Dr. Kester Crosse, board-certified gastroenterologist, author and speaker
Kester I. H. Crosse II, MD
Speaking & workshops

A physician who kept watching talented people get passed over.

Dr. Kester Crosse is a board-certified gastroenterologist who has spent decades evaluating, hiring, coaching, and mentoring students, athletes, and professionals across academic, corporate, and clinical settings. Open Doors is what he had been teaching one-on-one for years, written down.

He speaks to the rooms he wrote it for: students about to graduate into a market nobody prepared them for, and the people responsible for getting them ready.

Check availability Download the one-sheet (PDF)
Education
Hampton University
Medical degree
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Role
VP Clinical Affairs, Gastro Health
Affiliation
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.
Dr. Kester Crosse speaking with a microphone in front of an Open Doors backdrop
Dr. Crosse in conversation at an Open Doors event.
The talks

Six talks, drawn straight from the book.

Each one maps to a named chapter in Open Doors, so an audience can carry on working after he leaves. Pick one to see what it covers, what the room does, and what people walk out holding.

Chapter 1 · the thesis

Talent Opens the First Door

The keynote. Why the most talented person in the room is so often not the one who gets the opportunity, and what the person who did get it was doing differently. Opens with the argument, closes with the four things an audience can score themselves on before they leave.

Format
Keynote
Length
45–60 min
Best for
Students · Early career
Room
Any size, theatre style
What it covers
  • Why "talent might get you noticed, but people skills get you chosen" is a hiring reality, not a motivational line.
  • What decision-makers are actually weighing in the first two minutes — and how little of it is on the résumé.
  • The difference between being qualified and being visible, and why the second one is learnable.
  • How emotional intelligence separates top performers from equally credentialed peers.
What the room actually does

Closes with a live self-score across the four TEEE dimensions. Everybody leaves holding a number out of forty rather than a feeling.

They leave with
  • A TEEE Score they worked out themselves
  • The one dimension to work on first
  • A 15-second introduction drafted in the room
Frameworks taught
  • TEEE Score
  • Talent Opens the First Door
  • People Skills
Research behind it

Daniel Goleman — Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ (Bantam, 1995).

Pirsoul, Parmentier & Nils (2023) — Emotional intelligence and career-related outcomes: a meta-analysis. Human Resource Management Review 33(3).

Ernst & Young & espnW (2022) — The case for athlete-inspired leadership.

Can be shortened to a keynote or opened out into a workshop.

Check a date for this talk

What makes this book stand out is that it is based on experience rather than theory. This is not a book about changing who you are. It is a book about sharpening how you show up.

Rick DeadwylerU.S. Region Corporate Affairs Executive · from the foreword to Open Doors
What an audience leaves with

Nobody leaves with only notes.

/40
A TEEE Score they worked out
themselves, in the room
6
Frameworks short enough to
recall under pressure
14
Days of specific daily actions
to run afterwards
Booking enquiry

Check a date.

Tell us about the event and you'll get availability and a fee range back by email. No obligation, and no call required to get a number.

Used only to answer your enquiry. If the date is already taken you'll be told straight away rather than left waiting.

Common questions

How do I book Dr. Kester Crosse to speak?

Submit the enquiry form on this page with your event date, audience size, and format. You will receive a reply with availability and fee range, typically within two business days.

What topics does Dr. Crosse speak on?

Career readiness, emotional intelligence, professional communication, networking and cold conversations, personal storytelling, and market value — all drawn from his book Open Doors. He also speaks to faculty and staff on the exposure gap facing first-generation students.

What audiences is this suited to?

College and university students, first-year and career-readiness programmes, athletic departments, fraternity and sorority chapters, employee resource groups, and early-career professional cohorts.

Does he deliver keynotes or workshops?

Both. Keynotes run 45 to 60 minutes. Workshops run 60 to 90 minutes and are interactive — audiences score themselves and practise in the room rather than only listening.

Can books be included with a speaking engagement?

Yes. Copies of Open Doors at volume pricing are frequently bundled with an engagement, and signed copies can be arranged for attendees.

Before the visit

Give them the book first.

Audiences who have read Open Doors before the event ask better questions. Volume pricing starts at 25 copies and can be quoted alongside the engagement.

Bulk & institutional orders About the book