you book it.
The SPARK Advantage, the full-length culture keynote this program grew from, recorded live. Watch the whole session, not a highlight reel.
More full sessions on Chris Sund’s YouTube channel.
Ranked a Top 100 Thought Leader in Culture by Thinkers360 (October 2026)
The feedback speaks for itself.
Christopher Sund delivered an engaging and thought-provoking presentation on employee retention, emphasizing the importance of belonging, purpose, appreciation, and connection. His SPARK framework—Support, Purpose, Appreciation, Relationships, and Knowledge/Growth—provided practical leadership strategies to reverse disengagement. One key takeaway was that support doesn’t mean rescuing employees from challenges, but ensuring they never feel alone. His powerful question, “Would you want to work for you?” encouraged meaningful self-reflection. Christopher was energetic, relatable, and inspiring, reminding us that employee retention begins with leaders who listen, build trust, recognize individual contributions, and create a culture where people feel valued and supported.
Chris Sund’s breakout at POWER Conference 2026 really hit home for me, especially as I’m building a new team. His point that a great plan won’t overcome a culture people want to leave is something I’ll carry with me.
It made me think about how my team will feel working with me. Do they feel supported? Do they know I appreciate them? Am I taking the time to listen and help them grow?
One of my biggest takeaways was that being a leader doesn’t mean removing every hard thing. It means making sure your people don’t have to face it alone. That’s the kind of leader I want to be.
I left with things I can put into practice right away: make time for a five-minute check-in, ask how someone is really doing, and listen to their answer. Thank you, Chris, for a message I needed to hear.
This session gave a lot of perspective to me about the true purpose of the work that we do every single day. Giving employees and associates like myself that SPARK to do greater things is the true motivator not necessarily a dollar amount. Chris did a phenomenal job breaking down each component of SPARK and how that can be applied to any business. It truly is a great way to view things and Chris did a great job presenting that.
Chris was an outstanding speaker and a highlight of our event. He took the time to deeply understand our organization and thoughtfully personalized every moment. Our staff genuinely loved his message — engaging, relatable, and inspiring from start to finish.
Chris consistently brings knowledge, insight, and practical advice. At our NAHCR Conference he led two impactful sessions and left everyone with tools they could use immediately. His deep understanding of our audience elevates every engagement.
Chris is a thoughtful, intentional leader who fully understands the influence he carries and uses it to positively impact everyone he encounters. His message challenged me to think differently about how I lead, serve, and influence others.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the You Are Capable of a Better Culture keynote?
A workplace culture keynote built on five drivers, known as SPARK: Support, Purpose, Appreciation, Relationships, and Knowledge & Growth. It shows how to build a workplace people never want to leave.
Why should we trust Chris on culture?
He runs companies in healthcare staffing, one of the hardest retention environments there is, and the cultures he has built have been named Fortune Best Workplaces while scaling fast.
Who is it for?
HR and people conferences, annual company meetings, healthcare organizations, employee engagement events, association events, leadership summits, culture rollouts and management teams.
Can we watch it first?
Yes. The SPARK Advantage, the full-length culture keynote this program grew from, is on this page, with more full sessions on Chris’s YouTube channel.
How do I book Chris Sund for this program?
Send your date, city and audience through the contact form. Chris quotes the speaking fee and travel together in one proposal, and you will hear back on availability within one business day.
Bring This Keynote to Your Organization
Check availability, discuss your culture goals, and receive a customized proposal.
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