For Applicants

The application to Speaker Contest 2020 has now ended. We received altogether 300+ applications. We will contact each applicant at the beginning of March about the next steps.

Here’s what you need to know to successfully take part in our Speaker Contest. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact us at sc@nbforum.com for further information.

For General Applicants

Our contest rules are quite simple: stay on topic, stay professional, and stay kind. We aim to create an encouraging and positive experience for everyone involved at each stage of the contest, and we are supportive of all participants from all backgrounds.

Please note: we will not cover your travel to the qualifying rounds. If you are selected from the open applications for our qualifying rounds, you will need to plan for your own travel and accommodation to and from the qualifying round.

Our partner MySpeaker provides coaching for the contestants before qualifiers and final (in person or via video). The coaching for the qualifiers will be done mostly in groups – live or online.

For Finalists

You will receive a travel stipend from Nordic Business Forum as well as an online coaching session with our partner MySpeaker. The coaching session is meant to give you individual feedback and suggestions for improvement ahead of the final round to help you up your game. If you are selected for our final round, one of our team members will be in touch with you to arrange this session.

About the Speaker Contest

Our Speaker Contest is a relatively new event, with the first of its kind being held in 2018. In the second edition of the contest in 2019, we got altogether 184 applications from which 24 people were selected to attend our live qualifying rounds, and one winner was selected by a jury of audience members and Nordic Business Forum representatives to join the speaker lineup at Nordic Business Forum 2019. Anssi Rantanen was our winner and he was paid a 30,000 € speaking fee.

Some of the videos of our past speakers are available to watch on our YouTube page.

How to Apply

1	Find your idea. Take some time to identify the idea that you want to use as the foundation of your presentation. Try to make it something that would resonate with a Nordic audience. Ideally, it’s a topic in which you are an expert so you can talk about it with confidence.
2	Write down your pitch. Use your storytelling skills to walk us through how you plan to convey your idea to the world. What inspired this idea? How does it connect to your profession? Is this a passion project? Outline the concept and your presentation from start to finish. (Remember, the language is English!)
3	Film it! Record a short (1-4 minute) preview of your talk. Speak in English, try to relax, and show us your presentation style. Keep in mind that the length of your actual presentation should be 12 minutes in the qualifying round and 15 minutes in the final. Use this video to support your written application.
4	Upload your video and fill in your application. Enter your details, copy over your written summary and video URL ready, and select your preferred qualifier location.
5	Fill out the application form and hit submit and wait for the confirmation email! We will be in touch with all the candidates within three weeks of the application deadline. The application deadline is on 14th of February 2020.

For General Applicants

For Finalists

About the Speaker Contest

How to Apply

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