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The Lavin Agency Speakers Bureau

A speakers bureau that represents the best original thinkers,
writers, and doers for speaking engagements.

Sabaa Quao

In our fast-moving business landscape, stasis is the biggest risk. Leaders must lean into creativity and "calculated audacity" to succeed.

Founding President, PlusCo Venture Studio | Former Chief Creative and Innovation Officer, Cossette

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The Quarter Century Cycle of Creative Disruption (19:43)

Lavin Exclusive Speaker

AI has brought us to the brink of the next great digital revolution, says Sabaa Quao. Those who thrive in this changing world will be the ones who combine a systematic, creative boldness of vision and action with a pinch of “calculated audacity.” Sabaa is the founding president of PlusCo Venture Studio, the innovation spinoff from Cossette and Plus Company, where he advises and maximizes the growth of AI and fintech companies. Previously, he was Chief Creative and Innovation Officer at Cossette, Canada’s largest integrated marketing and advertising agency. Sabaa is a career entrepreneur whose three decades of experience as a leader have given him a deep understanding of business and creativity—and how the fusion of the two creates outsized growth and value during periods of rapid change. In talks, he reveals how developing a habit of risk can give you a competitive edge, why thriving in the AI age will require you to identify your “Maximum Viable Product,” and the secrets to leveraging creativity not only for inspiration, but for tangible results.

As a creative leader, career entrepreneur, and business strategist, Sabaa Quao has worked on projects and with teams in over a dozen countries. Launching new companies, marketing campaigns, and new brands has enriched his perspective and approach to business and life. He believes that the “innovation” mandate is as urgent today as it was for companies and business leaders who faced the start of the digital era 25 years ago. As a frequent keynote speaker and an industry advisor to business and creative schools, he builds inspiring and practical frameworks that leverage creativity, entrepreneurship, and business model innovation.

Sabaa is the founding president of PlusCo Venture Studio, the innovation spinoff launched from Cossette and the Plus Company marketing agency network. He previously occupied the role of Chief Creative and Innovation Officer at Cossette, Canada’s largest integrated marketing and advertising agency. He now advises and maximizes the growth of 7 AI and fintech companies in the venture studio’s first cohort.

He is also the co-founder of Wealthie Works Daily, a fintech startup that initiates investment accounts and builds financial resilience for young families. He co-founded Filminute, the international one-minute film festival that was launched in London and Bucharest in 2006. The festival now generates submissions and audiences in over 100 countries.

Sabaa has led, co-chaired, and been a member of over 20 national and international marketing, advertising, and short film juries. He holds degrees in Marketing, Communication and Design, and an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at University of Toronto. He sits on the Cannes Lions Advisory Board with the Globe and Mail, where he is also the current Digital Young Lions co-chair.

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Speech Topics

Execution & Performance

Risk, Rinse, RepeatA Framework for Modern Leaders

In the fast-paced times we live in, our natural reflex might be to cling to safety. But innovation cannot emerge from a comfort zone. The founding president of PlusCo Venture Studio, Sabaa Quao says that the companies that thrive now will be the ones that cultivate a systematic, calculated boldness of vision and action—plus a little bit of audacity.

Sabaa has spent 3 decades refining his framework around risk. Over his career, he’s explored creative risk as a Chief Creative Officer, and business risk as a VP of Strategy. As the president of PlusCo Venture Studio, he immerses himself in disruption as an entrepreneur, surrounded by founders and startups who are constantly balancing experimentation with rapid growth.

In this talk, Sabaa reveals how leaders can inoculate their teams and companies against complacency: by making small, intentional bets, testing new ideas, and exploring new markets and emerging technologies. He reveals why stasis is your greatest risk, how to reframe risk as discipline, why “calculated audacity” wins, and how to thrive by any means necessary.

Treat risk as a healthy habit, he says. Spark originality, unlock growth, and build futures that are both creative and strategically sound. And then do it again.

Creativity

Creativity for LeadersLeveraging Your Most Valuable Asset for Tangible Results

Your best shot at thriving in the shifting economic landscape isn’t a more robust business plan. It’s a combination of building your creative potential and forging a commitment to lifelong learning.

Sabaa Quao has spent 3 decades leading creative, strategy, and innovation teams and has launched hundreds of brands, companies, and campaigns in over a dozen countries. Today, as founding President of a venture studio, he accelerates AI and fintech startups alongside corporate clients. And he says that creativity, when framed strategically, is your most valuable asset.

In this talk for leaders who want results and not just inspiration, Sabaa offers a practical framework for individuals and teams alike to think bigger and move faster, while reducing risk. His playbook, built from hard-won experience, shows audiences how to build an ambidextrous, audacious mindset that fuels business growth. Sabaa shares counterintuitive insights about creativity, actionable frameworks and matrices, and true stories of calculated audacity that will get even your CFO into the groove.

Artificial Intelligence

The 25-Year Cycle of Creative DisruptionDefining the Future With AI

25 years ago, the digital revolution reshaped commerce, communication, and competition. Some startups flamed out spectacularly—remember Pets.com and Boo.com?—but others, like Amazon, Google, and Netflix, redefined the global economy. Today, AI marks the next 25-year cycle of disruption. Leaders and organizations have a choice: stick to what’s safe and risk being left behind, or adapt and define the future?

In this talk, Sabaa Quao argues that leaders must now consider the danger of timid, incremental thinking. He draws on his decades of experience with disruption to show audiences why you must lean into the concept of the “Maximum Viable Product”: the boldest, most complete vision of what your organization could deliver. He discusses how to cultivate “disruptive ambition,” what the Maximum Viable Product can do for your business, why you need to start worldbuilding now, and much more. “Success requires cultures where audacity pairs with discipline, where vision fuels execution, and where leaders don’t just endure the disruption but define its outcome,” he says.