Companies that have booked Mariana Atencio as keynote speaker, including Microsoft, Ford, Google and EY
Companies that have booked Mariana Atencio as keynote speaker, including Microsoft, Ford, Google and EY
Real Matters: Building Trust in an Unreal World, keynote by Mariana Atencio

REAL MATTERS: BUILDING TRUST AT EYE LEVEL

Everyone now has the same AI, the same data, the same tools. What separates you is whether people trust you — and trust is the one thing that cannot be faked. It builds higher-performing teams, more sales, and more revenue.

Peabody Award–winning journalist and bestselling author Mariana Atencio had to earn it when the stakes were highest — from interviewing world leaders making impossible decisions, Pope Francis to the King of Spain, to the teams she led into hurricanes and earthquakes. That is the ask now, at every level: lead people into the unknown without having all the answers.

BOOK MARIANA
Real Matters keynote – Building Trust in an Unreal World by Mariana Atencio

The Architecture of Trust

Mariana delivers her Architecture of Trust: three layers, built in sequence

Self-Trust

Team Trust

and Organizational Trust

Grounded in two decades of reporting and ongoing research with her global community of 1.7 million.

Then the audience proves it. Mariana leads a sixty-second exercise built on NYU neuroscience. It becomes the moment they talk about for the rest of the event, and a practice that changes how they show up in any room.

Real trust is built at eye level.

Through strategic storytelling, humor, and live interaction, participants leave ready to build trust with colleagues, stakeholders, and customers. Because when organizations are real, they thrive.

The Performance Impact

High-trust teams report 106% more energy and 50% higher productivity

(HBR).

Highly engaged teams are 21% more profitable

(Gallup).

63% of customers choose brands they trust over cheaper alternatives

(Edelman).

KEY LEARNINGS

  • Understand trust as the most valuable currency in the age of AI

  • Build self-trust on evidence you can point to, not a pep talk

  • Earn others’ trust in 60 seconds — at eye level, not in your inbox

  • Make your purpose visible, so people believe in what you’re building

  • Convert trust into faster decisions, shorter sales cycles, and people who stay

  • Practice it live in an exercise the whole room does together

Mariana Atencio engaging the audience during her trust keynote

AUDIENCE:

  • Leadership and business audiences — executive teams, leadership summits, all-hands and all-company meetings, sales kickoffs, and leadership development or high-potential programs.

  • Strongest in technology, financial services, professional services, and any organization operating under pressure, change, or public scrutiny.

  • Built for everyone carrying responsibility, not only the people with "leader" in the title.

Mariana Atencio presenting the Trust Advantage framework to a corporate audience

Trust Data:

2026 Edelman Trust Barometer Key numbers Core trust levels by institution, media, etc

(global, general population):

My Employer: 78% trust

Business: 64% trust

Media: 54% trust

Government: 53% trust

WHAT CLIENTS SAY

  • "Mariana was exceptional. Her sincerity cut through the skeptics — they deemed the event an extremely successful and memorable team-building experience."

    – Charles E. Chase, President & CEO, FirstService Brands / California Closets

  • "Mariana unlocks the most memorable of experiences, that deliver learning, insights, and calls to action that promise to transform."

    – Lindsay-Rae McIntyre, Chief Diversity Officer and Corporate Vice President of Talent and Learning, Microsoft

  • "We've booked Mariana for keynotes, community programs, and social media campaigns and she has over delivered every time."

    – Senior Manager, Ford Motor Company

  • "Mariana's energy, approachability, and the way she connected with the group engaged everyone from the very beginning."

    – Senior Manager of Global Employee Recognition, Scotiabank

  • "Blown away by Mariana's captivating energy and unparalleled ability to engage the audience."


    – Manager, Ford Motor Company

  • "Mariana's authentic, relatable, engaging style enabled her to immediately connect with our audience."

    – VP, Google Cloud Consulting

  • "Book Mariana – it will be the smartest decision you make for your event. Her message set the tone for the rest of the conference."

    – Executive Vice President, Florida Apartment Association

  • "Mariana is a special talent in a class all her own, and left our group inspired, pumped, and feeling renewed."


    – CBRE

  • "Mariana was inspirational, motivational, and real — we received wonderful feedback from the attendees. "


    – Senior Brand Manager, Bacardi USA, Inc.

  • "What truly set Mariana apart was her ability to listen, understand, and seamlessly weave our key takeaways into her message."

    – Executive Director, Association of Latino Administrators & Superintendents (ALAS)

  • "The event would not have been the same without Mariana’s presence and expertise. Her contribution was one of the defining highlights."

    – Head, NHCCE Speaker Management, HRD Corp

  • "It felt like she connected with each audience member individually, yet we were in a room of 400 people!"

    – The Park School

  • "Mariana inspired and uplifted the spirits of those in attendance. We have received so much positive feedback. "

    – Deputy City Manager, California Society of Municipal Finance Officers

  • "We loved her energy, her message and her interaction with our employees."


    – Senior Manager Employee Experience Engagement and Recognition, Confidential Health Insurance Company

  • "Mariana created a space for deep connection, reflection, and truth, helping us realign with who we are as individuals and as a team."

    – CEO, Victor Community Support Services

Perfectly You: Leveraging the Power Within, authenticity keynote by Mariana Atencio

Perfectly You: Leveraging the Power Within

Everywhere we look, the world pressures us to perform, conform, and be perfect – often at the expense of being true to ourselves. 

But the truth is, when we show up authentically, we become magnetic
and unlock greater resilience, confidence, and purpose. 

Authenticity not only helps us navigate change and uncertainty – it attracts
opportunities and relationships that align with who we really are.

Mariana’s unique energy and interactive dynamics give people permission to drop the masks and discover the bold power of being “Perfectly You.”

Through inspiring stories and practical takeaways, attendees will learn how to
embrace what makes them irreplaceable and tap into authenticity as a source of strength and well-being to give their best at work and in life. 

Audiences leave energized, empowered, and ready to stand out – not by trying to be perfect, but by having the courage to be real.

BOOK MARIANA
Mariana Atencio keynote speaker portrait

Key Takeaways

  • Harness the traits that make you unique (and “Perfectly You”) to resiliently navigate change and uncertainty with confidence.

  • Discover your sense of purpose and increase your personal fulfillment.

  • Learn the three-step framework authentic leaders use to cultivate cultures of trust, collaboration, and purpose.

  • Foster meaningful relationships to strengthen team culture and team building.

  • Mariana’s energy and empathy create breakthrough moments that audiences remember long after they leave.

Mariana Atencio connecting with the audience during her authenticity keynote

A Perfect Fit For

  • High-achieving teams battling burnout and work-life balance

  • Organizations and ERGs with diverse teams  – where underrepresented talent needs to feel recognized and energized in this time

  • Women's leadership programs – navigating impostor syndrome, self-confidence, legacy building and the myth of perfection 

  • First-time leaders and recently promoted hires – second-guessing their right to lead, waiting for permission to be decisive and bring forth bold ideas

  • Teams playing it safe – where fear of judgment or failure is killing the differentiation that drives growth

  • Organizations in transition – where people are performing a version of themselves to fit the new culture

  • Corporate environments where psychological safety is needed

  • Multigenerational friction among team members – where leadership and communication styles clash 

The Power of Authenticity

A Six-Year Global Leadership Study

Over the past six years, Mariana has asked more than 3,000 professionals across four continents, from different backgrounds and religions, two deceptively simple questions:

What makes you unique?
What is your purpose?

Spanning entrepreneurs, executives, educators, creatives, and corporate leaders, the responses revealed a consistent global pattern.

Key Findings

• When individuals move beyond titles and achievements and describe identity and values, clarity increases.
• The vast majority of purpose statements center on service, contribution, family, community, and long-term impact — not status or personal gain.
• Participants who articulated alignment between who they are and why they lead expressed greater steadiness, confidence, and resilience.

Across industries and cultures, the language shifted from performance to contribution.

From proving to serving.

From perfection to purpose.

These keynotes are especially powerful for regional and national associations, women’s conferences, leadership summits, and yearly off-sites.

“Book Mariana – it will be the smartest decision you make for your event. Her message set the tone for the rest of the conference.”


– Executive Vice President, Florida Apartment Association

BOOK MARIANA