Keynote speaking
Dave Greenberg, CSP
Leadership under pressure is not a theory.
It is a lived experience, and that is what your audience will hear.
See Dave in action
Brace for Impact speaker reel
Dave’s Keynotes
- Brace for Impact : From Crisis to Control How leadership teams maintain clarity, communication, and control when pressure is real.
- Navigating the Crocodile River How leadership teams recognise risk, maintain control, and perform under pressure.
- Safety in High-Risk Environments The day I was one bump away from falling off a helicopter in flight.
- Resilience Under Pressure The day I made a single decision which could have let the Delta strain of COVID-19 into New Zealand.
Brace for Impact: From Crisis to Control
A keynote on leadership performance under pressure
Every organisation will eventually face a moment where information is incomplete, pressure escalates, and consequences become visible very quickly. In those moments, plans alone are not enough.
Drawing on more than 25 years on the Westpac Rescue Helicopter, national-level crisis leadership experience during Covid-19, and executive crisis simulations across government and industry, Dave Greenberg shows audiences how high-performing teams maintain disciplined decision-making, communicate clearly, and move from chaos to control when it matters most.
On one of the worst days of my career, a man we had just rescued from a sinking yacht fell from the helicopter harness into a raging sea and vanished.
My instinct screamed crisis. But chaos would have cost him his life.
Instead, we stayed calm, worked the problem, and found him.
Audiences leave with :
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practical insights into how leadership behaviour changes under pressure
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how communication and escalation often break down
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what leaders can do to maintain operational effectiveness, strategic oversight, and calm decision-making when the stakes are high.
- a practical framework for leading through high-pressure events without freezing, overreacting, or losing strategic oversight.
- the understanding that crisis performance is a skill, not a personality trait.
Available in 30, 45, or 60-minute formats.
Tailored to your audience and sector.
What event organisers say.
His ability to captivate the audience and impart valuable lessons left a lasting impression on everyone present.
Dave is an amazing speaker and we would recommend him to any other conference organiser who is looking for a focused and insightful presenter.
Feedback from our attendees noted that he kept them engaged, shared powerful real-world stories and provided clear, practical insights they could actually takeaway.
Dave was the keynote speaker for our ServiceIQ Business Briefings, which involved 14 events across the country.
His sessions were engaging and well-received, with consistently strong feedback from attendees.
Dave took the time to understand the purpose of each event and adapted his approach to suit different venues, audiences and contexts.
Even when last-minute issues arose, he remained calm and focused.
Highly recommended.