Kim Poremski | Leadership Keynote Speaker | Agile Prowess

Working With leaders To close the gap between effort and results.

Leaders don't lose credibility by addressing hard things. They lose it by avoiding them.

With 30+ years of experience helping individuals, teams, and organizations work more effectively, Kim has seen firsthand that real progress rarely stalls because of a lack of effort. It stalls because of misalignment, unclear priorities, and leaders who are trying hard but inadvertently getting in their own way. Kim is passionate about helping leaders at every level develop the clarity, courage, and practical tools to turn their good intentions into real impact.

Meet Kim Poremski

Organizations today are full of activity…meetings, projects, initiatives, deadlines. People are working hard. And yet leaders keep asking the same question: "With all this effort, why aren't we getting better results?"

That question is what drives Kim Poremski's work. The founder of Agile Prowess, Kim is a speaker, trainer, and organizational change expert with 30+ years of experience across banking, finance, healthcare, insurance, and retail. She has worked with teams and leaders at every level, from frontline teams to large-scale organizational transformations.

Kim is one of a select group of Certified Scrum Trainers® (CSTs) worldwide — a designation that represents deep expertise in organizational agility, team effectiveness, and leading change. She has delivered keynotes and workshops at regional and national events, served as emcee for the 2023 Global Scrum Gatherings in Portland and Amsterdam, and delivered the closing keynote at the 2025 Scrum Gathering in Banff, Canada.

Beyond the stage, Kim also designs and facilitates leadership meetings, offsites, and retreats, helping organizations make their most important gatherings purposeful, productive, and memorable.

Kim's talks are known for being engaging, practical, and relatable — blending real tools, humor, and memorable stories that stick long after the session ends.

Kim lives in Charleston, SC with her husband, two daughters, and their two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. When she's not on stage or working with leadership teams, you'll find her at the beach, on the golf course, or volunteering with the local sea turtle rescue team.

THE LEADERSHIP TRAP: GOOD INTENTIONS THAT HOLD SMART LEADERS BACK

KEYNOTE TALK

Your new and mid-level managers are smart, motivated, and trying to do everything right. So why are their teams still struggling to deliver?

The answer is rarely ability or effort. It's the gap between what leaders intend to do and the impact those behaviors actually create. The most common leadership mistakes aren't made by careless leaders — they're made by well-intentioned ones who don't yet see how their actions are landing.

In this engaging and practical keynote, Kim Poremski reveals leadership traps that consistently hold capable managers back — patterns so common and so well-intentioned that most leaders don't recognize them until the damage is already done. Through humor, real-world stories, and a framework your leaders can apply immediately, Kim shows exactly what's driving each trap beneath the surface and gives every attendee simple and memorable techniques they can take back to their team on Monday.

Your audience will leave with:

A new lens for understanding the gap between their intentions and their team's experience
Recognition of common traps that derail well-intentioned leaders
Practical tools to course-correct quickly and lead with more clarity and impact

Best for: Aspiring, new, and mid-level managers; anyone responsible for leading people and building high-performing teams.

Available formats: Keynote · Breakout Session · Workshop

Each format is tailored to your event's needs and audience size.

looking for a facilitator?

Great speakers and great facilitators share the same core skill — the ability to read a room, create connection, and move people toward something meaningful. Kim brings that same energy to leadership meetings, offsites, and retreats, working with you in advance to design an experience that achieves your goals and leaves your team energized and aligned.

Let's talk about your next event →

Testimonials

“Kim was incredibly easy to work with and was adaptable to the needs of our audience. She brought confidence and authenticity to the stage. Her ability to engage with the audience makes her a dynamic and impactful speaker. We were so impressed with Kim’s work that we were excited to invite her back!”

Lisa Emmerman, CMP
"Your work has had a meaningful impact on me. The B.B.O.L.D. framework has been a valuable guide in my own journey, including during a recent career transition. Your talk at the Scrum Gathering in Banff stayed with me, and I appreciate the clarity it helped reinforce.”

Mariya Breyter, Enterprise Transformation Leader, Agile book author, NYU Professor
“Kim's ability to communicate complex topics in a way that resonates with diverse audiences, along with her engaging personality, made her workshops both insightful and energizing. She’s a natural speaker who leaves a memorable impact and her genuine desire to support people's growth continues to inspire long after the sessions end.”

Erika Verchick, Technology Sales Leader
“I’ve had the pleasure of working with Kim for six years and have consistently seen her captivate audiences with her engaging personality and clear, relatable explanations of complex topics. Her ability to answer audience questions on the spot makes each session feel personal and insightful. She would be an asset to any speaking event looking to inform and inspire.”

Laurie Caldie, SVP Sales & Marketing