About Axelrod Consulting

Rachel Axelrod is the founder of Axelrod Consulting, a premier event production firm specializing in creating impactful events that leave a lasting impression. With years of experience as a speaker coach, Rachel helps individuals prepare for TEDx talks, keynotes, or any other significant presentation.

A natural leader with a keen attention to detail, Rachel is known for her ability to solve problems swiftly, execute seamlessly, and inspire those around her. Before discovering her true passion for connecting people and ideas, Rachel graduated cum laude from Loyola University Chicago School of Law and became a litigation partner at one of Chicago's top law firms.

In 2016, Rachel co-founded TEDxChicago, an independently organized and TED-licensed event. She managed all aspects of the event production for the 400+ person conference from 2017 to 2019. Renowned for its exceptional speaker lineup, TEDxChicago became one of Chicago's most anticipated events.

Since 2019, Rachel has combined her legal expertise, management experience, and speaker coaching skills to create impactful conferences and events, while helping clients deliver messages that inspire and resonate with audiences.

About Rachel

Hi, I’m Rachel Axelrod, founder and CEO of Axelrod Consulting. I specialize in corporate event production and speech coaching, helping my clients' messages evolve from great to truly remarkable.

As the co-founder of TEDxChicago, I understand events from a comprehensive perspective. My background as a former litigator has equipped me with a deep understanding of the importance of a clear, impactful message. By combining my legal expertise with event production skills, I create experiences that are meticulously tailored to each client’s needs and executed with excellence.

Whether I’m producing impactful leadership conferences or guiding clients toward success with their speaking engagements, I’m your go-to partner. I provide honest feedback and direction with care, always focused on your best interests and goals.

It’s time to elevate your message and create an event that leaves an impact.

Be anything but average,

Rachel

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Testimonials

What is it like to work with Axelrod Consulting?

Event Production

"It takes a year to put this event [Welcome Chicago] together. I’m gonna be honest with you, Kevin and I started just a liiiiiittle bit too late this year. Just a little…. But as you can see, [from] these amazing speakers behind us, everything came together thankfully. And we have one person to thank: Rachel Axelrod…she’s a bad ass! And without her we could not have put this together. She’s a killer! She was relentless!"

Donny Madia, One Off Hospitality Restaurateur

"She kicks ass! She is amazing! She kicked the shit out of Donnie and I every single day! But this is the result!"

Kevin Boehm, Entrepreneur and Co-Founder of Boka Restaurant Group, Bian Spa and Health Club, Hoxton Hotel

"Rachel is AWESOME! We were planning our first national conference for The GOB Network, a nonprofit educational organization. We were in way over our head but Rachel proved to be a lifesaver. She came in and cut our cost, renegotiated contracts and expectations. She spearheaded every facet of the event and we had a huge success. People are still asking me for her number to help them. The event was a smashing success. We have already engaged her again and highly recommend her to our friends looking to duplicate our experience."

Jim Biggs, Jiroma Enterprises, Principal, and GOB Network, Founder

“What can I say? Working with Rachel was a dream. She’s on top of the entire process/event, leaves no stone unturned and offers smart, business-worthy suggestions. Our event ran smoothly solely because of her hands-on involvement. More than that, it was probably the first event we had where people walked away talking about it for months to follow. Honestly, I look forward to creating an event simply so I can work with her again.”

Patti Zikmund, COO, Small Business Advocacy Council

"Rachel Axelrod is a dynamic leader, creative and visionary. She has a unique ability to take a project and elevate it through creativity, talent, tech, and ingenuity. I have witnessed her over and over bring 110% to every project she is part of, and empowers everyone involved. She isn’t afraid to take risks and think outside of the box to benefit her client. I have worked with many producers before and Rachel stands out as one of the best.”

Megan Taylor, DJ and Music Curator, Fig Media

"Working with Rachel at Axelrod Consulting was an absolute joy. Rachel was responsible for planning and executing a fundraising gala on behalf of two prominent Chicago-based organizations. Our goal together was to create 6 professionally produced videos with a tight deadline. As the event expert, I relied on Rachel’s tact, organization, and diligence to drive the project to the finish line. Rachel allowed me to exercise my creativity and was super detail-oriented when interviewing speakers or providing feedback. I can’t say enough good things about Rachel because she is so easy to work with and I can’t wait until we collaborate again."

WiL Galarza, Founder, Azra Productions

Speaker Coaching

"Rachel Axelrod of Axelrod Consulting…[is] my speaker coach and I am so grateful to learn from her…She brings this incredible amount of knowledge and also just real-world advice.…having Rachel by my side to make sure that I show up and serve these audiences so well is really important to me…so huge thank you to Rachel. I appreciate you and I can’t wait to work with you more."

Amy Pocsik, executive business coach, founder Bold Moves

"Rachel Axelrod of Axelrod Consulting...was my speaker coach. She used to produce Chicago TEDx. She is the best of the best. She kicked my ass! I worked with her for two months to prepare for this talk. That’s how big of a deal it was today. And I couldn’t have done it without her. And I just want to shout her out because she was a game changer. I could not have done today without you. It was a huge success."

Jessica Zweig, award-winning entrepreneur, personal branding expert, and founder and CEO of SimplyBe. Agency

"Axelrod Consulting is absolutely amazing at enhancing skills and techniques for any leadership project or production. Rachel is extremely efficient. Her dedication and work as the K.W.O.E. Foundation’s speaker coach was invaluable. She spent the time to assess our leadership team for various speaking engagements, including a submission for TEDxChicago. We loved the collaborative approach to bringing out the natural best in our leaders, as she pushed to meet goals and timelines with quick-thinking feedback and constructive criticism. Rachel’s passionate support was bountiful every step of the way, and we are grateful to be stronger because of it."

Kareem Wells, Head of K.W.O.E. Foundation