THE DIPLOMAT • SPEAKING

Every room has an elephant.

I speak to mission-driven leaders and their teams about holding a room when the stakes are high. What to say when a funder pushes back. How to keep a message together when conditions change under you. Why the thing everyone's avoiding is usually the fastest way through.

People leave with language they can use the next morning. Not a framework. Language.

Close-up of Christine with brown wavy hair, wearing a white top, pink lipstick, and gold jewelry, smiling slightly.
Let's talk →

Tell me about your event and your audience. I'll tell you honestly whether I'm right for that room.

What your audience walks away with.

01

A way to stay steady when a room turns. What to do in the ten seconds after a question lands badly.

02

Words for the conversation they've been avoiding. The email, the board moment, the announcement they can't get wrong.

03

Why good messages fall apart under pressure, and how to build one that doesn't.

04

One decision they'll make differently that week. I'd rather send people out with one thing they'll use than ten they'll write down and forget.

Let's talk →

THE TOPICS

What I speak about

  • The signature talk. What actually happens when a room goes tense, and how to hold it without flattening the conflict or letting it run.

  • Why leadership teams end up telling three versions of the same mission, what it costs in funding and staff, and how to get everyone working from one.

  • Transitions, layoffs, funding shifts, political pressure. The news isn't ready, but the silence is already doing damage.

  • Why smart, under-resourced nonprofits decide comms "doesn't work" — and how to tell a broken tactic from a broken function, so you stop writing off communications and start doing the version that actually lands.

LET'S TALK

Formats

Keynote

45 to 60 minutes.

One idea carried the whole way, with real examples, so the room leaves with a shared reference point for the rest of your event.

Leadership session.

90 minutes to a half day for an executive or comms team.

Less talk, more work. We take a situation you're actually in and work it in the room.

Panel and moderation.

I’m a great panelist and an even better moderator.

Moderating is the day job: keep it honest, make space for what's happening, get somewhere meaningful before time runs out.

Fireside and Q&A.

Conversational, unscripted, best with a strong interviewer.

Works well for member organizations and leadership networks.

Rooms I've been in

I’ve spent 20 years advising organizations like Harvard University, AARP, the CDC, Planned Parenthood, and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. On stage it's the same work, in front of more people.

This is a partial list. A lot of this work happens in rooms that don't publish an attendee list.

MEDIA & BROADCAST

Altitude Summit

PayPal (brand event)

Prevent Child Abuse America

Massachusetts Conference for Women

GSK plc

Mom 2.0 Summit

Dad 2.0 Summit

Blissdom

Pivot Boston

Type A Parent

SPARK Kindness

Parenting in Place

Responsibility.org

Wellesley Mothers Forum

Manic Mommies retreat

BlogHer

DSM Nutritional Products (brand event)

Altitude Summit PayPal (brand event) Prevent Child Abuse America Massachusetts Conference for Women GSK plc Mom 2.0 Summit Dad 2.0 Summit Blissdom Pivot Boston Type A Parent SPARK Kindness Parenting in Place Responsibility.org Wellesley Mothers Forum Manic Mommies retreat BlogHer DSM Nutritional Products (brand event)

STAGES & CONFERENCES • WHERE I’VE SPOKEN

Netflix

Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things · 2015, featured appearance

NPR

All Things Considered / Code Switch · 2021

BBC World News

2020, live broadcast

WGBH

2021

ORGANIZATION I’VE WORKED WITH

AARP · CDC · Harvard University · American Cancer Society · Planned Parenthood · Obama for America · Children's Hospital of Philadelphia · WBUR · Prevent Child Abuse America · GSK

Why organizers call me.

Twenty years advising mission-driven organizations, and before that a Ph.D. in music and brain science: how people process information, and how a story holds together under tension.

Colleagues started calling me The Diplomat before I had a name for what I was doing. Not because I smooth things over. Because I can walk into the hardest room, make space for what's actually happening, and build what comes after.

That's the day job. On stage it's the same thing, in front of more people.

How I work with organizations
How I work with organizations

WHAT AUDIENCES SAY

“I came away with clearer focus, a calmer viewpoint, and a much better idea of what I truly need to be doing."

MEAGAN FRANCIS

The Kettle

"Concrete, powerful strategies, delivered with authenticity and humor. Our audience left feeling seen, validated, and empowered."

LAURA MCCARTHY

Spark Kindness

"Christine connected with the group in a natural, conversational way — especially in the Q&A."

EDWARD DOHERTY

March of Dimes

Questions organizers ask

  • Executives, boards, and communications teams at nonprofits, foundations, and purpose-led firms. Also leadership networks, associations, and conferences where the audience carries real institutional weight.

  • Yes. I'll want a short call first about what your audience is actually dealing with, and I'll build the examples around that. A talk that ignores what's happening in the room isn't worth giving.

  • Often, yes. A keynote plus a working session the same day tends to be the best use of an event budget, because the ideas get applied while they're still fresh.

  • Yes. I travel for the right engagements, with travel and lodging covered by the host.

  • Fees depend on format, travel, and whether we add a leadership session. Tell me about your event and I'll send a straight answer.

  • Two to three months out is ideal. My speaking calendar tends to fill, and the more lead time I have, the more I can tailor the talk to your audience and your moment. That said, if it's the right room, reach out anyway. I've made time for the right opportunity on shorter notice.

I connect with people, spark new thinking, and then send them out ready to act.

Tell me about your event and your audience, and I'll tell you whether I'm the right fit. I read everything that comes through here myself.

Speaking inquiry · Christine Koh
01

The basics.

02

Who's in the room.

Executives, comms teams, board members, chiefs of staff, a mix?

03

What's going on for them right now.

The more clear you are here, the better I can tell you whether I'm the one for it.

04

What you want them to walk out with.

I'd rather send people out with one thing they'll use than ten they'll write down and forget.

05

Format and setting.

What do you have in mind? *

In person or virtual? *

06

Timeline.

If it's the right fit, reach out anyway — I've made time on shorter notice.

How far out is the event?

I read these myself. You'll hear back either way, usually within a few days.

Received

Thank you — it's with me.

I read every one of these myself, so it takes me a few days rather than a few hours. You'll hear back either way, even if I'm not the right fit for your room.

  • I'll read what you've told me about your audience and where they are right now.
  • If it looks like a fit, I'll write back with a time to talk it through.
  • If it isn't, I'll tell you that plainly — and point you elsewhere where I can.

While you wait

Holding the Room is a monthly letter on communications under pressure — the same thinking I bring to a stage, in your inbox.

Read Holding the Room →

Something came up in the meantime? christine@christinekoh.com

Let's Talk

If you're planning something where the stakes are high and you want the room to leave with more than a nice hour, I'd like to hear about it.

Tell me about your event, your audience, and what you want them walking out with. I'll tell you honestly whether I'm the right fit.

let's talk

Or email me: christine@christinekoh.com

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Holding the Room

How the best leaders hold a room when the stakes are high so you're ready when it's your turn.

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