For press and media
Media Kit
Human beings are relational animals, shaped by the people we gather with—and by the gatherings themselves.
Fact sheet
The book at a glance
| Title | Acts of Humanity: The Power of Purposeful Events |
|---|---|
| Authors | Scott Schenker, with Bryan Rutberg |
| Foreword | Chris Capossela, former Chief Marketing Officer, Microsoft |
| Publisher | Morgan James Publishing, New York |
| On sale | August 11, 2026 |
| ISBN | 979-8-89574-114-6 |
| Formats & price | Paperback $19.95 · Limited Premiere Edition hardcover $175.95, direct from the authors |
| Category | Business & Economics / Leadership · Events & Experience Design · Human Connection |
| Structure | Twenty-four standalone essays across four sections · about 355 minutes of reading |
| Audience | Executives, marketers, and event professionals — and anyone who plans an offsite, fundraiser, wedding, worship service, or community gathering |
| Contributors | Seventeen interviewed leaders, including John Donahoe, Chris Capossela, Kenny Lauer, David Schneider, and Christoph Tessmar |
| Order | Barnes & Noble · Amazon · Limited Premiere Edition |
| Web | actsofhumanitythebook.com · #ActsOfHumanityTheBook |
Book description
About the book
It has never been easier to stay apart — to work, learn, and celebrate without coming together. So when we do come together, it matters.
Acts of Humanity: The Power of Purposeful Events is for anyone who brings people together to deepen relationships — to build a community, move a business, shift a culture. The scale changes; the obligation doesn’t.
Drawing on anthropology, psychology, decades of lived experience, and conversations with seventeen leaders whose work depends on gathering, the book presents focused, story-rich essays that will change how you see every event you touch.
What makes it distinct
The claim
Purposeful gatherings underlie nearly every source of meaning people have ever named.
The book works at any scale. Large gatherings carry a distinct energy and psychology that smaller ones cannot replicate, and purposeful design serves connection at every size.
Its structure is unusual for the category: twenty-four standalone essays rather than one linear argument, so a reader can enter anywhere.
Advance praise
What leaders are saying
“Acts of Humanity: The Power of Purposeful Events is, in its own way, another mirror — held up to the way we gather.”Chris Caposselaformer Chief Marketing Officer of Microsoft — from the Foreword
“Scott Schenker masterfully elevates events from logistical line items to powerful strategic instruments … a brilliant framework for turning ordinary gatherings into ‘Kairos moments’ that drive real change.”Chris MeyerCEO of Project Worldwide
“Our events were good, and they took a quantum leap up when Scott came in and took the helm. It’s a must-read for anyone who wants to deliver or play a key role in a world-class event.”Kevin HavertyChief Revenue Officer at ServiceNow
“I’ve read almost every event and experience book out there. This one had me nodding and highlighting — sections, concepts, perspectives. The chapters are short enough to finish in minutes, and you come away with something from each one. Add it to your library, whoever you make experiences for.”Kenny LauerVice President, Marketing & Digital, Golden State Warriors
“Scott Schenker powerfully reframes events as one of the most strategic and human levers for engagement, brand, and growth … as valuable for C-suite leaders as it is for seasoned event professionals.”Nellie Greelyevents and marketing leader
“A terrific job tackling a complex subject.”Alan Marksmarketing and communications leader at Gap, eBay, and ServiceNow
“An unvarnished look at both the ‘how’ and the ‘why’ of producing meaningful events … whether you’re the executive sponsor, the CMO, or the agency hired to make the magic happen.”Leasa Mayerlongtime events executive, board member, and former agency owner
“A compelling and insightful exploration of how intentional gatherings can create lasting human and societal impact … an important contribution to the evolution of the events profession.”Christoph TessmarDirector of Barcelona Convention Bureau
“A call to reclaim what events are truly for: genuine human connection and transformation. For anyone who has ever stood in a room and felt something shift, this is the book that explains how.”Sharon K. Gillenwaterserial entrepreneur and author of Scaling with Soul
Comparable & companion titles
Where this book lives
This book sits in a small neighborhood of books on gathering, experience, and human connection. Each entry below names what the neighboring book does best, and where this book departs.
Closest companions
The Art of Gathering — Priya Parker (2018). The definitive case for gathering with purpose. Her framework serves gatherings up to roughly 150 people; beyond that, she calls a crowd a “tide of humanity.” This book works at any scale, and holds that the largest gatherings carry an energy and a psychology all their own.
The Power of Moments — Chip Heath & Dan Heath (2017). Why certain experiences become defining moments in a single life. This book sets those moments inside the relationships and shared stories a gathering builds.
The business of experience
The Experience Economy — B. Joseph Pine II & James H. Gilmore (1999). The classic argument for staging experiences as economic value. This book puts the relationship ahead of the transaction: connection first, commerce second.
Experiential Marketing — Kerry Smith & Dan Hanover (2016). The marketer’s case for live events as a channel. This book makes the human case for the same events.
Deep background
Together — Vivek H. Murthy (2020). The former U.S. Surgeon General’s diagnosis of loneliness as a health crisis. This book answers the diagnosis with a working instrument: the purposeful gathering.
Sapiens — Yuval Noah Harari (2011). Shared stories as the capacity that lets large groups of strangers trust and cooperate. This book brings that capacity to the gathering, where shared stories are told, felt, and carried forward.
For editors and producers
Story angles
The trillion-dollar sector nobody writes about
Business events generated $1.3 trillion in direct spending in 2025 — more than aerospace or air transport, and enough to rank as the world’s sixteenth-largest economy if the sector were a country. Schenker can speak to what that scale actually buys.
The loneliness angle
Purposeful gatherings underlie nearly every source of meaning people have ever named. A story about connection, belonging, and what organizations can do that apps cannot.
What executives get wrong about their own events
The sponsor’s view versus the attendee’s, told by someone who has sat on both sides at SAP, Microsoft, and ServiceNow.
Kill your early-bird pricing
A contrarian, data-backed argument: 69% of business events discount early registration; 0% of sixty consumer entertainment experiences do. Schenker has the survey.
Seventeen leaders on why they gather
Interviews with John Donahoe, Chris Capossela, Kenny Lauer, David Schneider, and thirteen others whose careers run through gathering.
For interviewers
Suggested questions
- You argue that human beings are relational animals. What does that distinction change about how we think about gathering?
- You call events “acts of humanity.” What do you mean, and why does that framing matter now?
- You write that large gatherings carry an energy smaller ones cannot replicate. What do leaders most often get wrong about scale?
- What is a “Kairos moment,” and can you give an example of one you witnessed or created?
- You argue that information alone never changes a gathering. What does “hearts, heads, and hands” look like in practice?
- When is a gathering the wrong answer, and how should leaders decide whether to hold one at all?
- You interviewed seventeen leaders for this book. Which conversation changed your own thinking most?
- There is a well-documented loneliness epidemic. What role can purposeful gatherings play in addressing it?
- After decades at agencies and at SAP, Microsoft, and ServiceNow, what surprised you while writing this?
- If a reader plans just one gathering differently after this book, what do you hope they change?
Visual assets
Cover, key art, and brand
High-resolution cover art, author headshots, and key art for each of the twenty-four essays are available for editorial use. The palette below governs type and interface; the color bar running across these pages is drawn from the cover illustration and sits outside it.
#006D63Brand anchor, navigation, section headers#C7133CHeadline emphasis and pull quotes#ED2147Primary call to action#EB5C26Section accents and callouts#EDD12EHighlights, quote marks, small detailsRequest full-resolution files at scott@actsofhumanitythebook.com.
Contact
Media & booking
For interviews, review copies, excerpts, high-resolution assets, and speaking inquiries.
New York
Twenty-four essays on why some gatherings matter and others fail.