Heather Whelpley
Keynotes and virtual events that embolden women to break free from proving, pleasing, and perfecting and rediscover their voice, take up space, and unleash their authentic leadership - and life.
Expert on
- Motivation
- Leadership
- Careers
- Personal Development
- Imposter Syndrome
- Inspirational
Fee Range
$5,000–$10,000Travels from
MN, USBiography
Heather Whelpley is an international speaker, award-winning author, and leadership development consultant that works with women to live, work, and lead with grounded confidence so they can share their voice and take bold steps in their career. She is known for intersectional, interactive presentations full of both human connection and practical tools that audience members can use for career and personal development.
Prior to becoming a speaker, Heather worked for over a decade at Cargill and Ameriprise in a wide variety of leadership development, human resources, and change management roles in both plants and offices across the US, Latin America, and Australia. She also facilitated multiple corporate leadership development programs specifically designed to engage and advance women.
Everywhere she went, Heather saw the same story. Too many amazing women questioned themselves. They felt like they could never disappoint anyone. They believed they had to make everything perfect and prove themselves over and over again. They worried about being too direct – while at the same time needing to be seen as confident. They felt like they didn’t know enough to share their great idea or go for the promotion, even though they were highly qualified and knew more than enough.
It wasn’t just them. Heather felt it too. And she wanted to do something about it.
Heather has since led keynotes and workshops on imposter syndrome, creating your own rules for success, discovering your authentic voice, managing burnout, and unleashing authentic leadership with thousands of people at Fortune 500 companies like Deloitte, General Mills, and PepsiCo as well as international conferences, including the Women In Manufacturing Summit and WE22, The Society Of Women Engineers’ annual conference.
Heather’s first book, An Overachiever’s Guide to Breaking The Rules, has been recognized with multiple awards, including gold medals from the Next Generation Indie Books Awards and the Living Now Book Awards. Her second book, Grounded Wildness: Break Free from Performing Your Life and Start Living It, was published in fall 2023. Heather also hosts the Grounded Wildness podcast.
Heather has a master’s degree in Human Resource Development from the University of Minnesota and is a graduate of the Coaches Training Institute. She lives in Colorado where she enjoys hiking and exploring as much as possible.

