Theme: Ad Meliora: Toward Better Things

Returning to in-person attendance for the first time since 2019, this year’s TEDxBabsonCollege theme “Ad Meliora: Toward Better Things” captures a spirit of optimism we all can relate to. This year’s TEDx team believes that choosing a very interdisciplinary theme aligns well with Babson’s continued mission to empower learners everywhere to create lasting economic and social value for themselves, their communities, and the world. TEDxBabsonCollege 2022, will add to this mindful journey by helping to ignite minds with thought-provoking ideas worth spreading, helping to usher a brighter tomorrow for Babson and the larger Massachusetts community.

Carling-Sorenson Theatre
231 Forest St, Babson Park
Wellesley, Massachusetts, 02457
United States

Bevin Mugford

Chief Growth Officer at Peach, Inc.

Bevin is a dynamic executive and speaker with over 15 years of experience in leading people, training high-performance teams, and building a start-up from the ground floor. With a presentation style described as a “zesty badass,” Bevin draws from the latest research and personal case studies to engage audiences in conversations around creating work and home cultures that foster wellbeing and peak performance. She is the host of a weekly chat series called “Thursday Thrive” based upon the tenants of Positive Psychology, and author of a weekly “Saturday Meditation” blog and a to-be-published book chronicling her journey through child loss.

David Kerr

Graduate Student at Babson College

David is an entrepreneur with 10 years of experience in the defense industry supporting Department of Defense contracts. Additionally, he is the Executive Director of a 501©3 non-profit organization providing pro bono legal services to disadvantaged individuals. His passion for science has led him down a path of exploring everything from neuroscience to behavioral economics. Through his research, David has discovered a way to completely and profoundly change how people perceive the world around them.

Hardik Pandey

Undergraduate Student at Babson College

Hardik is currently a Sophomore at Babson College and the undergraduate student speaker for TEDxBabsonCollege. Our youngest speaker has a deep interest in product management, technology, and investing, and is actively involved with multiple Babson College organizations. Hardik is the Vice President of Alpha Kappa Psi, a Financial Wellness Peer Mentor, a member of BCA and BFA, and a resident assistant.

Jack McCarthy

Senior Lecturer in Management at Babson College

Jack McCarthy is a professor in the Management Division at Babson College. He is a senior scholar of leadership and a practitioner of leadership as a former CFO and CEO in industry. Working at Babson brings Jack both great joy and great hope. However, he believes that there is a sense of timeliness in the leadership lessons of today, where we must embrace the intense global connectedness we are experiencing and where the most profound and enduring lessons are ancient and rooted in many spiritual traditions around identity, acceptance, inclusion, and kindness.

Jason Frishman

CEO and Founder of Netcapital

Jason is the founder and CEO of Netcapital, and has been mentoring, advising, and investing in early-stage companies to help them raise their first capital for over 3 years. He founded Netcapital to reduce the systemic inefficiencies he saw in the way early-stage companies access capital through his experience as a coach and mentor. Jason has a background in life sciences and has previously conducted research in medical oncology at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and cognitive neuroscience at the University of Miami, where he graduated from.

Jennifer Smith

CEO and Strategic Advisor at Growth Potential Consulting

Jennifer is the CEO and Strategic Advisor at Growth Potential Consulting. She has more than 20 years of experience in leadership and has helped thousands of leaders across 5 continents and 14 industries develop their leadership capabilities. Jennifer’s desire to help others motivates her to offer pro bono facilitation as well as coaching to people who have been out of work and are struggling to get their next job. In addition, she is a mentor for a women’s high-potential leadership program.

John Hargrave

CEO of Media Shower

John is the CEO of Media Shower, an award-winning media company. He has also published for the Bitcoin Market Journal - a journal trusted by over 100,000 crypto investors monthly. A Babson MBA alumnus, John has also written and published a book titled Blockchain For Everyone where he shares about his 10-year journey with bitcoin (Simon & Schuster). With an arsenal of expertise in the blockchain field, he has been ranked #1 on the list of Top Blockchain Speakers (bitly.com/blockchain-speakers).

Kim Meninger

Executive Coach and Consultant at Executive Career Success, LLC

As a women’s leadership coach and consultant, Kim has coached hundreds of clients whose primary focus is on building confidence and managing self-doubt to accelerate their career paths. Kim has spoken to hundreds of audiences on topics including impostor syndrome, authentic self-promotion, and building influence. She is passionate about empowering women and others who have been traditionally disenfranchised. Kim hosts The Impostor Syndrome Files podcast, which aims to de-stigmatize confidence issues and provide a platform for successful professionals to share their journeys with impostor syndrome. The podcast has over 50 episodes and continues to grow.

Mark Zides

CEO and Founder of CoreAxis Consulting

Mark is the founder and CEO of CoreAxis Consulting, an award-winning, learning, development, and talent management firm. Mark is also the founder of Katama, an agency specializing in sales strategy, marketing, and customer success for small-to-medium-sized businesses, and Recipi, a digital marketing agency for event equipment rental companies. Aside from Mark's proven track record as a serial entrepreneur, he has held multiple leadership positions in 3 of the Big Four Accounting Firms – serving as a Managing Director in the Advisory Services Practice at PwC Consulting, Global Practice Leader at Monitor Deloitte, and Business Development Executive at Ernst & Young.

Precious Williams

CEO of Perfect Pitch by Precious, LLC

Precious, affectionately known as the #KillerPitchMaster, is a 13-time national elevator pitch champion and has been featured on Shark Tank, CNN, Wall Street Journal, Forbes Magazine, and Black Enterprise Magazine. As a corporate trainer, her current clients include Microsoft, LinkedIn, Google, NBCUniversal, Federal Reserve Bank, and Yelp. Precious is also a dynamic speaker, effective trainer, and 3x No.1 bestselling author.

Ranjay Gulati

Professor at Harvard Business School

Ranjay is a professor at Harvard Business School and an expert on leadership, strategy, and organizational growth. He chaired the Advanced Management Program, the school’s flagship senior leader executive program, has authored 7 books, and has been ranked as one of the top 10 most-cited academics in the fields of economics. Ranjay has received recognition from various publications and his research has appeared in leading academic journals of business as well as major publications like the Harvard Business Review, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and the Financial Times.