Chris Snider is a nationally recognized educator, speaker, and consultant who helps organizations understand and apply generative AI and social media in practical, strategic ways. A full time professor at Drake University since 2010, Chris teaches courses in social media strategy, digital and multimedia storytelling, generative AI and web design, and his research and teaching focus on generative artificial intelligence, emerging media platforms, and smartphone video.
Chris is the co owner ofInnovation Profs LLC, where he works directly with companies, nonprofits, and leadership teams to demystify generative AI and turn it into a tool for real world impact. Through keynotes, workshops, and hands on training sessions, he helps audiences move beyond hype to understand how AI can improve communication, marketing, productivity, and decision making. He also regularly leadsdigital media workshops in Des Moinesfocused on social media strategy, generative artificial intelligence and video storytelling.
Before joining Drake, Chris spent more than a decade in professional newsrooms, bringing a practitioner’s perspective to his work. He moved to Des Moines in 2005 to serve as editor of Juice magazine and later became assistant managing editor for digital and innovation at the Des Moines Register. There, he helped lead the company’s early adoption of social media, live content, and mobile storytelling, work that earned him recognition as Gannett’s top digital editor in 2008 and a spot on Presstime Magazine’s 20 Under 40 list.
Earlier in his career, Chris worked as a designer and news design director at the St. Louis Post Dispatch and began his career at the Baltimore Sun. This blend of design, journalism, and strategy shapes his engaging speaking style, which combines clear explanations, real examples, and actionable takeaways.
Chris is a graduate of the University of Iowa and earned his MBA from Drake University in 2013. He lives in Des Moines with his wife (Des Moines author Laura Snider), three children, two dogs and two cats.
