Greg Schwem
America’s Favorite Corporate Funnyman
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- “King of the hill in the world of corporate comedy” – Chicago Tribune
- “Mines comedy gold out of nonsensical corporate speak” – The Onion
- Appeared on Fox TV, Comedy Central and VH-1
- Nationally syndicated humor columnist for Tribune Content Agency
- Voted 2014 Outstanding Humor Columnist by National Society of Newspaper Columnists
*Fee ranges are presented as a guideline only. Speaker fees are subject to change without notice. For an exact quote, please contact your Speaker Exchange Agency representative.
Greg Schwem’s comedic take on the 21st century workplace and work/life balance has landed him on SIRIUS Radio, FOX News, Comedy Central and the pages of Parents magazine. More than just a business humorist, he is also an author, nationally syndicated humor columnist and award-winning greeting card writer. (Yes, you read that last one correctly!) He has shared the concert stage with the likes of Celine Dion and Jay Leno.
A graduate of Northwestern University’s prestigious Medill School of Journalism, Schwem never envisioned a career in laughter. Instead, he settled in Florida, becoming an award-winning reporter for NBC-owned WPTV in West Palm Beach. But the comedy bug bit him hard and he returned to his hometown of Chicago, where he honed his standup act in nightclubs. When he began inserting material about business and technology into his act, audience members approached him and said, “You really should come down to my office and tell those jokes.” Behold! A new approach to comedy was born.
Schwem’s show provides a hilarious look at today’s corporate environment and the latest tools used to conduct business. Indeed, his client list includes such corporate heavyweights as McDonald’s, Microsoft, General Motors, IBM, Hyatt Hotels, United Airlines and Cisco Systems. What sets him apart from other corporate entertainers is his ability—and willingness—to customize material for his audience while working within the parameters of the corporate environment. That means no profanity or politically incorrect material. “That’s never been a part of my show anyway,” he recently told a reporter.
When Schwem hits the stage he already has perused the company’s Internet site, combed the internal message boards and even sifted through numerous PowerPoint presentations. “There is no such thing as too much information,” he says. “I know corporate audiences like to laugh at themselves so the more ammunition I get, the funnier it will be. Just don’t give me a 10-K report. There is NOTHING funny about that.”
Perfect for any group that needs a humorous break from the serious side of business, live or virtually. Despite its therapeutic qualities, laughter is often absent from the business environment. Greg shows it is possible to laugh at work and about work, via a clean and heavily customized presentation. Audience members will put down their phones, close their laptops and laugh along with Greg as he good-naturedly discusses topics such as business travel, overused meeting slogans and his fantasy of heckling a motivational speaker.
In January 2024, while in the midst of a late in life divorce, corporate comedian and business humor speaker Greg Schwem was diagnosed with a malignant tumor lying flat on his colon.
Divorce and cancer in one year. Other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?
Facing an uncertain outcome, Schwem was forced to adopt what he had been preaching to corporate clients such as Microsoft, Oracle and AT&T for years: Locate humor in the unfunniest of situations, during times when everything seems hopeless. With a laptop propped up on hospital pillows, Greg began writing…and writing…and writing. The result was Turning Gut Punches into Punch Lines, a hilarious, multimedia-fueled keynote speech that teaches audience members how to always be on the lookout for “the funny, use humor to battle personal struggles, business challenges, or both, and emerge happier. It starts, Greg says, by admitting you are the “least interesting person in the room” and letting others provide the laughs.
Some insights from the presentation, most of which was written without the help of pain medication:
My surgeon kept telling me passing gas any time was a good thing. I handed him my phone and said, “Please call my ex and repeat what you just said.”
Everyone has a great, and funny story to tell, if you’re willing to listen and show genuine interest. Last month I booked two dates, simply because I asked strangers at airports what they did for a living.
I started watching TikTok videos of doctors giving health advice. One was called “Five Foods NEVER to Keep in your Refrigerator” After 30 seconds I realized it could easily be titled, “Five Foods Greg Schwem ALWAYS keeps in his Refrigerator.’
A happy heart is good medicine and a joyful mind causes healing, but a broken spirit dries up the bones – Proverbs 17:22
In a hilarious, multimedia-intensive presentation, renowned business humorist and award-winning Chicago Tribune humor columnist Greg Schwem will make audiences of all age howl with laughter as he explores the role of, and the need for, humor in a post COVID, return-to- the-office world. As companies struggle to answer the questions, “What is funny?” and “What is appropriate?” Greg offers a different perspective: There ARE no right answers. Instead, he feels all employees, from the new hires to the C-level executives, must formulate their own answers by working together, instead of running from one another. Only then will the result be a healthy and FUN work environment.
Performing live or virtually, Greg shows audiences that rules about workplace humor can be easily violated… even by those who create and enforce them; how to not be the office “humor cop” and how to “engage but never attack” those who you disagree with when it comes to humor. The ability to research his audience and tailor his content is why companies such as Microsoft, McDonald’s, Southwest Airlines and even The CIA have turned to Greg for laughs, and why HuffPost calls Greg “Your boss ’favorite comedian.”
But Humor is Serious Business… is hardly a straight stand-up comedy show. Greg challenges hisaudiences to envision how they can use humor to improve workplace communication, and how to motivate one another in difficult times. Greg reinforces his message with stories of company personnel who have used humor to create successful campaigns and turn their businesses around. As a cancer survivor, Greg will also share how humor helped him overcome devastating health news.
Greg Schwem knows a thing or two about rock and roll. As a comedian who has opened concerts for stars ranging from Keith Urban, to Celine Dion, to Enrique Iglesias to (wait for it) KC And the Sunshine Band, Greg has seen how rock and roll is really a business. Like your business. In short? Every company and employee has “rock star” potential. Greg shows you how to achieve that potential in a presentation that combines hilarious comedy, live concert footage and a musical soundtrack featuring everything from classic rock to country to techno. Topics include “Why Every Office Needs a Keith Richards,” “Are you Team Taylor or Team Kanye?,” and “Don’t Let Your Company Become a Country Song.” Rock on!
A good emcee needs to multitask. He must keep the event moving, be adept at improvisation and work efficiently with all participants onstage. Greg Schwem has hosted everything from a one-hour awards ceremony for 200 BAE Systems engineers to a three-day conference for 6,000 McDonald’s restaurant managers, to a virtual webinar for IBM customers. He is equally at ease chatting with a company CEO live on stage, pronouncing (correctly) the names of awards recipients, or conducting humorous on-camera interview with meeting attendees.
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