
Bruce W. Piasecki
President and Founder of AHC Group and Best-Selling Author
Dr. Bruce Piasecki, speaker, best-selling author, and classic management consultant—has worked as an active facilitator and a change agent in many complex settings. For thirty years, he has built a general management consulting firm, the AHC Group, based on principles of frugality, global competitiveness, and competing on sustainability. The environment of global business is ever…
Categories :
Full Bio
Dr. Bruce Piasecki, speaker, best-selling author, and classic management consultant—has worked as an active facilitator and a change agent in many complex settings. For thirty years, he has built a general management consulting firm, the AHC Group, based on principles of frugality, global competitiveness, and competing on sustainability. The environment of global business is ever changing, and Piasecki is an intrepid forecaster of things that must change in firms, governments, and the NGO community.
One of the world’s leading corporate strategists and governance advisors who bases his practice on environmental and business needs, Piasecki has built his reputation through helping corporations move beyond compliance to align their operations to both respond to and capitalize on society’s rising expectations of business.
Piasecki has helped the global car giant Toyota, for example, pursue the hybrid power train family of more fuel-efficient cars. His firm has helped the Warren Buffett firm Shaw Industries create a growth and sustainability leadership council in its move to bring recycled content and energy savings to the world’s largest maker of carpet and flooring. He is now helping FMC move its growth and sustainability council in the direction of more seaweed and bio-based chemical feedstocks. Piasecki understands that global companies are subject to increasing demands from governments and civil society to operate in a manner that is respectful of various and often competing demands. The problems facing companies today span the gamut of financial, operational, and social concerns. Navigating these issues requires leaders skilled in both hard and soft sciences. Yet even with these skill sets, people often fail to achieve the vision set by the organization. Often the assumption is that the person simply “does not have what it takes” to be a real leader.
Piasecki believes that leadership can be found in people who have the courage and capacity to accept challenges that exceed their previous experience. This capacity can be developed through coaching and mentoring, as well as a willingness of current leaders to share their histories of success and failure. His message is applicable to a far broader audience than the men and women in executive suites and boardrooms. Piasecki is able to relate the new realities of the swift and severe world of the twenty-first century to both business leaders and casual society, providing an optimistic yet grounded vision of the future along the way.
A Trusted Advisor in the Corporate Mansion
Piasecki is the president and founder of the AHC Group, Inc., a top energy and environmental strategy consultancy to companies such as Toyota, Suncor Energy, Hess, FMC, and Dow Chemical. The firm has specialized in energy, materials, and environmental corporate matters since 1981. Piasecki and his staff have run hundreds of benchmarking workshops for numerous multinational corporate affiliates since 1990, involving key executives in site remediation, power markets, emerging issues, and governance concerns in the evolving global marketplace. He and his team of senior associates provide critical training to leaders and near-term leaders for some of the world’s leading organizations.
A Spotlight on Fair Competition in Teams
In his latest book, Doing More with Teams: The New Way to Winning (Wiley, March 2013), Piasecki debunked the myth of the superiority of the fierce individualist. While our culture will always be inspired by the concept of the lone entrepreneur blazing a path through the metaphorical wilderness, he says we must acknowledge the truth behind the (alleged) Aristotle quote: “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Teams matter more than ever, says Piasecki, especially now that the global economy has changed the way we work. Standing out in a crowded marketplace takes constant innovation and the ability to get fast results. With the complexity of today’s workplace, even the most brilliant individual is not likely to have the skill set to take projects from start to finish. The ability to collaborate is everything…and that requires high-functioning teams.
Yet, all too often teams come and go and nothing seems to change. Why do some teams achieve greatness while others are destined to be just another failed initiative? What is it about teams that succeed, that mythical “it” that defines success? Piasecki weaves a lifetime of the study of the greatest thinkers and philosophers of the ages together with insights from the most hard-nosed pragmatic business and military leaders to help us understand the dynamics, the DNA, of team success.
A Universal Way Forward
In his latest bestseller, Doing More with Less: The New Way to Wealth (Wiley, March 2012), Piasecki introduced a new framework to build competitive advantage in the swift and severe world of the twenty-first century—innovation and growth through frugality. In a world of seven billion souls, where we all need to compete for value in the marketplace and in the court of public opinion, we must become like Benjamin Franklin, says Piasecki: frugal in our competitiveness, innovative in our use of teams, and diplomatic in how we discover and use social value. He deftly explains how this approach to competition is applicable not only to business leaders but individuals as well. In combination with his previous seven works on business strategy and corporate change, Piasecki has laid out a complete and compelling vision of how we all can thrive in a world that presents both endless opportunity for innovation and harsh repercussions for inaction.
A Map of the Business World
With his previous books, World Inc. (2007) and The Surprising Solution (2009), Piasecki examines a striking new phenomenon in what he coins “social response capitalism.” The concept took off, translating his work into numerous languages and settings.
As power moves increasingly into the hands of business, the world is looking to corporations instead of governments to solve its problems. Gone are the days of focusing solely on technical quality and price. One must center their competitiveness now on “social response,” and product positioning is an entirely new ball game in the practice areas of Bruce Piasecki and his firm.
Dr. Bruce Piasecki—speaker, best-selling author, and classic management consultant—has worked as an active facilitator and a change agent in many complex settings. For thirty years, he has built a general management consulting firm, the AHC Group, based on principles of frugality, global competitiveness, and competing on sustainability. The environment of global business is ever changing, and Piasecki is an intrepid forecaster of things that must change in firms, governments, and the NGO community.
One of the world’s leading corporate strategists and governance advisors who bases his practice on environmental and business needs, Piasecki has built his reputation through helping corporations move beyond compliance to align their operations to both respond to and capitalize on society’s rising expectations of business.
Piasecki has helped the global car giant Toyota, for example, pursue the hybrid power train family of more fuel-efficient cars. His firm has helped the Warren Buffett firm Shaw Industries create a growth and sustainability leadership council in its move to bring recycled content and energy savings to the world’s largest maker of carpet and flooring. He is now helping FMC move its growth and sustainability council in the direction of more seaweed and bio-based chemical feedstocks. Piasecki understands that global companies are subject to increasing demands from governments and civil society to operate in a manner that is respectful of various and often competing demands. The problems facing companies today span the gamut of financial, operational, and social concerns. Navigating these issues requires leaders skilled in both hard and soft sciences. Yet even with these skill sets, people often fail to achieve the vision set by the organization. Often the assumption is that the person simply “does not have what it takes” to be a real leader.
Piasecki believes that leadership can be found in people who have the courage and capacity to accept challenges that exceed their previous experience. This capacity can be developed through coaching and mentoring, as well as a willingness of current leaders to share their histories of success and failure. His message is applicable to a far broader audience than the men and women in executive suites and boardrooms. Piasecki is able to relate the new realities of the swift and severe world of the twenty-first century to both business leaders and casual society, providing an optimistic yet grounded vision of the future along the way.
A Trusted Advisor in the Corporate Mansion
Piasecki is the president and founder of the AHC Group, Inc., a top energy and environmental strategy consultancy to companies such as Toyota, Suncor Energy, Hess, FMC, and Dow Chemical. The firm has specialized in energy, materials, and environmental corporate matters since 1981. Piasecki and his staff have run hundreds of benchmarking workshops for numerous multinational corporate affiliates since 1990, involving key executives in site remediation, power markets, emerging issues, and governance concerns in the evolving global marketplace. He and his team of senior associates provide critical training to leaders and near-term leaders for some of the world’s leading organizations.
A Spotlight on Fair Competition in Teams
In his latest book, Doing More with Teams: The New Way to Winning (Wiley, March 2013), Piasecki debunked the myth of the superiority of the fierce individualist. While our culture will always be inspired by the concept of the lone entrepreneur blazing a path through the metaphorical wilderness, he says we must acknowledge the truth behind the (alleged) Aristotle quote: “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Teams matter more than ever, says Piasecki, especially now that the global economy has changed the way we work. Standing out in a crowded marketplace takes constant innovation and the ability to get fast results. With the complexity of today’s workplace, even the most brilliant individual is not likely to have the skill set to take projects from start to finish. The ability to collaborate is everything…and that requires high-functioning teams. Yet, all too often teams come and go and nothing seems to change. Why do some teams achieve greatness while others are destined to be just another failed initiative? What is it about teams that succeed, that mythical “it” that defines success? Piasecki weaves a lifetime of the study of the greatest thinkers and philosophers of the ages together with insights from the most hard-nosed pragmatic business and military leaders to help us understand the dynamics, the DNA, of team success.
A Universal Way Forward
In his latest bestseller, Doing More with Less: The New Way to Wealth (Wiley, March 2012), Piasecki introduced a new framework to build competitive advantage in the swift and severe world of the twenty-first century—innovation and growth through frugality. In a world of seven billion souls, where we all need to compete for value in the marketplace and in the court of public opinion, we must become like Benjamin Franklin, says Piasecki: frugal in our competitiveness, innovative in our use of teams, and diplomatic in how we discover and use social value. He deftly explains how this approach to competition is applicable not only to business leaders but individuals as well. In combination with his previous seven works on business strategy and corporate change, Piasecki has laid out a complete and compelling vision of how we all can thrive in a world that presents both endless opportunity for innovation and harsh repercussions for inaction.
A Map of the Business World
With his previous books, World Inc. (2007) and The Surprising Solution (2009), Piasecki examines a striking new phenomenon in what he coins “social response capitalism.” The concept took off, translating his work into numerous languages and settings.
As power moves increasingly into the hands of business, the world is looking to corporations instead of governments to solve its problems. Gone are the days of focusing solely on technical quality and price. One must center their competitiveness now on “social response,” and product positioning is an entirely new ball game in the practice areas of Bruce Piasecki and his firm.
Testimonials
Ernie was perfect for our Elders Conference at Little River Casino Resort in Manistee, Michigan. We will definitely be using PDA again!

LITTLE RIVER BAND OF OTTAWA INDIANS
Our speaker was great and the crowd enjoyed her! She was very engaging. Thank you again PDA for the great list of suggestions!

MEDTRONIC
Everything went great! and our speaker was wonderful! Thank you so much for all your help PDA! Looking forward to the next one.

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI – KANSAS CITY
I hope that this message finds you well. We had a phenomenal time with Atsuko this past Thursday. We wanted to just let you know how amazing she was. All those that were in attendance thoroughly enjoyed her and had nothing but amazing things to say about her. Thank you for working with us to make sure this happened!

BAYLOR UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
We had a fantastic day with Inge! She was very engaging with all those that attended. Her personal stories about the holocaust were very special and we were moved that she was willing to share them with everyone. Thank you again, PDA for all your hard work and dedication to make this program such a success!

SALT LAKE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Dear PDA Group, Thank you so much for your hard work in scheduling our speaker! From the moment we reached out to you the first time, you worked with us on all details and logistics and kept us up-to-date on the progress. Thank you for all your hard work on making our event such a success! We couldn't have done it without you and your team!

SAP COMPANY
Thank you again, Dr. Kimbrough, for a great presentation, our attendees are still talking about it!

CAMPUS LABS
Dr. Henry Lee's presentation was entertaining, insightful and wise. I, and everyone at Pfizer, especially appreciate the remarks you directed about following your passion and preparing yourself to excel. Thank you, everyone, at PDA for helping to make this happen!

PFIZER
The event was successful! I received many messages expressing how awesome, outstanding and inspiring Ms. Webb-Christburg's speech was."

DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MEMORIAL BREAKFAST, BOSTON, MLK SPEAKER
Everything went well. Atsuko was very easy to work with and the students enjoyed her performance! Thank you again for your recommendation and I hope to work with you again in the future!

CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Dr. Novello left this morning after a very successful event on our campus! Thank you PDA Group for your help from the first phone to the last you were with us every step of the way.

GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
Jordan Carlos was very very entertaining! A majority of students who answered the event survey indicated they really enjoyed Jordan and definitely will bring him back!

WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY
On behalf of myself and my organization Entertainment Unlimited the Campus Programming Board of Ferris State University, we thank you PDA and Dan for a successful event!! Dan was magnificent! Students really enjoyed the presentation. I know I did. Can't wait to bring in more programs with PDA Group.

FERRIS STATE UNIVERSITY
It was a great pleasure to work with PDA Group! The communication was always prompt, friendly and helpful. We loved the speakers and events we booked through Mr. Peter Walker (PDA Group).

WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Thank you, Peter, for all your help, you'll be happy to know that the event went incredibly well! Aneesa Ferreira was by far one of the best speakers we've ever had!

FURMAN UNIVERSITY
Topics
- Going Global, Going Green
- Social Leaders and Business Leaders: Cut from the Same Cloth?
- To Master the Task of Tomorrow, Manage the Challenge Today
- Recruiting and Retaining Talent in Modern Times
- Developing Leaders We Can Trust
- Money Doesn’t Manage Itself
Videos
Bruce Piasecki: Cornell Lecture
Doing More With Less - The New Way To Wealth by Bruce Piasecki (5 minute video)
Books
News
Testimonials
GET IDEAS

1 HOUR OR LESS