Talking is good.
Skills are better.
Dr. Jen Fry is an international and TEDx speaker, conflict literacy expert, and author who helps leaders stop avoiding hard conversations and use conflict to build healthier, more honest cultures. She gives teams the skills, courage, and language they need to navigate tension, hold boundaries, and lead with clarity when it matters most.
Let’s Talk About What You’re Avoiding
Jen’s keynotes and workshops focus on the real dynamics that shape team culture: conflict, communication, and leadership.
Drawing on research-backed strategy, sports geography, and direct communication, she helps leaders and teams:
Turn conflict into a driver of growth
Build capacity for honest, productive dialogue
Strengthen clarity, collaboration, and trust
Follow through on change—not just talk about it
I Said No
A no-BS guide to boundaries without guilt.
For high-achievers, over-functioners, and the “strong ones” who are tired of being everything for everyone—I Said No is your permission slip to stop over-explaining, stop apologizing, and start standing up for yourself with backbone and clarity.
Before You Blame the coach
A Parent's Guide: Confict, perspective, and pressure in Youth Sports
Through real scenarios and straightforward tools, it helps parents better understand their role, respond more effectively to tension with coaches and other parents, and ultimately support their child in a way that builds resilience, ownership, and growth.
trusted by
Jen Fry is a powerful, no-nonsense, call-it-like-it-is, engaging speaker. Jen encouraged us to have challenging conversations and raise our awareness. She is creative and has her pulse on what is happening in the current environment of college athletics. Jen provides encouragement while listening and cultivating relationships.
Jane Teixeira, Assistant AD of Compliance/SWA, Vanguard University
Who Is Dr. Jen Fry?
Dr. Jen Fry (she/her) is a Sports Geographer, tech founder, and sought-after speaker and educator. She owns JenFryTalks, an organizational change firm that sits at the intersection of conflict and culture. She specializes in transforming organizational dynamics by addressing how conflict and culture shape leadership and overall business outcomes. As a veteran volleyball coach with over 15 years of experience coaching at the collegiate level, Jen understands how conflict within athletics, corporate, or professional settings can impact a team. Jen wants to help you build the skills you need to navigate those hard but essential conversations and come out on top.
She received her PhD in Sports Geography from Michigan State University (GO GREEN!) and owns Coordle, a B2B tech company tackling youth sports travel chaos! We simplify travel and tournament logistics for everyone involved—parents, coaches, and athletes. Our app and web platform streamline communication with real-time information, manage food orders and hosting, and messaging, with a movable and dynamic itinerary—all in one place!
Inspiration fades.
Skills stick.
Jen’s keynotes and workshops go beyond motivation. They build the practical, durable skills leaders and teams need to navigate real challenges. You and your team will learn how to:
Communicate clearly, especially when the stakes are high
Lead through conflict instead of avoiding it
Start hard conversations and make them worth having
It’s not about being perfect. It’s about being prepared.
Insights and Articles From Jen
Before You Plan the Retreat, Name the Problem
As I close this season on retreats, I want to go back to the beginning. Before the agenda, the activities, or the team dinner, leaders need to name the problem the retreat is supposed to solve. In this blog, I talk about why purpose matters, what it means to define resolution in behavior, and how to design a retreat that helps people work differently when they return.
The Retreat Conversation Is Not the Finish Line
A retreat can help a team name what has been sitting under the surface. But if nothing changes afterward, people notice. I’m unpacking why “we talked about it” is only the beginning, and why real repair has to keep going once the team is back at work.
A Retreat Should Not Be the First Place People Hear the Truth
Some retreat agendas are carrying conversations that should have started months ago. Jen unpacks the leadership work that needs to happen before a retreat, from naming accountability gaps to clarifying roles, decisions, and trust issues before they show up as surprises.
