Preferred Speaker News

Sisters Acquire Preferred Speakers

Sheila Harris and Annie Spizale acquired Preferred Speakers in January 2005. In addition to being sisters, Sheila and Annie bring more than 30 years of combined experience to the company. Sheila has been with Preferred Speakers since 1986, while Annie joined the organization in 1991.

Preferred Speakers is a woman-owned, family-run business that has been helping clients book speakers and celebrities since 1938. Ms. Harris and Ms. Spizale's parents, Warren and Nancy Burke, purchased the company in 1981. Following Warren's death in 1994, the sisters continued to help Nancy run the business for another decade.

"We've always focused on building strong relationships throughout the industry," says Sheila Harris. "And that won't change."

"We may not be the biggest speakers bureau," says Annie Spizale, "but clients know they can trust us to find the right speaker for practically any type of event."

Along with decades of experience in hospitality and the speakers industry, both Sheila and Annie are members of Meeting Professionals International and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce.

Annie Spizale and her husband live in Edina, Minnesota, with their two children, ages 7 and 5. Sheila Harris and her husband also live in Edina with their three children, ages 11, 7, and 2. Their youngest child has Down syndrome. In 2004, Sheila and Annie completed the seventh annual Buddy Walk, a fundraising event for the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota, of which they are members. The walk promotes awareness and advocacy for people with Down syndrome and is held each October.