Dr. Steve Yacovelli

DR. STEVE YACOVELLI (a.k.a. “The Gay Leadership Dude®”) leverages his doctorate in Instructional Technology & Distance Education, his decades of change management experience, and his training in Agentic A.I. Business Strategy from Harvard to bridge the critical gap between Inclusive Leadership and Artificial Intelligence. With a career encompassing roles at The Walt Disney Company, IBM, and Tupperware Brands before starting his own consulting practice, Dr. Steve brings a wealth of hands-on experience to his role as head of TopDog Learning Group. Since 2008, his firm has guided Fortune 500s, small businesses, and non-profits in transforming their Leaders from “Passive Passengers” into inclusive “Strategic Architects.” His expertise is so trusted that he was tapped by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to lead an initiative teaching A.I. adoption strategies to small business owners. An award-winning and best-selling author, his recent books, Pride Leadership (2019) and Your Queer Career® (2024), offer invaluable insights into LGBTQ+ and Ally leadership and workplace inclusivity. Today, Dr. Steve teaches that this foundational inclusivity is no longer just a “soft skill” — it’s the ultimate technical safety filter for our new digital world. The values you fail to write down are the ones your A.I. will scale without you. Dr. Steve’s upbeat, high-energy speaking style, coupled with his deep academic and practical expertise, makes him a sought-after thought leader dedicated to building welcoming, innovative, and future-proof organizations globally ... one Leader at a time.