Roger Wakefield
Keynote Speaker • Roger Wakefield LLC
Dallas, Texas, United States •
More than $10,000
About
Your audience has heard from the economists. Let them hear from the guy who built the building. I'm a licensed Texas Master Plumber with 45 years in the trades, not a consultant who studied them. I built the largest plumbing education channel on YouTube, with 765K+ subscribers, 160M+ views and 1.7M+ followers across platforms, so your members may already be watching me before I ever walk on stage. I've appeared on TODAY, Dr. Phil and NewsNation, and on June 30, 2026 I was interviewed live by Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling at America's 250th on the National Mall. My keynotes are built for blue-collar and workforce audiences: trade associations, contractor conventions, CTE educators, apprenticeship programs and workforce boards. Every one carries the same message. The trades are Plan A.
Speaking Topics
Signature Programs (3)
The flagship keynote. Dismantles the college-only narrative with real wage data and stories from 45 years in the field. Roger walks through the skilled trades workforce gap, the career advice students keep getting backwards, and the real career math of the trades, so your audience leaves seeing the trades as a first choice, not a backup plan.
Key Takeaways
- Why the college-only path is the wrong default, and what real wage data says about careers in the trades
- How most apprenticeships actually work: the apprentice gets hired first and the employer pays for the training
- Free tools that match a student to the trade that fits them, like TradesOnRamp.com
Audience
Trade associations, CTE (career and technical education) educators and school counselors, apprenticeship programs, workforce development boards and youth conferences
Format
Duration
60 -90 Minutes
Delivery
Why hands-on trades survive the AI wave that is coming for office work. While AI starts taking over entry-level office jobs, the physical economy is short on people who can do the work. Roger lays out which careers are built to resist AI and why: work in the physical world, licensing, and judgment on the job.
Key Takeaways
- Why AI takes over junior office work first, and which skilled careers are built to resist it
- The three things that keep a career safe from AI: work in the physical world, licensing, and judgment on the job
- A clear answer for students, parents and career-changers asking what work will still be there
Audience
Business and corporate events, future-of-work and technology conferences, workforce development boards, employers who can't hire, parents and career-changers
Format
Duration
60-90 minutes
Delivery
The exact social media playbook that took a working plumber to 1.7M followers and 160M+ YouTube views. Roger shows how he built the largest plumbing education channel on YouTube by teaching the trades on camera, and what any contractor, franchise or business owner can take from it to get found, build trust and recruit.
Key Takeaways
- How teaching the work on camera built an audience of 1.7M+ followers and 160M+ views
- What any contractor or franchise can take from that playbook to get found and win more work
- How a trades business can use video to recruit the next generation of technicians
Audience
Contractor and franchise conventions, home service business owners, marketing events and corporate audiences
Format
Duration
60-90 minutes
Delivery
Your Experience with Roger
Your perspective matters!
What was it like engaging with Roger?