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Nicky Verd

Digital Futurist |Kickass Author |International Keynote Speaker at Digitally Fit

Johannesburg, South Africa

Nicky Verd lives to blow stuff up. A Kickass International Keynote Speaker and Author of the hit book, Disrupt Yourself Or Be Disrupted. She is Africa’s Digital Transformation Maverick, pioneer in the Fourth Industrial Revolution and a leading thinker on driving innovation through personal disruption.

After being retrenched from a job she held unto for dear life, Nicky Verd hit rock bottom, literally. But rose back up, reinvented herself and is now empowering others to do the same.

Available For: Advising, Consulting, Influencing, Speaking
Travels From: Johannessburg South Africa
Speaking Topics: Igniting Human Potential in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, Digital Transformation is about Mindset not Technology, etc

Nicky Verd Points
Academic 0
Author 116
Influencer 13
Speaker 30
Entrepreneur 0
Total 159

Points based upon Thinkers360 patent-pending algorithm.

Thought Leader Profile

Portfolio Mix

Company Information

Company Type: Individual
Minimum Project Size: $5,000+
Average Hourly Rate: $100-$149
Number of Employees: 1-10
Company Founded Date: Undisclosed

Areas of Expertise

Agentic AI 30.04
Agile 30.03
AI 30.75
Business Strategy 30.07
Careers 32.03
Coaching 30.57
Creativity
Culture 30.06
Digital Disruption 34.58
Digital Transformation 31.38
Emerging Technology 30.87
Entrepreneurship 30.25
Future of Work 31.93
Generative AI 30.35
Innovation 30.10
Leadership 30.02
Personal Branding 30.11
Startups

Industry Experience

Publications

39 Article/Blogs
Every CEO Is Now a Tech CEO: The Death of Traditional Leadership
Nicky Verd
June 11, 2025
The lines between the “tech” industry and “non-tech” industry are disappearing and so are the lines between tech leaders and non-tech leaders.

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

AI Culture: The Missing Ingredient in Your AI Business Strategy
Nicky Verd
May 25, 2025
It's easy to invest in technology but it's much harder to unlearn outdated mindsets. Without that mental transformation, even the best AI tools won't lead to a lasting impact.

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Tags: AI, Culture, Digital Transformation

AI is the Easiest Technology to Learn in the History of Tech
Nicky Verd
May 13, 2025
or the first time in the history of technology, a tool this powerful is accessible to everyone with an internet connection. We’ve never had a tool this powerful that required so little effort to use...

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

The Rise of AI-Induced Stupidity: How to Spot It and Stop It
Nicky Verd
April 25, 2025
We’re entering a strange new era where people are trusting AI output more than their own judgment.

Decisions are outsourced, creativity is templated and curiosity is replaced by convenience.

This isn’t a tech evolution. It’s a mental downgrade.

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

Data, AI Dominance and Algorithmic Warfare (US-China Trade War)
Nicky Verd
April 17, 2025
It's not just about tariffs on soybeans or semiconductors.
It's about economic dominance, technological supremacy and ideological influence.

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Tags: AI, Business Strategy, Emerging Technology

Tariffs are About China: Every Other Country is a Collateral Damage
Nicky Verd
April 13, 2025
Let's call it what it is: Tariffs were never about fixing trade deficits or protecting domestic jobs. Tariffs are about one thing - containing China's rise.

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Tags: AI, Digital Disruption, Emerging Technology

AI-Induced Stupidity: The Silent Crisis No One's Talking About
Nicky Verd
April 10, 2025
From classrooms to boardrooms, we're seeing subtle (and sometimes hilarious) ways people are outsourcing their thinking.

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

What Does an AI-Ready Workforce Look Like?
Nicky Verd
April 03, 2025
An AI-ready workforce isn’t defined by job titles or industries. It’s defined by mindset, agility and a willingness to learn.

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Tags: AI, Culture, Digital Transformation

The Future of People in an AI World
Nicky Verd
March 20, 2025
Are we on the brink of irrelevance or are we about to unlock levels of human potential we’ve never seen before?

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Tags: Agile, Careers, Culture

Businesses Prioritize Profit Not Job Security
Nicky Verd
March 17, 2025
Companies don’t invest in technology out of a moral obligation to create jobs; they do it to stay competitive.
And if businesses aren’t responsible for job security, who is?

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Tags: AI, Careers, Future of Work

10 Practical Steps to Improve Your Relationship with AI
Nicky Verd
February 12, 2025
The essence of being human is adaptability and innovation

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Tags: AI, Careers, Future of Work

DeepSeek Grand Entry in the AI Race: Why Tech Giants Are Nervous
Nicky Verd
January 30, 2025
Innovation doesn’t care how long you have been in the market, how many billions of dollars you have in the bank or how many employees fill your sprawling campuses.

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Innovation

The State of Education in 2025: The Future is in Trouble
Nicky Verd
January 27, 2025
The future is in trouble, not because technology is advancing too quickly but because education is failing to keep up with the times.

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Tags: AI, Careers, Future of Work

Agentic AI, Agentic Thinking and the Next Phase of Artificial Intelligence
Nicky Verd
January 18, 2025
The pace of change is exponential. Every day seems to bring a new groundbreaking application, leaving many people captivated by the possibilities while others are paralyzed with fear.

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Tags: Agentic AI, AI, Future of Work

The AI Revolution: More Questions than Answers
NIcky Verd
August 12, 2024
The AI revolution is forcing us to confront questions we never thought we'd have to ask. These are questions that go beyond algorithms and data; they touch on the very essence of what it means to be human in an increasingly automated and disrupted world.

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Tags: AI, Digital Disruption, Future of Work

The Final Frontier: AI Will Not Replace Thinkers.
Nicky Verd
July 31, 2024
We’re in danger of becoming a generation of button-pushers — people who rely on machines to think for them.

By outsourcing your thinking to AI, you’re not just making yourself less capable, but you’re also becoming less relevant in the age of AI.

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Tags: AI, Careers, Future of Work

Beyond the Classroom — The Intelligence You Need to Thrive in an AI-Powered Economy
Nicky Verd
July 28, 2024
Intelligence is more than just how many facts you can cram into your brain. It’s about how you use that information, how you interact with others and how you navigate life’s challenges.

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Tags: AI, Careers, Future of Work

Think Like a Machine, Act Like a Human
Nicky Verd
July 24, 2024
The future belongs to those who can leverage the strengths of both machines and humans

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Tags: AI, Careers, Future of Work

7 Signs Your Job is Evolving Faster Than You (And what to Do About It)
Nicky Verd
July 09, 2024
The question isn’t whether your job will evolve, it’s how fast market disruption is leaving you behind.

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Tags: Careers, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

The 9 Commandments of Public Speaking -
Nicky Verd
June 20, 2024
Most people are not aware of this but studies have shown that the fear of public speaking ranks higher than death! It sounds crazy, but that's the stats.

However, being good at public speaking can be a powerful tool. It can launch your career and improve your social skills

So, how do we conquer this fear and morph from a quivering puddle to a public speaking powerhouse?

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Tags: Careers, Coaching, Future of Work

Top 10 AI Skills for Everyday People to Stay Ahead
Nicky Verd
February 20, 2024
The AI revolution demands not just your attention but your active participation.

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Tags: Careers, Future of Work

The Power of Showing Up: How Consistency Wins the Race
Nicky Verd
February 06, 2024
Consistency isn’t about flashy fireworks but about the steady slow burn of reliability and the quiet assurance that you know where you are going.

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Tags: Business Strategy, Entrepreneurship, Personal Branding

A Job Promotion is a Responsibility Not an Achievement.
Nicky Verd
January 15, 2024
The “achievement” mindset breeds complacency. It says, "I’ve made it,” so why strive?
The learning stops, the innovation wanes and the once-bright fire in your eyes dims to a flickering ember...

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Tags: Careers, Coaching, Future of Work

Don’t Specialize, Cross Pollinate!
Nicky Verd
January 12, 2024
The most valuable minds in the disrupted age are those who have multiple skill sets and blend disciplines.

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Tags: Careers, Digital Disruption, Future of Work

23 Premium Skills That Will Pay You For Life {Evergreen Skills}
Nicky Verd
November 15, 2023
Skills that can pay you for life are often those that are not taught in a classroom, are in high demand and can be applied across various industries...

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Tags: Careers, Coaching, Future of Work

2 Author Newsletters
What Is AI Literacy? (Hint: It’s Not ChatGPT)
linkedin
June 20, 2025
A lot of people think being AI literate means knowing how to use ChatGPT, Midjourney or whatever trending AI tool.

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Tags: Digital Disruption, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

AI in the Hands of Your Boss vs AI in Your Hands
LinkedIn
December 06, 2024
Imagine walking into work one morning and your boss is holding a shiny new AI tool that can do your job faster, better and cheaper.

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Tags: Digital Disruption, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

1 Book
Disrupt Yourself Or Be Disrupted
Nicky Verd
July 04, 2019
In a world where everything is connected, where machines can talk, learn and mimic humans, a world where machines are employable, where performance is at its peak, innovation at its finest and job loss at its highest. There is only one spot left to transform and that is YOU.

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Tags: Digital Disruption, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

3 Keynotes
The Power of Questioning and Disrupting the Status Quo in the Age of AI
Nicky Verd
December 04, 2024
The status quo is a preference for keeping things unchanged, which is detrimental in a fast-changing business landscape of artificial intelligence

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

3 Critical Questions to Ask About AI
Nicky Verd
March 08, 2024
Are you asking the right questions about AI?
Questions matter and the quality of your questions matters even more.
Questions matter because they shape the direction of your thoughts and conversations. The quality of our questions is even more important because it determines the depth and insight of the answers you receive.

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Future of Work

Which Side of Disruption are you Sitting?
Nicky Verd
June 20, 2022
Keynote at Unilever

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Tags: Digital Disruption, Digital Transformation, Emerging Technology

1 Media Interview
How I Became an Accidental Woman in Tech
Nicky Verd
January 25, 2024
Still Intimidated by AI?
Why Running from Technology isn't an Option

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Tags: AI, Digital Disruption, Future of Work

5 Podcasts
Insights on the Early Stages of Computer Development and AI as an Emerging Field in the 1970s
Nicky Verd
July 18, 2023
Had a unique opportunity to delve into the insights, experiences, and perspectives of someone who was actively involved in shaping the early days of AI.

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Tags: AI, Digital Disruption, Future of Work

Mpho Dagada's Policies & Technology VISION for the Future -South African Presidential Candidate 2024
Nicky Verd
July 03, 2023
I had a fascinating interview with Mpho Dagada, a formidable figure in the South African technology space who has now thrown his hat into the ring as the South African Presidential Candidate 2024.

In this episode, we delve into Mpho Dagada's policies, political views, leadership vision and technology adoption plans for South Africa

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Digital Disruption

Beyond Formal Qualification: The Future of Work & Artificial Intelligence
Nicky Verd
June 12, 2023
Don't get stuck in the formal process

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Tags: AI, Generative AI, Future of Work

The Audacity to Stand Out - How Being Bold, YOUNG & Visible Can Transform Your Life
Nicky Verd
May 01, 2023
The Gen Z Mindset, the power of boldness and visibility,

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Tags: Digital Disruption, Entrepreneurship, Future of Work

Stop Wishing for a World that No Longer Exists - Join the Revolution
Nicky Verd
April 17, 2023
Let disruption finds you ready to ride on its waves. Embrace ChatGPT and other technological innovations.

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Tags: Generative AI, Digital Disruption, Emerging Technology

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