Speaker

It was 1971, and four University of Texas soon‐to‐be graduates decided to start an advertising agency in Austin, Texas—then a funky little college town known primarily for hippies, Texas Longhorns and Willie Nelson. Their simple business plan was to stay together, stay in Austin and use the power of marketing to make a difference. Forty‐seven years later, Roy and his partners are still together, still in Austin and still trying to make a difference. Roy signs every letter with the words, “Ride at Dawn.” That’s not just a sign‐off, it’s a manifesto—a call‐to‐action to live life to its fullest every day. Roy and his partners built GSD&M from scratch into a marketing, advertising and idea machine. Flying with Herb Kelleher, founder of Southwest Airlines. Riding with Sam Walton, founder of Walmart. Driving with BMW and the PGA TOUR. Plowing with John Deere. Defending freedom with the United States Air Force. Designing with AIA a Blueprint for Better. Donating time and talent to create compelling public service awareness (PSA) ads to mobilize goodwill to help people in the moments that matter the most, like Katrina, the earthquake in Haiti, the terrible floods in Baton Rouge and recently, filming and producing PSAs with the five former presidents for hurricane relief for the victims of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

Roy’s passion is entrepreneurship, which he refers to as “the miracle of America.” He deeply believes that when America is at her best, it does not matter what your last name or zip code is. If you can dream it, you can build it. Roy is also cofounder and CEO of The Purpose Institute, which is also home‐based in Austin, Texas. The Purpose Institute is singularly focused on discovering the higher calling purpose and core values that define and shape an organization’s culture and the core purpose that captures the difference an organization makes in the world. Its purpose is to help organizations and leaders discover and fulfill their purpose. Along with Haley Rushing, Roy co‐authored the Wall Street Journal best‐selling book, It’s Not What You Sell, It’s What You Stand For: Why Every Extraordinary Business is Driven by Purpose. And more recently, he authored The 10 Essential Hugs of Life, a collection of heartwarming stories about the need for gratitude and love.

In 2018, Roy founded The Promiseland Project whose purpose is to unleash the power of purposeinspired marketing and messaging to help bridge the massive cultural divide in America. The Promiseland Project is a large and diverse group of purpose‐driven communications professionals from all over America whose passion is a unified America. The goal is to inspire and engage the American people to help move America from the dark winter of political and cultural division into a bright new dawn of a culture of US. As in USA. One of the key drivers of The Promiseland Project is the deep belief that American cities will be the drivers of innovation, new ideas and solutions to America’s most pressing issues.