Education

On the long list of reasons why NDA’s Annual Convention and Expo is famed as a “can’t-miss event,” education is at the top. This year’s program is jam-packed with sessions on the latest demolition trends, best practices, and actionable insights you can implement immediately. From a pre-convention course that give you hands-on experience to fast and furious education session in the exhibit hall, you’ll walk away with key learnings to help you and your business. Stay tuned for more details soon.

Opening Keynote:

Derek Gaunt - lecturer, trainer, and author of Ego, Authority, Failure© 

Friday, March 7 | 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. 

Derek Gaunt has 29 years of law enforcement experience, 20 of which he served as a team member, leader, and then commander of hostage negotiations teams in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. He is a hostage negotiation and incident command subject-matter expert who frequently speaks at hostage negotiation and SWAT conferences across the country. 

Derek’s passion for interpersonal communications began when he was selected as a detective in the Criminal Investigations Section of a municipal police agency. He spent the majority of his law enforcement career in this section as a detective, supervisor, and eventually commander of major crimes.

In 1997, he took his passion for interpersonal communications to the next level, becoming a hostage negotiator. Once he became a supervisor, his passion transitioned to teaching negotiation concepts to others Derek has trained throughout the US and around the world, instructing organizations on how to apply hostage negotiation practices and principles to their business. Derek's presentations are engaging and filled with useful techniques for understanding human behavior and navigating difficult conversations. Derek will speak on how to improve your performance by changing the way you think about communicating with others.

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