Keynote Speaker · Leadership & AI · Polar Skipper
Andy Fitze, Keynote Speaker Leadership & AI: Where the map
ends, leadership
begins.
Keynote speaker on leadership in uncertainty. 25 years as a technology executive, 23 expeditions in the Arctic and the North Atlantic. For conferences, congresses and kick-offs in Switzerland, Germany, Austria and internationally.
3× Digital Shaper of Switzerland · 2022, 2023, 2026Three keynotes
The right perspective for your event
23
self-organised expeditions in the Arctic and worldwide
25+
years of technology leadership, including as Top CIO
100+
keynotes on leadership, AI and deciding under pressure
DE · EN
keynotes in German or English
In the media
SRF "Persönlich" (Swiss Radio), TeleZüri TalkTäglich, NZZ am Sonntag Magazin, TOPhoch3 on Spotify, Blick, Zürcher Oberländer, Südostschweiz
On stage at
UBS Wolfsberg, Meta Hamburg, Oslo Rescue Conference, AURA Zurich, Showpalast Munich, Sustainability Days Messe Basel, Carinthian Chamber of Commerce, American Club of Hamburg, ABB
At a glance
- Who
- Swiss keynote speaker on leadership in uncertainty
- Background
- 25 years as a technology executive, co-founder of SwissCognitive, president of the Swiss IT Leadership Forum
- Expeditions
- 23 expeditions in the Arctic and the North Atlantic, member of The Explorers Club
- Keynote
- “Where the Map Ends: Leading When Forecasts Fail”
- Languages
- German and English
- Region
- Switzerland, Germany, Austria, international. Based in Forch near Zurich
AI EXPERTISE & RECOGNITION
AI is a leadership question.
Andy Fitze co-founded SwissCognitive with Dalith Steiger in 2016 and advises boards and executive teams on AI strategy and transformation. His experience combines technology leadership, entrepreneurship and the question of how businesses can use AI responsibly.
3× Digital Shaper
2022, 2023 and 2026
Top 10 AI Influencers
AI Magazine · 2023
SwissCognitive since 2016
Entrepreneurial experience
For your audience this means: whoever uses AI has to decide where the model is right and where it is not. That responsibility cannot be delegated.
Discover the AI keynoteKeeping options open
“I wasn’t just looking for a way through. I was looking for ways out.”
1 / 20
The model said 75.
We got 140.
August 2024, North Atlantic. The forecast for day four of the Naddoddur expedition: winds of 75 km/h. What came was 140. The boat capsized off the Norwegian coast. Five crew members were rescued. One crew member lost her life.
The forecast was wrong. The responsibility stayed with the skipper.
Companies are no different. Budgets, forecasts and AI models tell you what is coming. Most of the time they are right. When they are not, what matters is how well prepared the team is and who takes responsibility.
Act 1 · Preparation
Crews beat heroes
23 expeditions, nine people on 60 m², a watch system around the clock: how to build teams for the unforeseeable.
Act 2 · The storm
Reality beats the model
What counts when it gets serious. And why responsibility can be handed neither to a forecast nor to a machine.
Act 3 · Plan B
Change the destination, keep the purpose
Project 68°N, day eight: the final check before departure reveals a crack in the mast base, and Greenland is off. How a crew finds a new destination and still stays together.
Keynote Leadership · AI · Risk
Where the Map Ends
Leading when forecasts fail, from the North Atlantic to AI
Andy Fitze knows uncertainty from two sides. As a Top CIO he was responsible for major technology decisions. As a skipper he has led crews through storms and pack ice. In his keynote he shows films and images from on board and translates what he experienced into everyday leadership.
- 1
The keynote shows how teams prepare for the storm rather than the forecast.
How to set up teams for the unforeseeable.
- 2
Reality wins, even against the best model.
When to follow the model and when to trust your own eyes on the water.
- 3
Nature makes the wind. Leadership sets the sails.
Why a new destination is not a failure.
Leadership Edition
Leading in uncertainty
For leadership conferences, HR and leadership congresses, chambers of commerce and business associations.
More about this edition →AI Edition
Responsibility in the age of AI
For IT, digital and AI conferences. From someone who develops AI strategies for boards of directors.
More about this edition →Risk Edition
When the model gets it wrong
For insurers, banks, risk, security and cyber conferences.
More about this edition →
Audiovisual keynote
A show for the big stage.
Films and images from 23 expeditions, an original soundtrack, picture and sound controlled live. Andy starts in the middle of the audience. Ideal as the opening or closing of an annual conference, leadership meeting, customer event or kick-off.
- Duration
- 35–60 min
- Formats
- 16:9 to 64:9
- Signals
- up to 4 video outputs
- Technology
- own playback system
Expedition Svalbard 2023
20 minutes in the pack ice
July 2023, 80 degrees north at Phipps Island. The ice closes in around the yacht, followed by 18 hours through the ice fields. These are the images behind the keynote.
Speaker · Skipper · AI Strategist
Technology executive and skipper.
For more than 25 years Andy Fitze led technology organisations. In 2016 he co-founded SwissCognitive, and today he advises boards of directors and executive teams on AI strategy. He is president of the Swiss IT Leadership Forum and a board member of swissICT.
Alongside this, he has organised and led 23 sailing expeditions to high latitudes, through the North Atlantic, ice and storms. At sea he has faced situations for which there was no plan. His keynote is about them.
- Co-founder SwissCognitive
- President Swiss IT Leadership Forum
- Board member swissICT
- TopCIO of the Decade
- 3× Digital Shaper of Switzerland
- Member of The Explorers Club, New York
- Sailing Instructor & Yachtmaster Ocean, Royal Yachting Association
- Electrical engineer, Executive MBA HSG
From the helm
«Reality wins.»
The sentence heard most often on board. No matter what the forecast says.
«Every day brings at least one crisis. Teams need to be ready for it.»
At sea, things switch from calm to crisis in seconds. Whoever leads has to handle both.
«Sailing works without electrics too.»
When the systems fail, what counts is what the crew can do without them.
Pack ice off Svalbard. Every minute a new situation.
Testimonials
Less a talk than an expedition
From the audience
- «I had to turn 60 to have tears in my eyes after a keynote.»
- «I was so captivated by the images.»
- «A talk that moved me deeply.»
Voices of participants after the keynote
«What Andy Fitze captivates his audience with is less a talk than an expedition. On the one hand into the deserted expanses of the Arctic Ocean, on the other into one's own soul and the question of what leadership really means. A true professional.»
«His keynote was an unforgettable experience that enriched our conference and stimulated participants both intellectually and emotionally.»
«Andy captivates from the very first second. A clear recommendation for every leader looking for a new perspective.»
«His practical tips are real navigation aids for anyone facing economic challenges. The images will stay with me for a long time.»
«It was not just a talk about the topic, but a talk for life that made me think.»
Translated from German.
The destination may change.
The purpose does not.
Keynote, workshop, retreat, online
Formats for your event
Signature keynote
35–60 min
Audiovisual show including own technology and a preparatory call.
Details →Executive retreat
½–1 day
Half or full day with the executive team or board of directors: AI strategy and leadership.
Details →Andy will confirm availability within 48 hours.
Speaker dossier
Andy Fitze in ten pages
The keynote and formats in a concise overview.
Frequently asked questions
What organisers want to know
PODCASTS & INTERVIEWS
In Conversation
On radio and podcasts, Andy Fitze talks about leading in uncertainty and what expeditions into uncharted waters mean for companies in the age of AI.
SRF 1 Persönlich · Explore North · TOPhoch3 · M.U.T.cast
Andy Fitze · Interviews & Podcasts
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Enquiry
Planning a conference people will remember?
Tell us the date, location, audience and occasion. Andy will get back to you personally within 48 hours.
Email keynote@andyfitze.com · Forch near Zurich, Switzerland · LinkedIn