Ana Visneski’s career started in the U.S. Coast Guard. Not only did she learn to bet on herself, but she also excelled by having the courage to do the unexpected. She attributes this unusual ability to think differently and try things to her success. It’s also become her mantra: That looks impossible; I want to take it on.

Now as a go-to expert and sought-after keynote speaker and trainer in all things crisis communications and crisis management, this is what fuels Ana to tackle challenges and overcome them. Her unique brand of honesty enables her to cut through the noise and get to the central issue in order to address it. In other words, she lives to build flexible, adaptable, resilient people systems in order to fix the unfixable.

Ana’s career has been formed by making huge changes to organizations that are resistant, even allergic, to change — finding that middle ground to get to the solution without anyone feeling completely left behind. 

She’s literally written the book on unconventional leadership, F*ck it, Watch This- Saying the Quiet Part Loud.

She currently teaches Crisis Communications at her alma mater, the University of Washington in Seattle, for the Communications Leadership Graduate School.

When she’s not putting out fires, helping clients build resilient plans, or writing books, she hikes, kayaks, and plays with her three dogs.

Some of her accomplishments include: 

• Overseeing crisis communication responses for major disasters from Hurricane Katrina to the BP Oil Spill

• Head of Global Disaster Response for Amazon Web Services: Built their Critical Event Protocol, a comprehensive crisis response plan including internal and external communication operations

• Principal for AWS Global Disaster Response: Oversaw the technical operations for applying AWS technology to disasters, including Hurricane Dorian and the COVID-19 pandemic, developing a comprehensive crisis management plan 

• Crisis management work for companies like Bungie and Wizards of the Coast