PRESIDENT, T&R CHEMICAL, INTERNATIONAL DEMOCRATIC ADVISOR, MEXICO CITY, MEXICO
SESSION: TRANSITIONS
Fredo is the President of T&R Chemicals, Inc., of Texas and has served as senior advisor on international affairs to Mexico's ruling National Action Party (PAN) and the Vicente Fox presidential campaign. He currently serves as a democratic advisor to the democratic movements in Moldova and Belarus. Fredo has published numerous articles about democratic transition and is the author of two books, most recently, Transiciones a la democracia: Las lecciones de Europa del Este. He is founder of the academic quarterly Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization, based in Washington, DC. Fredo holds both an MBA and MA in Russian Studies from Harvard University.
CEO, QVF PARTNERS & FORMER DIRECTOR, SOUTHWEST AIRLINES UNIVERSITY, DALLAS, TEXAS
SESSION: LEADERSHIP
Rita is the Founder and CEO of QVF Partners, Ltd., in Dallas, Texas partnering with organizations and individuals who are committed to creating people-focused cultures. Prior to founding QVF Partners, Rita held numerous leadership roles for 25 years at Southwest Airlines in customer service, sales and marketing, public relations, human resources and as Director of Southwest Airlines University. Rita's focus was to build the people who built Southwest into one of the most successful and profitable democratic airlines in the world. Her mantra: "If you put people first, profits will follow."
Learn more at www.qvfpartners.com.
PRESIDENT, BETTERWORLD TELECOM, WASHINGTON, DC
SESSION: NEXT
Matt Bauer is President of BetterWorld Telecom, the only nationwide voice and data provider in the U.S. solely focused on serving businesses, enterprises, and organizations that have social and sustainable missions. BetterWorld Telecom is also the first telecommunications company to be designed from inception as a sustainable and democratic company, adhering to strict triple bottom line principles and employing dynamic decision making matrix for all day to day corporate functions.
Prior to co-founding BetterWorld, Matt was Director of Business Development, AES Corp, a global, Fortune 500 power generation and distribution company. He helped to lead technology and new business venture activities in North, Central and South America. Before AES, Matt was a Marketing Director at NETtel Communications and was the Director of Global Sales and Marketing for Valucom, an information services, network design, technology and consulting firm serving North America, Europe and Pac Asia. Matt is active on a number of boards in DC and Atlanta including the DC Sustainable Business Network, the U Street Theatre Foundation, the Patricia M Sitar Center for Children and the Arts, and the True Colors Theatre Company. Matt has a BA in Telecommunications from Indiana University, and an MBA from George Washington University.
Learn more at www.betterworldtelecom.com.
FOUNDER, DESIGN THINKING INSTITUTE, GERMANY
SESSION: FRONTLINES
Ralf is the founder of the Design Thinking Institute (DTI) a truly collaborative virtual organization. Ever since magazines such as Business Week and Fast Company recently identified design as a current and future driver for competitive advantage, the term ‘Design Thinking' has experienced a real push. The Design Thinking Institute is a forum for this emerging, multi-disciplinary approach with contributors currently coming from a diversity of countries. In true ‘organizational democracy' fashion, the DTI provides a space for discussion and for generating a framework of models and hypotheses which help organizations to design meaningful products and services enabled by decisions in decentralized networks, generated in a collaborative manner with strong leadership but with consensus control. Since early 2003 Ralf has been writing columns for his Weblog, www.design-management.de, one of the first blogs worldwide dedicated to the field of "Design, Management and Business Issues around design management, attracting more than 20,000 visitors a month from all over the world. Ralf's professional background is based on consulting in the areas of strategy, design management research as well as technological innovation. He is a lecturer at all leading post-graduate design management programs in the UK, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Germany.
AUTHOR, THE NEXT DEAL, Phoenix, AZ
SESSION: REFORMERS
Andrei is Director of the Project on Valuing and Rewarding Work in the Global Economy focused on fostering new ideas to help American workers succeed in a 21st century economy. A Senior Fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs in 2004, Andrei has made his mark at the intersection of public policy, politics, and governance. A former Senior Speechwriter and advisor to Vice President Al Gore at age 21, Andrei was the youngest White House Speechwriter in American history. He has been called "smart, bold, and thoughtful" by the Washington Post and one of the "more creative thinkers" on the politics of the future by U.S. News and World Report. Andrei has provided policy and message advice to Bill Clinton, John Kerry, Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, Joe Lieberman, Cabinet members, Governors, United States Senators, members of the House of Representatives, Fortune 100 CEOs, and prominent civic leaders. From February 2003 to April 2004, Andrei served as Director of Speechwriting and Special Advisor on Policy for John Kerry's Presidential campaign, crafting the policy, and communications strategies that led to Senator Kerry's upset victory in the presidential primaries. Andrei is the author of The Next Deal: The Future of Public Life in the Information Age, one of the top-selling political books of 2001. The Los Angeles Times praised the book as "visionary in scope" and Newt Gingrich called it "one of the most thoughtful books about…the information age to be produced by anyone of any ideological background."
Learn more at www.andreicherny.com.
THE GREAT GAME OF BUSINESS, SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI
SESSION: STYLE
Donna is a corporate trainer with The Great Game of Business. The Great Game of Business is the premier open-book management consulting firm in the country, teaching companies how to create an environment where everyone in the company is taught to think and act like owners. The Great Game creates a playing field on which employees have major input into creating a company's financials, setting up incentive programs that will reward their performance, learning to forecast financial results, learning what drives financial results, communicating progress and sharing the rewards of good performance. The Great Game of Business is practiced everyday by hundreds of organizations, from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies in industries such as service, retail, health care, manufacturing, not-for-profit and government.
Learn more at www.greatgame.com.
CEO + FOUNDER, WORLDBLU, INC., WASHINGTON, DC
Traci is the founder and CEO of WorldBlu, Inc. Traci has spent nearly a decade developing proprietary methods and technologies for designing and building democratic companies around the world, including the WorldBlu Organizational Democracy Framework™. As a leading expert in organizational democracy, she is recognized as one of the business thought-leaders of her generation. Business and global leaders have taken note of Traci's work, including Fast Company magazine, which has twice selected her into the second round of the annual Fast 50, the search for the "fastest 50 people and ideas." She is currently working on her first book highlighting innovative case studies of organizational democracy and frequently engages audiences around the world speaking about organizational democracy and the art of freedom-centered leadership. Traci has traveled throughout the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Southeast Asia and holds a BA in global studies and entrepreneurship from Principia College and an MA in international development from American University's School of International Service in Washington, DC.
CEO + PRESIDENT, GREAT HARVEST BREAD COMPANY, DILLON, MONTANA
SESSION: DESIGN
Mike is CEO of Great Harvest Bread Company, a multi-million dollar democratic bread company. With over 200 franchises across the US, Great Harvest has used an approach to business and management that they call "freedom-centered" for nearly 30 years. While most franchisors dictate everything about their franchisees' operations to ensure predictability, Great Harvest doesn't require that its franchisees use the same bread recipes, paint their stores the same colors, or use the same promotions. Great Harvest sets its franchisees "free" after a one-year apprenticeship to run their stores how they see best, encouraging franchisees to be unique, be authentic, and experiment. Great Harvest's fundamental philosophy is that command-and-control is wrong and the company's real product is its offer of freedom to run a bakery as the owner sees fit.
Learn more at www.greatharvest.com
CEO, FESTIVAL IN THE WORKPLACE, NASSAU, BAHAMAS
SESSION: STYLE
Roosevelt is the CEO of Management Development Resources (MDR) and The Festival in the Workplace project based in Nassau, Bahamas. The Festival in the Workplace (FITW) aims to contribute to the development of a model of a new workplace culture, applying lessons from the festivals and carnivals of Trinidad, Brazil, Mardi Gras, and the Junkanoo festival of The Bahamas that could be used to improve companies and organizations. FITW believes there are many lessons from the festivals that can be integrated into organizational life to create an environment characterized by high productivity, joy, creativity, shared purpose, collaboration, ownership, community, personal meaning, and fulfillment.
AUTHOR, SOMBODIES AND NOBODIES: OVERCOMING THE ABUSE OF RANK
BERKELEY, CA
SESSION: ROOTS
Bob is the author of Somebodies and Nobodies: Overcoming the Abuse of Rank, a groundbreaking book that takes the analysis of discrimination beyond racism and sexism to reveal a form of injustice everyone knows but no one acknowledges: discrimination based on rank, or "rankism." Bob is currently at work on a sequel book focusing on building a "dignitarian" society entitled Dignity: Democracy's Next Step.
Prior to becoming an author, Bob lived a globe-trotting, world-changing life: he was appointed the youngest college president in the US at Oberlin College at the age of 33; co-authored the book Mathematics of Classical and Quantum Physics; was a consultant to Indira Gandhi; persuaded then-president Jimmy Carter to establish the Presidential Commission on World Hunger, and traveled frequently to the USSR in the 1980s, creating the global corporation, Internews, which promotes democracy via free and independent media.
Learn more at www.breakingranks.net
CEO, MELIA AZUL IXTAPA + BUSINESS CONSULTANT AT CEMENTOS
CRUZ AZUL
IXTAPA + MEXICO CITY, MEXICO
SESSION: TRANSITIONS
Rafael is the CEO of the Meliá Azul Ixtapa, Beach Resort and Conference Center in Mexico. He also works as a business consultant in strategic planning and project finance at Cooperativa La Cruz Azul, one of the largest cement companies in Mexico and ownerof the famous Cruz Azul soccer team. Without previous experience in the tourism industry, in 2001 he was chosen as CEO of the Meliá Azul Ixtapa, mainly for his previous successes in turning companies around to operate democratically in diverse areas such as financial services, the airline industry, and manufacturing. He also worked for 15 years as a commercial and investment banker in one of the leading financial institutions in Mexico.
PRESIDENT, GIVING GLOBAL, SAN FRANCISCO, CA
SESSION: CONTEXT
Pamela is president and founder of GivingGlobal, a San Francisco-based social entrepreneurship non-profit dedicated to increasing international giving and volunteering globally. Pamela was a co-founder of VolunteerMatch which has matched more than one million volunteers with nonprofits through its web-based marketplace. She is also the founder of VolunteerMatch Corporate (VMC), a customized version of the website for corporations and their employee volunteer programs. More than 20 Fortune 500 companies became clients of VMC under her management including Baxter, Charles Schwab, Coca-Cola, Dell, Duke Energy, Gap, Levi's, Merrill Lynch, Microsoft, Nike and Verizon. Pamela is committed to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and has worked around the world in the areas of microfinance in remote villages of India; crisis relief work in the 2000 El Salvador earthquake; digital divide training in the Killing Fields of Cambodia; and sustainable farming in the countryside of Guatemala.
Learn more at www.givingglobal.org.
SLOVAKIAN REVOLUTIONARY/CEO, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, LTD., BANSKA STIAVNICA, SLOVAK REPUBLIC
SESSION: TRANSITIONS
Marek is said to be the grandfather of four political revolutions. As the national coordinator of Slovakia's Rock volieb '98, a young voter mobilization campaign modeled after "Rock the Vote" in the U.S., Marek organized a blitz of concerts, more than 30 television and radio commercials featuring domestic and international rock and rap stars such as Coolio, and a cross-country bus tour. The goal was to mobilize the youth to vote, and it worked. Out of the 20 percent projected to vote before Rock volieb, some 80 percent of first-time voters cast their ballot, helping to bring a coalition of democratic parties to power and ending the rule of Vladimir Meciar. Marek then went on to Serbia, where he advised the leaders of Otpor, which overthrew the dictator Milosevic in 2000. After that, Otpor leaders trained the victorious Georgian Kmara youth movement, while Marek trained Pora and other Ukrainian groups, which culminated in the Orange Revolution of 2004. As the founder and CEO of Development Services, Ltd., in the Slovak Republic, Marek continues to be active in advising and providing training and technical assistance to civil-society structures and democratic political parties helping to build coalitions of democratic forces, assisting in organization of voter education and mobilization programs At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Marek was designated among the "100 Global Leaders of Tomorrow" for 2002.
CHO, HAPPY AT WORK, COPENHAGEN, DENMARK
SESSION: PLAY
Alexander is the CHO (Chief Happiness Officer) of the Happy At Work Project based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Alex's extensive background as a consultant, leader, entrepreneur and business owner has taught him the importance and the practice of being happy at work. Leaders and employees from companies like IBM, Lego, DaimlerChrysler, Pfizer, PriceWaterhousCoopers and many others – big and small, private and public – are happier at work after using the methods taught by the Happy At Work Project. Alex is a skilled, insightful and energetic speaker on the subject of happiness at work and why happiness is the major success factor for organizations today.
FORMER PRIME MINISTER, TALLINN, ESTONIA
SESSION: TRANSITIONS
Mart became Prime Minister of Estonia at age 32, serving from 1992-1994 and again from 1999-2001, during the most pivotal moments of Estonia's transition following the collapse of communism. Seen as one of the most ambitious reformers of the region, Laar has been called "the most successful historian among the Estonian politicians." As Prime Minister, Laar pursued open, transparent policies that led to Estonia being rated one of the freest economies in the world (even above the US) by Freedom House and other organizations, advancing Estonia from an impoverished nation ruined by the Soviet occupation to a modern nation with a healthy, sound, capitalist economy that is now a full member of the European Union and NATO. Under Laar's leadership, Estonia achieved record economic growth, reined in inflation, boosted foreign trade, and implemented a successful privatization program. Mr. Laar also created the world's first working online government, making Estonia the most advanced country in this regard. Laar has received several prizes and honors, including the European Bull Prize in 2001, the Adam Smith Award in 2002, and the Polak Award in 2003. In 2001, the Davos Economic Forum named him Prime Minister of its "World's Dream Cabinet." An author of numerous books, Laar has also become a key advisor to various governments and organizations seeking the same reform success as Estonia. He remains a member of the Estonian parliament.
PRODUCER + DIRECTOR, THE TAKE, TORONTO, CANADA
SESSION: FRONTLINES
Avi is the Director and Producer of the acclaimed documentary The Take, a film set during Argentina's spectacular economic collapse in 2001 about thirty unemployed auto-parts workers in suburban Buenos Aires who attempt to take back their company and reclaim their work, their dignity and their democracy. Based in Toronto, Canada, Lewis is one of Canada's most controversial and eloquent media personalities. He was the Host and Producer of CounterSpin on CBC Newsworld, where he presided over more than 500 nationally televised debates. In the 1990s, he hosted "The New Music" on CityTV, and pioneered MuchMusic's political "uncoverage", winning a Gemini Award.
Learn more at www.nfb.ca/webextension/thetake.
CLINICAL PSYCOLOGIST, CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
SESSION: STYLE
Myrna was formally trained as a clinical psychologist and now works with companies around the world specializing in "Deep Democracy." Deep Democracy, an adaptation of process-orientated psychology, uses tools and techniques to enrich any organization going through transformation and change. The methodology, which is primarily a facilitation technique, focuses on the decision-making process. Companies that have been trained in and use the Deep Democracy process include The Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, CIBC Bank, The Co-operators, Escom Software Services Canada, Zurich Canada, Cap Gemini UK, Eskom South Africa, Nedbank, and Momentum. In 2001 Myrna was recognized with the prestigious Ashoka award which is given to social entrepreneurs engaged in work that is highly innovative and unique in uplifting the community. The award has enabled Myrna to introduce the concepts of Deep Democracy into schools and to lay counselors working with HIV/AIDS infected people in South Africa.
CEO EMERITUS, FIRSTRAND RETAIL BANK, JOHANESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA
SESSION: TRANSITIONS
Wendy is CEO emeritus of FirstRand Retail, the largest bank in South Africa (which includes First National Bank, WesBank, eBucks, OUTsurance and FirstLink). Wendy is credited with the significant turnaround and growth in performance shown by First National Bank over the previous five years. Wendy transitioned FNB from a command-and-control organization into a democratic one, increasing the bottom-line by 100 percent, raising employee satisfaction to the 90th percentile (from a previously negative score), lowering turnover, and inspiring volunteerism among 10,000 of the 22,000 employees. Previously an international partner at Accenture for 14 years, Wendy is a member of the boards of Eskom, Aveng and Nurcha, a member of the Council of University of South Africa (UNISA) and of the Millennium Labour Council, and a representative for South Africa on the Global Trade and Poverty Forum. Wendy was voted Business Woman of the Year in 1995 and Top Woman in Business in 2004.
PRESIDENT, GREAT PLACE TO WORK INSTITUTE
SAN FRANCISCO, CA
SESSION: CONTEXT
Amy Lyman, Ph.D. is co-founder and President of the Great Place to Work® Institute, which is globally recognized for its "Best Companies to Work For" project with Fortune magazine. The Great Place to Work® Institute is dedicated to building a better society by helping companies transform their workplaces by providing advisory and assessment services for organizations, offering annual conferences on creating trust in the workplace, and continually researching best practices at companies everywhere. Amy works with leaders and managers seeking to transform their organizations into great workplaces using services and tools based on the major findings of more than 20 years of research at the Institute. The Great Place to Work® Institute has International Affiliate offices in over 24 countries around the world.
Learn more at www.greatplacetowork.com.
ENTREPRENEUR, INVESTOR, BLOGGER, DESIGNER + ACTIVIST
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK
SESSION: NEXT
Thomas is a European entrepreneur, investor, blogger, designer, and activist. Thomas is most well-known for being the founder and host of the annual European gathering for practical visionaries called REBOOT, which he has produced seven times since 1998. Thomas is an activist for a new renaissance based on digital tools and networks combined with new social models for conversation, creation, organization, co-operation, work, and creation of meaning – and agenda that he actively pursues through entrepreneurial activities, investments, events, and activist work. Thomas is currently involved in a photo sharing company called “23”, and a wifi company called Organic and Actics, which is a social platform for making ethics actionable. A product of the Net Age, Thomas co-founded the first Danish Internet company (and his first company) at age 17 and has since continued to be educated through hard work, failures, books, articles, big experiences and good conversations.
Learn more at http://reboot.dk and http://23hq.com.
REPRESENTATIVE OF THE PRIME MINISTER OF IRAQ
LONDON, ENGLAND AND BAGHDAD, IRAQ
SESSION: REFORMERS
Dr. Bashar Al-Naher is the representative of the current Iraqi Prime Minister, Dr. Ibrahim Al-Jafaari, outside of Iraq. He has also just completed a five months tour of duty In Iraq as an Advisor to the Prime Minister. Bashar's aim is to bridge the gap and harmonize the relationship between the Muslim world and the West. He would like to see Iraq as the model for a new paradigm of understanding and cooperation between nations based on the common denominator of democracy. Bashar is also a neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) strategic trainer and executive coach and has a company based in London called Global CTD that delivers high quality NLP training to executives and companies, with the aim of bringing out the best in people.
MANAGING DIRECTOR, POINT B SOLUTIONS GROUP
SEATTLE, WA
SESSION: NEXT
Chris Olsen is a Managing Director of Point B Solutions Group, the first professional services firm focused on project leadership and execution. Founded in 1995, the firm provides a diverse and experienced team of locally based project leaders to companies in Seattle, Denver, Portland, and Phoenix for organizations ranging in size from startups to Fortune 100 corporations. Unlike many professional services firms, Point B works exclusively for its clients and does not enter into alliances, reseller agreements, or other relationships that might compromise the firm’s objectivity. Point B has attracted top project leaders from various industries by offering a culture that promotes flexible work schedules and well-rounded lifestyles for its more than 200 employees.
Learn more at http://www.pointb.com
GENERAL DIRECTOR, ORPHEUS CHAMBER ORCHESTRA, NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
SESSION: LEADERSHIP
Graham is the General Director of the Grammy® Award-winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, based in New York City. Founded in 1972 by cellist Julian Fifer and a group of fellow musicians who aspired to perform orchestral repertoire without a conductor, Orpheus is a self-governing organization. Central to its distinctive personality is its unique practice of sharing and rotating leadership roles. For every work, the members of the orchestra select the concertmaster and the principal players for each section. For over three decades, Orpheus has thrilled music lovers on four continents, illuminating works of art both old and new in its profoundly unique manner as a conductorless orchestra. The Orpheus recording legacy consists of more than 70 albums and the centerpiece of each Orpheus season is its celebrated concert series at New York's Carnegie Hall. Accompanying the acclaim for the live performances are numerous distinctions and awards, including a 2001 Grammy Award for Shadow Dances: Stravinsky Miniatures, a 1998 Grammy nomination for its recording of Mozart piano concerti with Richard Goode, and the 1998 "Ensemble of the Year" award by Musical America. Prior to joining Orpheus, Graham held positions with the New York Philharmonic, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and most recently the Brooklyn Philharmonic, where he served as General Manager. He has been a speaker at various workshops and conferences for such organizations as the American Symphony Orchestra League, New York University Schools of Management & Business, and Dartmouth College. Trained in flute and piano and born and raised in London, England, Graham has performed as a singer in choruses and musical theater, and has been a conductor for a variety of orchestras and choruses around the world.
Learn more at www.orpheusNYC.org.
AUTHOR, A WHOLE NEW MIND, WASHINGTON, DC
SESSION: REFORMERS
Dan is the author of A Whole New Mind, the groundbreaking guide to surviving, thriving, and finding meaning in an outsourced, automated, upside down world. His first book, Free Agent Nation, about the growing ranks of people who work for themselves, was a Washington Post nonfiction bestseller and business bestseller in the U.S., Canada, and Japan. Dan is a Contributing Editor at Wired. His articles on business and technology have also appeared in The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, and other publications. A popular speaker, Dan has advised start-up ventures and Fortune 100 companies and has lectured on work, business, and economic transformation to corporate, association, and university audiences around the world. Dan has provided analysis on dozens of television and radio broadcasts - including CNBC's "Power Lunch," ABC's "World News Tonight," NPR's "Morning Edition," and American Public Media's "Marketplace."
Learn more at www.danpink.com.
CEO, MOTEK, BEVERLY HILLS,CALIFORNIA
SESSION: DESIGN
Ann is the founder and CEO of Motek, a democratic company that has developed technologies that have redefined the supply chain execution software market and enabled medium and large-sized companies to streamline their warehouse operations. Privately owned, Motek has garnered industry awards for innovation and technical excellence, and consistently ranks as one of Southern California's fastest growing companies. Ann has been featured in a book entitled, Lean & Meaningful: A New Culture for Corporate America and has been recognized by Inc. Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, ABC's "Good Morning America," and MSNBC's "The Site" for her visionary leadership style and business practices.
Learn more at www.motek.com
SENIOR ASSOCIATE, POINT B SOLUTIONS GROUP
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
SESSION: FRONTLINES
Kathleen is a Senior Associate at Point B Solutions Group, the first professional services firm focused on project leadership and execution. Founded in 1995, the firm provides a diverse and experienced team of locally based project leaders to companies in Seattle, Denver, Portland, and Phoenix for organizations ranging in size from startups to Fortune 100 corporations. Kathleen has over nine years of experience in project leadership including consolidating customer contact centers, implementing end-to-end order management systems and designing organization structures for sustained growth. She holds a BA in Biology from Whitman College and an MA in Management and Organizational Communication from Emerson College. Kathleen enjoys traveling abroad, hiking, reading and exploring the beach at low tide.
Learn more at http://www.pointb.com.
AUTHOR, FUTURIST, EVOLUTION BIOLOGIST, SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA
SESSION: CONTEXT
Elisabet is an internationally known evolution biologist, futurist, author, professor, and business consultant. Elisabet shows the relevance of biological systems to organizational design in business, government and global trade. She teaches in the Bainbridge Graduate Institute's MBA program on sustainable business, and is a fellow of the World Business Academy. Elisabet has been a UN consultant on indigenous peoples, is a co-founder of the Worldwide Indigenous Science Network, and has authored a scientific model of a living cosmos. Her venues have included The World Bank, EPA, Boeing, Siemens, Hewlett-Packard, Tokyo Dome Stadium, Australian National Government State of the World Forums, and the World Parliament of Religion, South Africa. Her books include EarthDance: Living Systems in Evolution; A Walk Through Time: from Stardust to Us: The Evolution of Life on Earth; and Biology Revisioned (with Willis Harman).
Learn more at www.sahtouris.com.
CEO, THE INNOVATION GROUP, QUINCY, MASSACHUSETTS
SESSION: STYLE
Stephen is the author of 24/7 Innovation: A Blueprint for Surviving and Thriving in an Age of Change (McGraw-Hill), and CEO of The 24/7 Innovation Group, a management education and research organization based in Massachusetts that is focused on innovation and break-through thinking. Previously with Accenture, Stephen founded the firm's Global Process Excellence Practice and headed the firm's European Process Excellence Practice as well. Stephen has advised leading organizations around the world in a wide variety of industries including Lockheed Martin, ABB, Xerox, Avaya, Vodafone, Intel, BMW, Frito Lay, Barclays, the Queensland Department of Education, Singapore's Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board, UPS, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. He has been a contributor to several Economist Intelligence Unit reports and to Bill Gate's book Business @ the Speed of Thought. Stephen has published articles in over three dozen newspapers and magazines, including Investor's Business Daily, USA Today (magazine) and The New York Times, and has addressed audiences in 25 countries around the world.
Learn more at www.24-7innovation.com.
FOUNDING EDITOR, FAST COMPANY, BOSTON, MASSACHSETTS
SESSION: LEADERSHIP
For nearly two decades, as a writer, a speaker, and an entrepreneur, Bill Taylor has been setting the idea agenda for business and showcasing the power of business at its best—with a special emphasis on how democratic ideals of distributed leadership and peer-to-peer collaboration can reshape both the marketplace and the workplace. Bill is the co-author of three books on strategy, leadership, and the changing logic of global competition. As cofounder and founding editor of Fast Company, he launched a magazine that changed the conversation about the best ways to do business and has won a passionate following around the world. In 2004, in recognition of Fast Company's impact on business, Taylor was named "Champion of Workplace Learning and Performance" by the American Society of Training and Development. Past winnersof this annual award include Jack Welch of General Electric, John Chambers of Cisco Systems, and Fred Smith of FedEx. Prior to launching Fast Company, Bill was associate editor of the Harvard Business Review, where he steered HBR's coverage of technology, innovation, and the new business models emerging in Silicon Valley, and conducted interviews with some of the world's leading CEOs. Bill is now at work on two projects. He's an adjunct professor at Babson College, where he teaches an MBA course and hosts visiting CEOs in a forum called The Maverick Seminar at Babson College. He's also completing his fourth book, Mavericks at Work: Restoring the Promise of Business, Transforming Your Company and Career.
CO-FOUNDER, GATED COMMUNITY IMPROVISATION, JUPITER, FLORIDA
WORLDBLU FORUM CO-HOST
Travis is the Co-Founder of Gated Community Improvisation (GCI) in Jupiter, Florida. In addition to their unique brand of improvisation comedy, GCI offers corporate training workshops geared at helping business people become better communicators, more creative, and more unified. Prior to founding GCI, Travis spent two years in Boston working in marketing before becoming the Community Supervisor for www.spirituality.com. While at spirituality.com, Travis developed the online community for the site which included hosting numerous online events featuring well-known authors such as Neale Donald Walsh, Dr. John Gray, and Po Bronson. During his four years with the site, Travis hosted and moderated over 300 live chat, audio, and video events. Travis is committed to sharing how the ideas of acting and improvisation can be translated to a business context.
Learn more at www.gcimprov.com.
GURU + COMMENTATOR + AUTHOR
THE CLUETRAIN MANIFESTO
SESSION: convergence
David Weinberger's status as our foremost (and funniest!) interpreter of technology's impact on business and society continues to grow. He has been called a "marketing guru" by the Wall Street Journal, he is co-author of the influential bestseller The Cluetrain Manifesto, and author of the critically acclaimed book Small Pieces Loosely Joined, a highly original and accessible reflection on the human impact of the internet. One of the connected economy's most thought-provoking mavericks, David is a fellow at Harvard's prestigious Berkman Center, a former philosophy professor, gag writer for Woody Allen, NPR commentator, technology columnist, weblogging pioneer, and a dot com entrepreneur. A dynamic and witty speaker, he has received widespread acclaim - for captivating presentations to such companies as IBM, Yahoo, Microsoft, and Disney.
Learn more at www.hyperorg.com.
CEO, COMMUNICO LTD., WESTPORT, CONNECTICUT
SESSION: ROOTS
Sandy is president, CEO, and CFO of Communico Ltd., a leader in service training and development that has been serving clients for over 25 years. With over 30 years of experience as a consultant, trainer, and coach, Sandy has helped leaders at all levels in Fortune 1000 companies to effectively lead and manage, and has consulted with and trained thousands of people around the world in leadership, coaching, listening, team building, and customer relations. Sandy believes his life purpose is to help others never again experience helplessness and that as we re-discover or remember our purpose in life and let it determine our priorities, we will help lift each other and ourselves to new views of what is possible.
Learn more at www.communicoltd.com.
CEO, GE DURHAM PLANT, DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION: DESIGN
Chuck is the plant leader of the Durham Engine Facility for GE's Transportation and Aircraft Engines division. The Durham GE plant builds some of the world's most powerful jet engines - engines that propel Air Force One as well as commercial jets around the world - not by using command-and-control management but by using organizational democracy. Even within GE's widely admired empire, the Durham facility is in its own league; it's a place where the radical has become routine. GE/Durham has more than 170 employees but just one boss: Chuck Williams. GE/Durham has developed a democratic culture that is team-based and non-hierarchical, where employees decide who does what work, how to balance work schedules, how to make the manufacturing process more streamlined, how to handle teammates who slack off, and who to hire as their co-workers. The result is the production of some of the best jet engines in the world, and a world-class reputation for quality, efficiency and performance.
Learn more at http://www.fastcompany.com/online/28/ge.html.





PAMELA HAWLEY
ALEXANDER KJERULF
MART LAAR