Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen are two of the nation’s most influential journalists. For years, they worked together building the nationally renowned digital media company POLITICO, transforming it from a newcomer on Captiol Hill to the website and accompanying newsletter that all of Washington considered a “must-read.” Now, they are co-founders of the media company Axios, delivering quick, punchy news and insights on politics, business, media, and technology to a smart and highly-engaged audience. The company has proved a disruptive force in the digital media space, specializing in high-quality news and analysis easily shared across social platforms by the country’s influential readers. Axios has been widely recognized for its forward-thinking approach to the way people consume news in the 21st century. The approach is chronicled in the book Smart Brevity: Saying More with Less, co-authored by VandeHei and Allen. In the book, VandeHei and Allen share transformative communications methods for punching through the noise to get people to pay attention to what matters most. Their Smart Brevity approach was pivotal to Axios becoming a powerhouse media property in just five years, leading to a $525 million acquisition by Cox Enterprises.

They are also the co-creators and executive producers of Axios on HBO, a documentary-news series that interviews the world’s top leaders and covers the most consequential topics of the day, fusing together the “smart brevity” of Axios’ digital reporting with cinematic, documentary storytelling. In 2017, VandeHei and Allen were named to Vanity Fair’s “New Establishment” list, an annual compilation of industry titans.

As thorough and candid on stage as they are in their articles and daily newsletters, VandeHei and Allen create a phenomenal experience for audiences of all backgrounds that draws on their extensive insider experience and contacts within the Beltway to take audiences behind the scenes of what they see each day on the news. Focused on the future of work as well as policy decisions driving Washington, they are a fantastic choice for future-focused groups who want to unpack how DC dysfunction will play out across industries.

Jim VandeHei is the co-founder, Chairman, and CEO of Axios as well as the co-founder of POLITICO, the digital media company that upended and revolutionized political and policy journalism in Washington, New York, and Europe. In his nine years at the publication’s helm, VandeHei was the chief architect of both the site’s editorial and business models. Under his leadership, POLITICO expanded into New York and European markets, where it was named the most influential publication on the continent for top government officials.

Mike Allen is one of Washington’s most well connected journalists whose very name is synonymous with political scoops. He is the co-founder and executive editor of Axios as well as the former chief White House correspondent for POLITICO. He was the voice and author behind Playbook, the early-morning go-to source for movers and shakers in politics and media. Called “the man the White House wakes up to” by The New York Times, he not only reports on but also drives the day’s political conversations. His sharp journalistic experience and coveted insider status make him an ideal choice to discuss the latest political happenings.

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