Biography

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Experience counts in serious times. For four decades at Fortune, Geoff Colvin has covered the economic, political, technological, and competitive forces disrupting business and how top leaders and companies adapt and transform to win in spite of them. The big takeaway, Geoff Colvin says, is that winning companies and leaders summon the courage to act – they stop protecting the past and start inventing the future – and they confront this reality faster than the competition. As business leaders face their biggest challenge ever, Geoff Colvin is the voice of experience who shines a light – revealing a clearer path for an uncertain future. His columns and cover stories for Fortune have earned him millions of loyal fans. Many of them also hear him dispense critical business insights on the CBS Radio Network, where he reaches seven million listeners each week. Geoff Colvin’s bestselling books include The Upside of the Downturn, Talent is Overrated, and Humans are Underrated. A keynote speaker with compelling content, Geoff Colvin is also a brilliant panel moderator and interviewer.

As Fortune‘s senior editor-at-large, Geoff Colvin is now in his fourth decade at Fortune. He is one of business journalism’s sharpest and most respected commentators on leadership, management, globalization, government regulation, corporate governance, competition, the economy, the infotech revolution, human performance, and related issues.

In addition to his daily CBS Radio Network segments (he’s done over 15,000 since 1995), Geoff Colvin has appeared on Today, Good Morning America, Squawk Box, CBS This Morning, ABC’s World News Tonight, CNN, PBS’s Nightly Business Report, and dozens of other programs. He also served as anchor of Wall $treet Week with Fortune on PBS.

In addition to speaking, Geoff Colvin is also a brilliant panel moderator, emcee, and interviewer whose subjects have included Madeleine Albright, Ben Bernanke, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, Bill Gates, Timothy Geithner, Alan Greenspan, Henry Kissinger, Henry M. Paulson, Colin Powell, Robert Reich, Condoleezza Rice, Desmond Tutu, H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, Jack Welch, Janet Yellen and many others.

Geoff Colvin is a respected author whose groundbreaking international bestseller, Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else, has been published in a dozen languages. The Upside of the Downturn: Management Strategies for Difficult Times was named “Best Management Book of the Year” by Strategy + Business magazine. Geoff’s latest book is Humans are Underrated: What High Achievers Know That Brilliant Machines Never Will.  It’s based on the idea in his wildly popular Fortune article “In the Future Will There Be Any Work Left for People to Do?”  It looks at the trend of advancing technology performing ever more tasks better than people perform them, and the ways humans will create value for their organizations and their careers in the changing economy. The ideas he shares have profound implications for every business and industry.

A native of Vermillion, South Dakota, Geoff Colvin is an honors graduate of Harvard with a degree in economics and has an M.B.A. from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

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Confronting Reality: Leading Ahead of Disruption

Every day can bring harsh new surprises. Economic and policy change. The competitor or new business model you never saw coming. Game-changing technology. Competing in the friction-free economy has leaders worrying most about what they don’t know. In his talk, Geoff Colvin leverages nearly 40 years at Fortune to arm audiences with valuable perspective on the trends driving business disruption, revealing how top leaders are confronting them right now.

Economic growth, consumer demand, interest rates, taxes, employment costs – these issues are transforming the business environment daily, and Geoff provides unparalleled insights in terms you won’t hear elsewhere. And while political winds may blow toward protectionism, the market trends powering the friction-free economy are technological and going strong, requiring swift and full attention.

As a result, winning in business today demands extraordinary leadership acting on the best intelligence it can find. Geoff’s message is optimistic and energizing: opportunity is more widely available than ever and there will be winners – why shouldn’t it be you?

The Future of Work – How Will Humans Fit In?

With robots and smart machines doing so much of the work humans used to do, what is the future of work? Where will humans add value? What job skills will be most in-demand? Geoff Colvin answers these questions and more in this talk based on research for his New York Times bestselling book, Humans are Underrated. Forward-thinking employers say the critical skills they’ll need most to compete in the future are those that focus on social interaction: collaboration, storytelling, social sensitivity, brainstorming, creating and innovating with others, leading, and above all – empathy.

The need to transition to newly valuable skills is happening faster than organizations and most psyches can adapt. And for those companies balancing a workforce of people and machines, there are political and PR consequences. Geoff reveals what top organizations are doing to prepare for the future of work. The good news is that we humans already have what it takes – it’s up to us to make of it what we will.

Where Is This Economy Headed?

Even before the new alignment of power in Washington, it was the question on everyone’s mind: where are the U.S. and global economies going? Now it’s even more urgent – and uncertain. The economic picture can change dramatically with a single tweet, and Geoff Colvin covers it in depth from his perch at Fortune. In opinion surveys, top CEOs and ordinary consumers say the same thing: there’s too much change, too fast; we can’t keep up.

We all remember a time when it was easier to anticipate where things might be headed, when the consequences of misjudgment were less severe. Now a meltdown of financial markets in China can ripple globally and take down a trillion dollars in assets in a single day – and such volatility is becoming more common. Geoff helps audiences make sense of the forces driving economic change – offering a glimpse of where each may take you and your business.

Confronting Technology – Are You Ready?

It’s a huge opportunity if you’re aware of it – a mortal threat if you’re not. The technology that revolutionizes lives and businesses is advancing at an increasing rate. Each stride forward is bigger than the last. A $1,000 laptop will possess the computing power of a human brain by 2023 and the computing power of all human brains by 2050. Are you ready for the opportunities and challenges such technology will bring? Most people aren’t.

Every business and businessperson now needs a new, uniquely modern competence: the discipline of confronting the reality of future tech, which we cannot intuitively picture, combined with the creativity of imagining what might be possible when that future arrives. Geoff describes what’s happening in an exciting, accessible way and shows how today’s most successful businesses are thinking and acting in new ways to own the incredible future. Geoff’s presentation will help align your people and make them more disciplined in confronting the future.

Talent Is Overrated – How Great Performers Really Got Great

Scientific research on great performance shows that what most of us believe about hard work and raw talent is off-base. That means most of us will never perform as well as we could. Geoff Colvin, author of the groundbreaking international bestseller Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else, explains the findings and relates them to real life in real organizations. He shows how most organizations value the wrong things – that passion, honesty, and learning are more valuable than hours, IQ, or “native ability.” Geoff demonstrates that world-class performance comes from behaviors that every person and organization can adopt. Those who apply these principles gain a tremendous competitive advantage and Geoff cites relevant examples to prove it and launch an important conversation in your organization.

Panel Moderator, Discussion Leader, Emcee/Host

Geoff Colvin’s unique gift is his ability to brilliantly moderate panels, lead onstage interviews and host/emcee. He’s played these roles for more than three decades at Fortune conferences worldwide. Top companies and associations regularly utilize Geoff because he gets the most out of participants; he asks the right questions, listens intently to what’s being said on stage and responds to that – keeping the discussion relevant and the energy high.

Testimonials

“In a word: fantastic! Geoff really was perfect for this. He kept the conversation lively. Geoff really knocked it out of the ballpark.”
– Microsoft
No surprise, Geoff was articulate and insightful, thoughtful on global and fiscal issues affecting industry and candid on impressions of leadership. Not to mention, a wonderful man who I will forever be indebted to.
– CEO, The Elliot Group
hanks so very much for your moderating today. I felt relaxed and right at home.
– George H.W. Bush
Once again your stewardship of the business sessions opened the door for a truly interactive and valuable dialogue for everyone. Your depth of understanding of the challenges these companies are facing and the opportunities that lie ahead added tremendously to our conversations.
– John Chambers, CEO, Cisco
The consensus was: “He did a great job.” “He was dead on.” “He said what we needed to here.” “Great job.” I truly didn’t hear one bad or negative comment. He was a total “hit”. He was a total delight to work with (as were all of you). Thank you for everything.
– Assistant to the CEO and President, Vanguard Health Systems

Booksby Geoff Colvin

Humans Are Underrated

Talent Is Overrrated

The Upside of the Downturn

Angel Customers & Demon Customers

Blog Posts

The Power of Improvisation in an AI-Driven World

Why Improvisation is Essential in a Tech-Focused Era In an era where artificial intelligence is...

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What You Can Do to Overcome Your Insecurities

Understanding Insecurities and Their Impact on Leadership https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9JD7cEZlfE&list=PLXTlGHk63lLgbS8LN-PENXDzwMdqWAnOm Insecurities affect how we present ourselves, especially...

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How to Teach Kids Accountability So They Can Thrive in Life

The Power of Teaching Accountability Through Leadership and Integrity https://youtu.be/Vn0nJwyDSHI As parents, we all want...

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Lessons From Disney’s Magical Customer Experience with Dennis Snow

What Makes Disney’s Customer Experience Unforgettable? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g09WV73f6MM&list=PLXTlGHk63lLhUq_lEU1bnM3LbQgMfwD-u Watch this week’s podcast episode here: YouTube • Spotify • Apple Podcasts • Amazon...

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Bridging the Gap: Navigating Political Discussions in the Workplace and at Events

Political discussions are bound to pop up at almost every turn – learn how to...

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How You Can Lead Different Generations in The Workplace

The Power of Generations: Building Stronger Teams Through Understanding 🎯🌟 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AS7YENTjnI&list=PLXTlGHk63lLgbS8LN-PENXDzwMdqWAnOm Let’s face it: different...

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Blog Posts

 

The Power of Improvisation in an AI-Driven World

Why Improvisation is Essential in a Tech-Focused Era In an era where artificial intelligence is...

Read More

What You Can Do to Overcome Your Insecurities

Understanding Insecurities and Their Impact on Leadership https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9JD7cEZlfE&list=PLXTlGHk63lLgbS8LN-PENXDzwMdqWAnOm Insecurities affect how we present ourselves, especially...

Read More

How to Teach Kids Accountability So They Can Thrive in Life

The Power of Teaching Accountability Through Leadership and Integrity https://youtu.be/Vn0nJwyDSHI As parents, we all want...

Read More

Lessons From Disney’s Magical Customer Experience with Dennis Snow

What Makes Disney’s Customer Experience Unforgettable? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g09WV73f6MM&list=PLXTlGHk63lLhUq_lEU1bnM3LbQgMfwD-u Watch this week’s podcast episode here: YouTube • Spotify • Apple Podcasts • Amazon...

Read More

Bridging the Gap: Navigating Political Discussions in the Workplace and at Events

Political discussions are bound to pop up at almost every turn – learn how to...

Read More

How You Can Lead Different Generations in The Workplace

The Power of Generations: Building Stronger Teams Through Understanding 🎯🌟 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AS7YENTjnI&list=PLXTlGHk63lLgbS8LN-PENXDzwMdqWAnOm Let’s face it: different...

Read More