Samantha Karlin

Samantha Karlin is a visionary leadership development expert, speaker, and changemaker on a mission to transform how leadership is practiced to create environments where people can truly flourish. As the founder and CEO of Empower Global, she and her team specialize in designing and delivering customized leadership accelerators, cross-cultural training, and workshops that prepare leaders to thrive in a VUCA world—one that is volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. With a global track record of training and speaking for over 10,000 leaders from 48 countries, Karlin is described as engaging, energetic, charismatic, knowledgeable, and funny.

From corporate boardrooms to international NGOs, helping leaders navigate the challenges of today’s turbulent global landscape. Some places she’s delivered captivating keynotes: AWS, Monday.com, The US Department of Homeland Security, Coldwell Bankers, IronSource, Harvard University, The Wilson Center, Graham Packaging, RB, IE Business School, Verizon, Capital One and on!

Karlin also created and teaches the Women’s Leadership Challenge, a groundbreaking program for ambitious women who are ready to break through glass ceilings and lead authentically in male-dominated industries. The program equips women with the confidence, tools, and strategies they need to thrive in today’s world while embracing feminist leadership principles that drive gender equity and system change.

Known for her dynamic, high-energy approach, Karlin’s interactive style keeps her audiences engaged and motivated, whether she’s facilitating a workshop or giving a keynote address. Her unique blend of storytelling, humor, and personal anecdotes makes key concepts relatable and actionable. She has been featured on ABC13 Houston, SABC South Africa, KLTV, and quoted/featured in the Washington Post, Washingtonian Magazine, Conscious Company Magazine, etc. She received the Bellagio fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation in recognition of her leadership book in progress. Karlin has been educated at the Fletcher School for Law and Diplomacy, Yale University, and Harvard Kennedy School. She is formerly an operatic soprano.