David Friedman

TEC Canada Speaker | Founder/CEO – CultureWise | Vistage Speaker

David Friedman, former president of RSI, an award-winning employee benefits brokerage, led the company to become one of the largest and most successful independently-owned agencies in the country. Under his leadership, RSI won numerous accolades, including being named one of the Best Places to Work and one of the Fastest Growing companies. A graduate of the College of William & Mary, David co-founded RSI in 1983 and earned five advanced professional designations before shifting his focus to leadership and organizational development. He pioneered programs like Open Book management and Lean Process implementation, and created the RSI Fundamentals, a set of 30 values that became a hallmark of the company’s success. After selling RSI in 2008, David pursued his passion for speaking and writing, publishing his first book, *Fundamentally Different*, in 2011.

David Friedman

TEC Canada Speaker | Founder/CEO – CultureWise | Vistage Speaker

David Friedman, former president of RSI, an award-winning employee benefits brokerage, led the company to become one of the largest and most successful independently-owned agencies in the country. Under his leadership, RSI won numerous accolades, including being named one of the Best Places to Work and one of the Fastest Growing companies. A graduate of the College of William & Mary, David co-founded RSI in 1983 and earned five advanced professional designations before shifting his focus to leadership and organizational development. He pioneered programs like Open Book management and Lean Process implementation, and created the RSI Fundamentals, a set of 30 values that became a hallmark of the company’s success. After selling RSI in 2008, David pursued his passion for speaking and writing, publishing his first book, *Fundamentally Different*, in 2011.

David’s Topics

World-class organizations understand the powerful influence their cultures have on performance, and top-performing companies intentionally shape their culture to drive success. In this practical, no-nonsense program, David Friedman, a former award-winning CEO, shares tools to leverage corporate culture as a competitive advantage. Drawing on his 27 years of leadership experience, David covers key topics such as the difference between a good and high-performance culture, why behaviors matter more than values, why vision and mission statements often miss the mark, and critical mistakes leaders make when defining culture. This program is designed to provide actionable insights and real-world examples to build and sustain a high-performance culture.