Biography

Mark Thompson is an expert on executive leadership, business strategy, and innovation who has spent over 25 years leading teams and building companies from the ground up. He delivers actionable, valuable and practical advice for leaders at all levels of an organization.

New York Times bestselling author Mark C. Thompson is a leadership coach for the world’s fastest growing, most innovative companies—from LYFT CEO & Cofounder Logan Green, Pinterest Cofounder Evan Sharp and World Bank CEO Dr. Jim Kim, to founders Richard Branson, Steve Jobs and Charles Schwab, for whom he served as the world’s first CXO—Chief Customer Experience Officer.

Forbes Magazine says Mark has the ‘Midas’ touch as a sought after coach, speaker, and venture investor.  His New York Times bestselling books include: ADMIRED: 21 Ways to Double Your Value; Now Build a Great Business; and Success Built to Last – Creating a Life that Matters, Mark is also an Innovation Leadership columnist for Forbes.com, Inc.com, and FastCompany.com. His most recent bestseller ADMIRED is a primer on how the world’s “Most Admired Companies” achieve long-term success and growth as well as the qualities that are common to “Most Admired Leaders”.

Mark was Charles Schwab’s former Chief of Staff and Chief Customer Experience Officer, and the Executive Producer of Schwab.com which today has assets over $3 Trillion. He is a co-founding advisor of Sir Richard Branson’s Entrepreneurship Centres.

Mark is a founding advisor of the Stanford Realtime Venture Design Lab, and served as a visiting scholar at his alma mater, Stanford University, and adjunct faculty at the World Economic Forum, World Business Forum, and John F. Kennedy University.

A successful venture capitalist over the last two decades, Mark was as an early investor in companies like Facebook, Netflix and founding board member of Esurance. He has been a Board Member for many well-known technology, biotech and retail companies, including Best Buy, Korn Ferry, and Interwoven (now owned by HP). He was the Chairman of the Board for Rioport, which popularized the MP3 player prior to the iPod.

Among Mark’s passions are music and Broadway. Mark serves as a founding Board of Directors member for Smule, the top music app company on iTunes which has over 125 million users worldwide. As a Broadway producer, Mark’s plays have earned ten nominations and five Tony Awards.

Recognized for Leadership and Achievements:

  • RANKED #1 CEO COACH
    2021 Stanford CEO Summit and Goldsmith Leading Coaches
  • Awarded World Class Mentor 2021
    The International Federation of Learning and Development
  • FOUNDING CHAIRMAN & BOARD MEMBER 12 FIRMS WITH $57 BILLION VALUE
    From Esurance.com to Interwoven.com: Forbes ‘Midas’ Touch List for Americas’ Top Venture Investors
  • WORLD’S #1 LEADERSHIP GROWTH COACH
    CSuite Coaching @WorldBank @Pfizer @Virgin @Google @Apple @Lyft @Pinterest
  • LAUNCHED STANFORD UNIVERSITY REAL-TIME VENTURE DESIGN LAB
    Founding advisor to Stanford, JFK University, Virgin Entrepreneurship Centers
  • WORLD’S FIRST CXO:
    CHIEF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE OFFICER

    Integrated Schwab’s In-Person, In-Store, Online Schwab.com Experience
  • NY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR & COLUMNIST @INC, @FORBES @FASTCOMPANY
    Success Built to Last, Now Build a Great Business, Fortune’s Most Admired
  • AWARD-WINNING ADJUNCT FACULTY
    @STANFORD @HARVARD @WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM @WORLD BUSINESS FORUM
  • TONY AWARD-WINNING BROADWAY PRODUCER
    11 Tony Nominations and 5 Tony Award for plays like Disney’s Peter & The StarCatcher
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Videos

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Fanatic Sales Growth – Success Built to Last Growing from Good to Great to ADMIRED

In this high-impact keynote, Mark reveals the critical drivers behind long-term sales growth and enduring success. He lays out the key factors that differentiate companies that are Good, those that become Great and those that are ADMIRED.

How world-class teams generate unstoppable growth

Avoiding common mistakes that cut sales in half

5 Tools To Double Sales: Positioning-Pain-Promise-Proof-Planning

The customer service strategies that drive customer retention

Discovering what your market craves and getting ahead of the curve

Business Transformation: Drive Change and Create a Culture of Innovation

Disruptive innovation is happening all around us in almost every industry. “Disruptive Innovation” can mean: disrupting your competitors, customer relationships, internal processes, reward systems, management strategy, the status quo and “last century thinking”. But how do you create a culture of innovation that enables a big company to think and act like a small one? Mark shares insights on world-class companies that struggled with change—some that failed to adjust to meet changing markets and others that reinvented their business models and transformed entire industries with disruptive innovations. Mark answers several questions that will help you understand how to:

Enable your teams to not only embrace change, but lead business transformation

Operationalize innovation while still meeting the demands of Wall Street

Remove the fear of failure for disruptive ideas

Create incentive systems that reward those that challenge “business as usual”

Empower employees at every level to make change happen

Building a Most Admired Brand through Customer and Employee Engagement

Leaders of the world’s Most Admired Companies know that the customer experience IS the brand! Customer engagement is not about transactions, it’s about RELATIONSHIPS—acting as though you’d put your own money on the line in your customer’s company. If you were investing in your customer’s company, you’d think differently about how you deal with them and fight for their success like it was your own. Mark brings many examples of how the most admired brands approach customer engagement and set the standard for lasting customer relationships in their industries. These companies understand four key components that lead to lasting customer relationships:

Every touchpoint that a customer encounters is defining your brand

Delivering a consistent experience regardless of point of contact or method of communication

A high level of Employee Engagement is critical to achieving Customer Engagement

Knowing what your MVPs (both customers and employees) value is key to moving past “transactions”, developing long term relationships, and driving loyalty

Most Admired Leadership: Nobody Does it Alone! Building Great Teams

Mark shares insights into the top leadership qualities of the world’s Most Admired Leaders according to the most engaged employees. In a broad survey of over 10,000 employees in 110 countries, Mark’s research team identified the top eight leadership traits that people want from their leaders. He presents case studies from many of these leaders including his experience working directly with several of them. He outlines how the Most Admired leaders have achieved such enduring success over decades and how they consistently:

Recruit, Build and Retain the highest performing teams

Create a corporate culture that Inspires loyalty and engagement

Face adversity and bounce back from failures

Challenge themselves and their teams year after year to outdo themselves and achieve continuous and long-term growth

Learn what their MVP’s value and what drives them in their lives and work

Testimonials

Mark Thompson inspires your team to drive change, accelerate growth & re-invent the customer experience TO TRANSFORM LEADERS INTO VALUE CREATORS!
– Prof. Cliff Nass, Stanford University, Real-time Venture Lab
America’s #1 Leadership Coach for all C-Level Execs!
– CEO Chuck Robbins, Cisco Systems
Mark Thompson's inspiring message is just what your leadership team needs! He customizes his keynotes to provide actionable ideas and insight for your organization.
– Susanne Lyons, Chief Marketing Officer, VISA
Mark, your keynote to our group on Thursday can only be described as 'super fantastic'. It couldn't have been any better. Thank you so much for taking the time to grasp our cultural and for your willingness to modify your presentation to fit our very diverse audience. I heard lots and lots of great feedback from all levels of the company who were in the audience.
– Jittaun Phillips, CMP, Senior Meeting Planner, Wells Fargo
I really enjoyed reading "Success Built to Last" and was, of course, pleased about the prominent mentioning of Davos. I wonder whether we could take the lessons and experience which you summarize in the book and use them for an interactive discussion in our "CEOs only" session in Davos. Please let me know your ideas.
– Klaus Schwab, Founder and Chairman; World Economic Forum
There is no greater thing you can do with your life and your work than follow your passions--in a way that serves the world and you...(Mark) reveals a meaningful 'secret formula' for success based on the lives of remarkable people. Mark and Bonita reveal powerful strategies from their latest research that will help you make it happen. Sir Richard selected Mark as one of 6 judges globally for his entrepreneurship competitions, and Mark is a founding advisor to the Branson Entrepreneurship Centers.
– Sir Richard Branson, Founder, Virgin Group
I loved that your presentation included universally relatable examples and memorable images! Plus, you clearly had a passion for the subject matter, which just makes it that much more engaging and interesting! Please send presentation!
– Jaime Weber, Sales Excellence Operations Manager, Microsoft
Many thanks for the excellent workshop. Our clients - high potential leaders - were inspired and energized by your extraordinary message.
– Johan Soor, McKinsey Sweden
Thank you. I appreciate the time you dedicated to helping us deliver on our message. Great job on your presentation, it was well received and has resonated with the team. I am still hearing the team talking about this morning.
– Bill Jackson, Vice President, Sales, Rite Aid
I just saw Mark's presentation and I was really intrigued by how he scoped out what success means. It really hit the nail on the head on many different aspects. I could see that Mark really understands the opportunities within our industry--who's making it grow and where we're heading. So it's time to do bigger and better things.
– Laura V. Morrison, Sr. Vice President, New York Stock Exchange

Booksby Mark Thompson

ADMIRED—21 WAYS TO DOUBLE YOUR VALUE

SUCCESS BUILT TO LAST

NOW…BUILD A GREAT BUSINESS!

Blog Posts

5 Goals for Event Professionals in 2025

Event professionals, it’s time to level up. Stay ahead of the curve with our newsletter and set yourself up for success in the year ahead.

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Simple Travel Tips to Outsmart Jet Lag This Holiday Season

Do you travel for work and constantly feels drained when you land? Learn actionable tips to help you bounce back faster and perform at your best.

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Finding Your Purpose with Small Acts of Kindness

Discover how small acts of kindness can help you find purpose and create a lasting impact in your life and others.

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Take Ownership and Transform Your Life Today

Take ownership of your life with Merril Hoge's inspiring insights on resilience, mindfulness, and breaking unhealthy cycles.

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Reflecting on 2024: Key Insights and Trends for Event Professionals

What were the biggest takeaways from events in 2024, and how can they shape the way you plan conferences in 2025? 📝

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Innovative Insights to Keep Your Event Attendees Engaged

Discover innovative insights and strategies to enhance attendee experience and engagement at your next event.

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Blog Posts

 

5 Goals for Event Professionals in 2025

As an event professional, your job revolves around creating experiences that bring people together, inspire...

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Simple Travel Tips to Outsmart Jet Lag This Holiday Season

At The Keynote Curators, we understand how much time event professionals spend on the road. With...

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Finding Your Purpose with Small Acts of Kindness

What does it truly mean to find your purpose? Many people believe purpose is tied...

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Take Ownership and Transform Your Life Today

What’s holding you back from living the life you’ve always wanted? If you’ve ever felt...

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Reflecting on 2024: Key Insights and Trends for Event Professionals

As we stand on the threshold of a new year, it's the perfect time to...

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Innovative Insights to Keep Your Event Attendees Engaged

Engaging attendees at an event is no easy feat, especially in today’s fast-paced world where...

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