


Matt Garman, widely known as The Corporate Adventurer, is hired as an inspirational leadership speaker for his ability to unite compelling real-world experience with practical business insight. His talks blend high-stakes adventure with grounded commercial understanding, offering audiences a refreshing and memorable perspective on what it truly means to lead. Energetic, authentic and unafraid to challenge convention, he brings a distinctive voice to modern leadership development.
His journey began when he left home at sixteen to work as the lowest-ranked crew member on a fishing trawler in the English Channel. The relentless physical demands and uncompromising environment shaped his early understanding of resilience, teamwork and discipline. These formative lessons travelled with him as he moved into the corporate world, eventually becoming Managing Director of ApexIS LTD before progressing through senior leadership roles, including Group Commercial Director of dhc. He later founded GrowthEnabla, serving as its Chief Executive and applying his insight into sales performance and organisational growth.
Alongside his executive career, Matt has built a notable public profile. He is the author of three books exploring leadership, sales and personal development, and he has appeared on the BBC and ITV. His clients span major financial institutions and a range of growth-focused organisations. His personal achievements further distinguish him. He completed an English Channel relay swim in just under fourteen hours, demonstrating extraordinary endurance and teamwork, and later rowed across the Atlantic in a crew of three to raise funds for Wolo HQ, spending forty-nine days at sea. These endeavours highlight a rare commitment to testing limits and understanding human potential.
Matt is sought after as an inspirational leadership speaker because he draws on lived experience rather than theory. He conveys the belief that effective leadership is forged through challenge and curiosity. His talks balance humour with honest reflection, offering practical lessons rooted in adaptability, sustained performance and personal accountability. Audiences value his willingness to share both successes and missteps, creating a genuine and relatable learning environment. By combining corporate credibility with remarkable adventure, he delivers a powerful message: leadership grows when individuals embrace discomfort, support others and push beyond perceived boundaries. This distinctive approach consistently leaves organisations motivated to rethink how they lead and how they grow.
Matt Garman is regularly booked to engage audiences at events, read their latest feedback below:
“I met Matt in my role as the host and MC of a business leaders speakers’ conference. Matt was a pleasure to work with. He happily engaged with me the previous week when I invited him to a briefing call to talk me through his presentation. On the day, he arrived in plenty of time – so I could double check my introduction, and he could check his slides, and the overall format of the day. Matt kept to time and worked brilliantly to the brief. His talk was well received, authentically delivered with meaningful ‘takeaways’ for an audience wanting to be inspired and ‘re-energised’, as per the theme of the day. Matt stayed for lunch, fully engaging with me, the other speakers and all our guests. If you want a ‘safe pair of hands’ speaker with an impressive story, I heartily recommend Matt.”
“After meeting Matt at an event, I knew I wanted to book him for our summer lunch with Rolex. Matt personalised his fascinating talk about rowing the Atlantic, with Rolex taglines that fit seamlessly. Delivered in his unique and engaging style, he hit the spot perfectly with our guests. We all felt like we were in the boat with him, as he described the extraordinary highs and lows as huge as the Atlantic waves he had rowed through. His Q&A section was the perfect wrap up, with many asking questions, because they all wanted to hear more of this amazing adventures.”
“We were delighted when Matt agreed to be our Keynote speaker at our 3rd annual Diamond Alumni VIP Lunch. Matt was fun and easy to talk to in the lead up to the event and then captivating from the very start of his presentation, with everyone listening intently and completely engaged. He blew us all away with his recap of “The Toughest Row in the World”. It was inspiring to hear the highs, lows and lessons learnt from his challenging 49-day row across the Atlantic Ocean where his team raised over £100,000 for charity – incredible! I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Matt if you are considering him to speak at your event!”
The Inspirational Leadership Speakers Agency is one of the UK’s leading bureaus for inspiring global leaders. We supply speakers for corporate and public events across the world and cater to both in-person occasions and online webinars. Our roster includes athletes, psychologists, celebrities and more, each with top industry insight into leadership.
E: agent@inspirational-leadership-speakers.com
P: 0203 0070 320