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Gordon McAlpine - Motivational Speaking


Gordon is a confident and entertaining motivational speaker, and his warm, relaxed style wins over audiences quickly.  He has an inspirational story to tell about how he became a successful entrepreneur starting BigHand from the living room of a Docklands flat, and without borrowing a penny from the bank, in his role as Sales & Marketing Director grew the business exponentially through a focus on world-class sales performance.  Gordon and his business partner eventually sold BigHand in a highly successful MBO in 2006.  He's extremely passionate about helping and inspiring others to achieve their potential.

Gordon also shares insights learnt from his experience on Channel 4's The Secret Millionaire, when he returned to his Scottish roots in 2010, to the deprived area of Govan in Glasgow, to meet local volunteers and contribute towards their projects.  He believes passionately that successful people and businesses have a moral duty to give something back and make a real difference to others who are less fortunate.

Gordon's motivational speaking expertise and experience includes:

  • Entrepreneurial Selling - high performance selling using entrepreneurial skill and spirit
  • The BigHand Story - inspiring lessons from Gordon's highly successful technology start up
  • The Secret Millionaire - using business success to make a real difference in deprived communities
  • Conference hosting - adding an extra charismatic edge at top events

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Testimonials

Toshiba National Sales Conference

Gordon acted as conference host and keynote speaker for one of our members, Toshiba, at their National Sales Conference in April 2013.  Here are some testimonials from the day:

"Your story resonated with many people yesterday and I would like to thank you for your contribution to the running of the day, and for your guest speaker hour which was excellent, very enjoyable and relevant to our world.  Thank you and hope you enjoyed the experience!"
Liam LaCumbre, Retail Sales Director UK & Nordics, Toshiba

"I wanted to drop you a note to thank you for both hosting and presenting at the Toshiba National Sales Meeting, and for all the preparation involved.  The day was an overall success and I have spoken to many people who found that your presentation resonated extremely well with them. It will have been of great value to many to see a story of “real life business changes” enabling success both at a business and individual level."
Neil Bramley, B2B Sales Director, Toshiba

"We have had really great feedback, some even calling you inspirational! I think the whole day and evening was a huge success.  All the hard work was worth it…..roll on next year!"
Jackie Taylor, HR Director, Toshiba

 

Testimonials from other Speaking Engagements

"Gordon gave a superb account of his journey into and through the Secret Millionaire TV programme at our national conference.  His style was open and warm which very much engaged the audience. Feedback from delegates was that they loved the way he used media to tell part of the story and had a particular regard for his philosophy around developing people who would otherwise not have a chance in life by giving something back. I don’t get to meet that many millionaires every day, so meeting this one was a very pleasant surprise. Gordon should tell his story more and hopefully inspire other young people particularly to work hard and achieve great things. Well done Gordon." 
Tom Barclay, Vice Chair Policy CIH Scotland and CEO of the Clyde Valley Group

“Gordon McAlpine is a great speaker.  He has a terrific story to tell about what made him personally so successful in business, and how he is using those things to help others be successful.  Relaxed, funny, down to earth, and 100% positive, Gordon has always excited and enthused audiences whenever I have heard him or worked with him.”
Alan Sears, Head Honcho, Vybrant Organisation Ltd 

"Gordon McAlpine was a great conference host at our 'Brand Authority through Talent' event. He really helped the event run smoothly and his anecdotes were not only entertaining and motivating but also linked each speaker wonderfully."
Sarah Judd, Internal Communications Manager, Pizza Express

"Gordon's presentation was very interesting, inspiring and richly spiced with memorable golden nuggets."
Professor Kevin Ibeh (PhD, FCIM) Head of Department of Marketing, University of Strathclyde

"Further to your fantastic presentation Thursday evening, I would like to say another big thank you on behalf of the WISH London Region. I really enjoyed the presentation and we all had great feedback on the night. I for one found it very thought provoking. I have my own company and have two young children so a lot of what you were saying was very relevant to myself. It’s all a balancing act but I also try to make time for WISH and I’m a school governor. I came away wondering why more people don’t volunteer and donate money for good causes, especially the wealthy!"
Gill Dunningham, WISH Board Member and London Regional Chair

“Thank you for a fantastic event last night.  The speaker was great and I got a lot from it.”  
Sarah Paxton, SP Consulting

“Excellent night last night. I thoroughly enjoyed myself.  Great speaker and topic.” 
Elaine Allen, Partner Prince Evans Solicitors

“It was so refreshing to hear a point of view from outside the Sector. I was particularly grateful to get a chance to meet him for a chat whilst we networked after his main presentation.  He has definitely inspired me in my own consultancy business” 
Peju Fabunmi, Cobalt Development Services

“Thanks again for a lovely event last night. I so enjoyed it and really look forward to the next one” 
Catherine Attenborough, Catalyst Housing Group

“Thanks yet again for a lovely WISH evening. I really enjoyed the presenter." 
Gayle Weale, John Rowan and Partners

About Gordon

Gordon McAlpine founded The Sales Club in November 2009.  He'd previously gained 20 years Sales & Marketing experience with large corporations, including pharmaceutical giant Astra Zeneca, and also smaller entrepreneurial enterprises.  In 1997 he co-founded fast growth technology company BigHand, where in his role as Sales & Marketing Director, he was frustrated by a lack of support and resources available for executive-level sales directors.

Following the successful sale of BigHand, Gordon recognised the need for an executive-level club for ambitious sales leaders from all sizes of organisations and sectors.  This, coupled with his passion to help organisations optimise their sales performance, led him to found The Sales Club.  The world’s first cross-sector networking club for sales leaders provides members with inspirational peer-to-peer interaction, and powerful tools & techniques to increase sales effectiveness.

In 2010, Gordon featured in Channel 4’s The Secret Millionaire, returning to his hometown of Glasgow to be inspired by local volunteers and make some donations.  Click to see video clip.

Email enquiry

An excellent forum to inspire better sales performance
Richard Tams, BA

A good investment to make on yourself - it's great value for money
Jo Stevenson, Accor

I came away fired up with ideas. The K2 session was a top event!
Alan Kenny, Mimecast

An excellent event with a thought-provoking speaker
Caroline Ward, Geo Networks

I have got so much out of my membership of The Sales Club - an excellent investment of my time!
Nick Lennon, Mimecast

Cook School created a feeling of real camaraderie between members
Ian Wainwright, Ecclesiastical

A unique service & superb insight into the complex world of sales
Niall Mackin, Amex

Great material & presenter - pleasing to be founded in data and research
Mark Stead, QinetiQ

The events are excellent and give you time to step back and reflect
Jo Stevenson, Accor

This club is one of a kind, in all my searching I've not found anything like it
Damian Jeal, Copitrak

Sir Ian McGeechan's session on world-class performance was superb
Alan Kenny, Mimecast

A very enjoyable session: so valuable to step back from the day job
Steve McKenzie, Mimecast

Extremely interesting to hear cross-sector selling perspectives
Jo Stevenson, Accor

We're passionate about helping our members achieve sales excellence
Gordon McAlpine

A first class organisation, a professional forum that adds real value!
Dr Maria Yapp, Xancam

Really valuable listening to sales challenges from other sectors
Mike Bee, Eisai

A positive, self-educating experience
Steve McKenzie, Mimecast

Steve Smith was an inspirational, relevant & impactful speaker
Sean Green, BMW

Welcome to the Sales Club world.

By day, the Gherkin and the Lloyds building dominate the city of London.
By night, the rich cityscape of Tokyo glows.

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