Matthew Syed

Matthew Syed is an acclaimed expert in the field of high performance, having not only experienced first-hand what it takes to achieve high performance as England’s top-ranked table tennis player but also advised the world’s leading organisations on how to sustain high-performing teams. Today, Matthew is renowned for his coaching, having become the Founder of Matthew Syed Consulting back in 2013, and for his talent as a bestselling author of numerous mindset, high performance and children’s books. Now also highly sought after to share his expertise as a keynote speaker, Matthew is booked by leading organisations to inspire mindsets and cultures of continuous improvement.

Before forging his success as a high-performance coach, Matthew wowed the public with his talents as a table tennis player. Ranked as the top table tennis player in England for almost 10 years, Matthew had the opportunity to represent Team GB at the 1992 and 2000 Olympic Games and was able to clinch Gold at the 2002 Commonwealth Games. Reaching the top 25 World Ranking in table tennis by 1998, Matthew solidified such a title by winning the European title in 1986 and claiming three victories at the Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships. Having enjoyed a prolific sporting career, Matthew diversified into journalism in 1999, becoming a Columnist and Feature Writer for The Times. Since then, he has also written for The Independent, The Sunday Times and The Guardian. Such journalism has earned Matthew significant awards, such as Sports Journalist of the Year at The British Press Awards twice and Sports Feature Writer of the Year at the SJA Awards.

Now an acclaimed coach, Matthew is renowned for his thought-provoking approach to high performance and mindset, helping clients to navigate the fast-changing world. Contextualising the connections between mindset and high performance, Matthew is an expert on unlocking the true potential of both individuals and teams. Aside from his revolutionary performance coaching, Matthew is also the acclaimed author of books such as Rebel Ideas, Bounce, The Greatest and Black Box Thinking. He has also penned various children’s books, including titles of What Do YOU Think?, You Are Awesome, Dare To Be You and Times Tables Made Easy – demonstrating the versatility of his inspiration as a high-performance coach. In addition to his writing and coaching, Matthew has also committed time to being the Co-Founder of Greenhouse Sports, an Ambassador of PiXL Educational Foundation and a Member of the FA’s High Performance Committee, along with presenting BBC Radio 4’s Sideways and the Flintoff, Savage and The Ping Pong Guy podcast.

Having already worked with an impressive portfolio of clients, Matthew is a highly sought-after keynote speaker for a range of corporate events. Catalysing real and lasting change throughout teams and organisations, Matthew reveals the secrets to boosting performance through growth mindsets and cognitive diversity. Named as one of HR’s Top 30 Most Influential Thinkers by HR Magazine, Matthew is lauded for his influential contributions to organisational performance. A seasoned speaker, Matthew has previously been invited to deliver the TEDx Talk Why You Should Have Your Own Black Box and has also starred on Steven Bartlett’s The Diary of a CEO. When looking for a high-performance coach who drives innovation of future-proofed environments, Matthew Syed is a fantastic choice.

Recently, to honour his expertise in cognitive diversity and growth mindsets, Matthew Syed was selected as one of the Top 20 Trending Growth Mindset Speakers to Hire for Events.