Speaker • Facilitator • Author
Kat Vellos helps hybrid and remote teams create a greater sense of belonging and connection. She provides interactive firesides and keynote talks, and facilitates team-bonding events for companies, conferences, and community groups who want their team members and participants to experience greater authentic connection with each other, stronger teamwork, and healthy friendships/colleagueships.
Since the release of her book, We Should Get Together, Kat Vellos has been spreading the message that the cultivation of thriving, resilient connection is how we will heal our country’s loneliness epidemic — and why this is the number one issue that individuals and companies need to make a priority in the coming years.
Attendees consistently leave Kat’s talks and workshops excited, inspired, and equipped to create better relationships at work and in their personal lives outside of work. She’s also an in-demand guest for press interviews and podcasts where she shares actionable advice about the cultivation of thriving friendships during adulthood.
Her approach to the cultivation of friendship and community is informed by her extensive background as a community facilitator, researcher, and User Experience designer (formerly at Slack, Pandora, multiple startups, and as program director of empowerment programs). Reach out today to book a talk or workshop.
PAST TALKS & WORKSHOPS
Kat has been speaking and facilitating group programs since the early 2000s. She designs experiences and talks that leave participants feeling connected, inspired, and motivated to use their new insights to create closer teams, better friendships, and more inspiring communities. All of Kat’s keynotes and workshops can be delivered virtually for a remote audience.
PRESS & PODCASTS
Kat welcomes interviews with journalists, podcasters, and youtubers for coverage related to cultivating meaningful connection and why this is more important than ever in the age of COVID-19 and beyond. Some of her previous interviews have appeared in:
WHAT CLIENTS & COLLABORATORS ARE SAYING
“We hosted a fireside chat with Kat during our Open Enrollment ‘season,’ and it was a spectacular session, with 70+ in attendance. The genuine conversation was felt over zoom and allowed the community to open up, ask questions and become vulnerable when learning about social wellness. The group and participants had applicable takeaways that could be put into practice immediately. We are very excited at the potential to welcome Kat back to our community in the future, as her methods compliment our community and culture while also challenging us for growth and development. ”
“Collaborating with Kat to host a Fireside Chat on cultivating connections & friendship was an absolute honor. She has this amazing ability to make everyone feel comfortable, heard and to spark a deep level of engagement. Her work with We Should Get Together has boosted our team’s conversations and has continued to inspire us weeks after our event. Kat has opened our minds while leaving a warm, lasting impression. Our hearts are smiling, thank you Kat!”
“Kat’s presence is like a warm hug from an old friend. Her compassionate, down-to-earth, and insightful facilitation is one of the best things I’ve chosen to enrich my creative workshops [at Adobe]. Every single person left Kat’s session more comfortable and open-hearted, which greatly enhanced the overall experience of my event and lead to some real and deep connections.”
“Having Kat speak to our team was an inspiring, eye opening, and empowering experience! She took the time to identify our team’s needs, to be able to deliver content that was tangible, informative, and uplifting. Thank you for an amazing session! We appreciate you!”
“Kat facilitated a session that was full of deep questions, which provided for ample amounts of connection among our colleagues. In particular, the inquiries provided a space for reflection on topics that are core to who we are. ”
“Even with an all virtual audience, Kat Vellos’ Keynote lit up the room. Kat’s eloquent and powerful language inspired every single person in the audience to use their (design) power to create good change in this world. I couldn’t have asked for a better Keynote speaker to spread light, knowledge and empowerment to an audience of students and aspiring designers, writers, researchers and leaders.”
“Collaborating with Kat on an interactive keynote was an absolute joy - her depth of knowledge and attentiveness made for efficient communication and an end product that left our conference attendees feeling checked-in and ready to sink into our community event. ”
“Kat Vellos brings a generosity of spirit to any room she’s in. Kat’s work with We Should Get Together resonates with people across generations, disciplines, and backgrounds. Her attention to detail and observations about the needs and desires of today’s generation is concise, researched, passionate, and inspiring. Kat’s presentation at DFA Alumni + Friends: Building the Commons emphasized design’s power to build community and create positive social impact!”
“Kat’s Friendship Power Pack packed a big punch! Participants loved connecting with new people in the breakout sessions and left inspired and renewed. We made actionable plans to nurture and grow our friendship circles. Kat’s thoughtful design of both content *and* experience transformed the “everyday digital” into an inviting and rich learning experience.”
“This was the most magical hour I’ve spent in this entire pandemic.”
“Kat Vellos’ Fireside Chat was interactive, impactful, and left our community buzzing with additional conversation sparked by the ideas she shared. She was thoughtful, heartfelt and presented her expertise in a way that felt more like a generous conversation rather than a one-way presentation. I would recommend Kat to anyone who needs an engaging speaker for their community or event.”
“Wow. What an incredible session today. The women got so much out of it. Even after you left they got clearer and clearer on your impact and new actions to take to nourish this area of their lives. Thank you for saying yes to this work and being a champion of deep, meaningful connection and friendship—especially in the times we are living in. ”
“Kat is absolutely the best User Experience Designer I’ve worked with in my 22 years in tech. Kat brings insightful technical acumen, depth of experience, a deep empathy for the user as a human beyond the “customer journey”, and wonderful team leadership skills all in one dynamic, kind, and warm person. Her natural leadership is a benefit to any team. She is one of my favorite teammates ever, and it’s because I’ve learned through being in the trenches with her that I can absolutely rely on her to lead us in the right path. And it’s also because I see her kind heart in everything she does, in how she shows up for people.”
ABOUT KAT
Author of We Should Get Together: The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships which was called “marvelous” by BookLife, a subsidiary of Publishers Weekly. Kirkus Reviews said, “...The sheer amount of energy and inventiveness on display in these pages, engagingly written and illustrated by the author, will give even the most jaded some hope for more friendships in the future. A heartfelt and winningly optimistic guide to understanding—and finding more—friendship.” Kat’s writing has helped thousands of adults around the world form deeper platonic connections and heal from disconnection and loneliness. Learn more at weshouldgettogether.com
Creator of Better than Small Talk, which has fostered connection for hundreds of people across the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond, helping people get closer to strangers, friends, and loved ones. Kat is also the creator of the Better Conversations Kit (also available as a calendar), which provides twelve months’ worth of fresh alternatives to all of our most tired check-in questions, helping you bring new life to your conversations and relationships. An avid workshop facilitator and experience designer, Kat brings two decades of experience to creating powerful, positive communities where people find belonging and authentic connection.
Senior User Experience and Product Designer. Kat has researched, designed, and advised on the user experience of countless flows in digital products serving millions of people at Slack, Pandora, and multiple Silicon Valley startups. Understanding both the goals of the product/agency and the goals of the customer/client, Kat designs efficient and pleasant ways to get everyone’s goals accomplished while reducing confusion, friction, or complexity. In addition to her design work in the corporate sector, Kat also has multiple years of experience designing and leading powerful and effective creative empowerment programs in the education and nonprofit sector as well.
Founder and Community Leader of Bay Area Black Designers, from 2015-2022. BABD was a company-agnostic employee resource group that existed to provide meaningful community to 500+ Black design professionals living in the San Francisco Bay Area. BABD members represented startups, agencies, design studios, universities, midsize companies, and large corporations. For the seven years of its existence, BABD provided professional development and community for Black designers, especially those who know what an isolating experience it is to be the only Black designer in their company or design team.