PETER HINSSEN
Global Innovation & AI Strategist Helping Leaders Thrive in the ‘Never Normal’
Peter Hinssen is an innovation Strategist | Futurist | Author of The Phoenix and the Unicorn.
Peter Hinssen is a globally recognised futurist and innovation expert who helps organisations stay ahead in a world defined by relentless change — what he calls The Never Normal. A serial entrepreneur, author, and advisor to Fortune 1000 leaders, Peter brings over two decades of experience at the intersection of business strategy, technology, and organisational transformation.
A self-described pathological optimist, Peter believes in building bold, future-facing organisations capable of thriving not just today — but in the Day After Tomorrow. He is the author of five bestselling business books, including The Phoenix and The Unicorn, The Day After Tomorrow, and The Network Always Wins. His writing challenges leaders to think beyond short-term tactics and embrace long-term reinvention.
Peter has co-founded multiple tech start-ups — including e-COM (acquired by Alcatel-Lucent), Streamcase (Belgacom), and Porthus (IPO, later acquired by Descartes) — and served as Entrepreneur in Residence at McKinsey & Company. He is also the founder of nexxworks, a future-forward advisory company that helps global clients navigate digital disruption and cultural transformation.
An in-demand international speaker, Peter has worked with organisations such as Google, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, LVMH, HSBC, Accenture, Chanel, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He lectures at London Business School and MIT Sloan School of Management and advises several boards on innovation and technology, including Belfius, Mediahuis, and Ergon Capital. Known for his sharp thinking, practical insights, and dry humour, Peter delivers keynotes that challenge assumptions, energise audiences, and equip leaders with the tools to think — and act — beyond the now.
For Peter’s full Bio see below: –
ARTICLES: –
TOPICS:
– The Never Normal: Leading in a World of Permanent Change
A powerful briefing for organisations facing systemic disruption — from geopolitical volatility and digital acceleration to evolving customer and workforce expectations. Learn how to stay agile, aligned and ahead in a Europe defined by uncertainty.
– The Day After Tomorrow: Thinking Beyond the Now
Most companies focus on today and tomorrow — few are built for the Day After Tomorrow. This keynote challenges leaders to shift mindset, investment, and action towards long-term innovation that ensures resilience and relevance across the European business landscape.
– The Phoenix and the Unicorn: How Legacy Companies Can Reinvent Themselves
While Silicon Valley produces unicorns, Europe is home to powerful phoenixes — long-standing firms capable of renewal. Peter shares practical insight into how European corporates can embrace reinvention cycles without abandoning heritage.
– The Network Always Wins: Why Structure Must Follow Connection
In a continent built on interdependence, Peter explores why traditional organisational structures no longer work — and how European firms can shift to distributed, networked ways of working to match external complexity.
– From Control to Culture: Rethinking Leadership in the European Context
With Europe’s cultural diversity, compliance demands and evolving employee expectations, leadership must move from rigid control to adaptive cultures. This session provides frameworks to shift how leaders build trust and autonomy at scale.
– Tech meets trust: Innovating responsibly in the age of AI and regulation
Designed for a European audience navigating AI, ESG, GDPR, and digital ethics, this keynote helps leaders balance innovation with accountability — and build credibility in a sceptical world.
Peter analyses why innovation in Europe looks different from other regions — and how leaders can activate ecosystems, navigate policy, and lead with purpose in an increasingly fragmented world.
BIOGRAPHY
Peter Hinssen is one of Europe’s leading voices on disruptive innovation, the future of leadership, and the impact of technology on business and society. With over two decades at the intersection of enterprise, entrepreneurship and exponential change, he advises global organisations on how to stay relevant in a world defined by perpetual transformation — or what he calls The Never Normal.
A self-described pathological optimist, Peter believes that forward-thinking organisations can build not just better businesses, but a bolder and brighter Day After Tomorrow. He is the author of five widely acclaimed books, including The Phoenix and The Unicorn, The Day After Tomorrow, and The Network Always Wins — all exploring how companies can adapt, reinvent, and thrive in uncertain futures.
Peter’s background spans serial entrepreneurship (four exits including IPO and M&A), strategic advisory (Entrepreneur in Residence at McKinsey & Company), and founding nexxworks, an innovation platform that helps organisations rewire for change. His client list includes Google, Apple, Microsoft, LVMH, HSBC, Danone, Facebook, and The Gates Foundation.
A highly rated international keynote speaker, Peter combines sharp analysis, engaging storytelling, and dry humour. He delivers original thinking on digital transformation, resilience, and leadership, backed by real-world experience and unmatched insight into tomorrow’s business landscape.
He is a board advisor to leading companies such as Belfius, Mediahuis and Ergon Capital, and lectures at London Business School and MIT Sloan.
Peter consistently earns top ratings for his speaking engagements. At the Amsterdam Business Forum 2025, he achieved an outstanding 9.2 average score, the highest rating in the event’s history. The year before, he was named Best Speaker of the Oslo Business Forum 2024, outperforming world-renowned names such as Erin Meyer, Adam Grant, Mikko Hyppönen, Brené Brown, and Mo Gawdat.
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