David Mammano

David Mammano is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, author, podcaster, and humorist whose career focuses on helping people and organizations achieve their goals. With more than 25 years of experience in launching and scaling companies, Mammano has worked to inspire and educate entrepreneurs, business leaders, and young professionals. He has founded seven businesses in the education industry.

Mammano graduated from the University at Buffalo with a bachelor's degree in communications and advertising and completed the MIT Entrepreneurial Masters Program through the Entrepreneurs' Organization.

He founded NextStepU to help students plan for college, careers, and life. NextStepU developed into a multimedia company with digital, mobile, video, and print products, becoming a nationwide resource that reaches more than 4 million students annually. The company has been recognized as a three-time Inc. 5000 growth company, a Rochester Top 100 growth company, and Youth Periodical of the Year by the Association of Educational Publishers. The publication has been distributed in 20,500 high schools across all 50 states. Beyond NextStepU, Mammano has served as an adjunct professor at the University of Rochester and as a contributing writer for Forbes.com.

As an author, Mammano has written several books, including "101 Things You Can Do To Become an Outstanding Young Adult," "Make Love in the Workplace," and "Crash and Learn: Lessons in Business." The latter book was inspired by his work as host of the Avanti Entrepreneur podcast, where he interviews business leaders about overcoming adversity. He also hosts "The David Mammano Show" podcast, sharing insights and strategies from top business minds and entrepreneurs.

Mammano is a two-time TEDx speaker and brings more than two decades of experience to stages worldwide, combining entrepreneurial knowledge with humor rooted in stand-up and improv. Before his business career, Mammano performed stand-up comedy in his late teens and early twenties, including a move to Chicago to pursue comedy. This background in performance informs his speaking style, blending humor with business insights to engage audiences. His presentations, including "Laugh & Learn: Putting Funny Back in Business" and "The Culture Department," offer practical takeaways for business professionals.

Mammano's community involvement includes serving as a local board member for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Junior Achievement.