
Rosabeth Moss Kanter
Author & Harvard University Professor Who Specializes in Strategy, Innovation and Leadership for Change
Rosabeth Moss Kanter holds the Ernest L. Arbuckle Professorship at Harvard Business School, where she specializes in strategy, innovation, and leadership for change. Her strategic and practical insights have guided leaders of large and small organizations worldwide for over 25 years, through teaching, writing, and direct consultation to major corporations and governments. Professor Kanter is…
Categories :
Full Bio
Rosabeth Moss Kanter holds the Ernest L. Arbuckle Professorship at Harvard Business School, where she specializes in strategy, innovation, and leadership for change. Her strategic and practical insights have guided leaders of large and small organizations worldwide for over 25 years, through teaching, writing, and direct consultation to major corporations and governments.
Professor Kanter is the author or co-author of 19 books, which have been translated into 17 languages.
The Change Masters was named one of the most influential business books of the 20th century (Financial Times).
America the Principled: 6 Opportunities for Becoming a Can-Do Nation Once, offers a positive agenda for the nation, focused on innovation and education, a new workplace social contract, values-based corporate conduct, competent government, positive international relations through citizen diplomacy and business networks, and national and community service.
Confidence: How Winning Streaks & Losing Streaks Begin & End (a New York Times business and #1 Business Week bestseller), describes the culture and dynamics of high-performance organizations as compared with those in decline, and shows how to lead turnarounds, whether in businesses, hospitals, schools, sports teams, community organizations, or countries.
Men & Women of the Corporation (C. Wright Mills award winner for the year’s best book on social issues) offered insight to countless individuals and organizations about corporate careers and the individual and organizational factors that promote success;
A Tale of ‘O’: On Being Different is among the world’s most widely-used diversity tools;
Work & Family in the United States, set a policy agenda – a coalition of university centers created the Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award in her honor for the best research on work/family issues.
When Giants Learn to Dance, showed how to master the new terms of competition at the dawn of the global information age.
World Class: Thriving Locally in the Global Economy identified the rise of new business networks and analyzed the benefits and tensions of globalization.
She has received 24 honorary doctoral degrees, as well as numerous leadership awards and prizes for her books and articles; her book The Change Masters was named one of the most influential business books of the 20th century (Financial Times). Through Goodmeasure Inc., the consulting group she co-founded, she has partnered with IBM to bring her leadership tools, originally developed for businesses, to public education as part of IBM’s award-winning Reinventing Education initiative and she is a Senior Advisor for IBM’s Global Citizenship portfolio.
She advises CEOs of large and small companies, has served on numerous business and non-profit boards and national or regional commissions, and speaks widely, often sharing the platform with Presidents, Prime Ministers, and CEOs at national and international events, such as the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Before joining the Harvard Business School faculty, she held tenured professorships at Yale University and Brandeis University and was a Fellow at Harvard Law School, simultaneously holding a Guggenheim Fellowship.
She chairs a Harvard University group creating an innovative initiative on advanced leadership, to help successful leaders at the top of their professions apply their skills not only to managing their own enterprises but also to addressing challenging national and global problems.
The former chief Editor of Harvard Business Review (1989-1992), Professor Kanter has been named to lists of the “50 most powerful women in the world” (Times of London), and the “50 most influential business thinkers in the world” (Accenture and Thinkers 50 research). In 2001, she received the Academy of Management’s Distinguished Career Award for her scholarly contributions to management knowledge, and in 2002 was named “Intelligent Community Visionary of the Year” by the World Teleport Association. She was the top-ranking woman—No. 11 overall—in a 2002 study of Top Business Intellectuals by citation in several sources. She was named one of the “50 most powerful women in Boston” by Boston Magazine and one of the “125 women who changed our world” over the past 125 years by Good Housekeeping magazine in May 2010.
Her Ph.D. is from the University of Michigan.
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
Leadership in a Networked World
In today’s highly networked world, has the meaning of leadership changed? Competition is increasing – and increasingly global. Technology is transforming work – and how and where we do it – with exponential speed and rapid innovation. Ideas are coming from all directions and unexpected places including emerging markets, more diverse partners and self-organizing employees. Rosabeth Moss Kanter answers the leadership question and eloquently identifies the new leadership imperatives. By learning to embrace them, leaders will harness the knowledge, capability and confidence – in us, our teams and our organizations – to produce the momentum of success.
The Big Change: Forces Reshaping Business
You might have survived the downturn, but disruptions continue – and seeking growth, let alone long-term survival, requires thinking differently. Diverse forces – from technology and demography to climate change and shifting social values – challenge once-dominant financial assumptions and require change-adept organizations to better connect to surrounding society. Big challenges can become attractive opportunities if companies see the strategic, organizational and cultural transformations ahead. Rosabeth Moss Kanter asserts that preparing for, responding to and thriving in business’ new normal requires a new focus on institution-building. She discusses the six facets of organizational logic that are radically altering leadership and corporate behavior, and are the building blocks of a more sustainable competitive advantage, even in industries under siege. She draws compelling examples from great companies worldwide that are leading the way to creating innovation, profits, growth and social good. She also provides practical insights about how to make the change
Innovation: The Classic Traps and The Key Accelerators
To successfully compete in today’s global economy, innovation is imperative. It’s the big prize; finding it is framed as almost a sacred quest for the big hit solution that will create growth and open new eras of prosperity and well-being. Yet, for all the talk about the great need and value of innovation, there are leaders in every sector who actively stifle it – unwittingly or not. Is your organization stuck in an innovation trap or are you accelerating change through new ideas? Rosabeth Moss Kanter identifies nine anti-innovation practices to eliminate and discusses actions necessary to allow innovation to flourish, including using the “innovation pyramid” to guide both small wins and bold ventures. Create a culture that embraces – and propels – innovation of all kinds. The health and sustainability of your business depend on it.
Leadership to Reinvent Transportation and Infrastructure
The sorry state of American infrastructure affects businesses and everyday lives: commuters stuck in traffic congestion; delayed goods at higher cost; human suffering from collapsing bridges or train derailments; public transit that fails in severe weather or fails to connect poor neighborhoods to jobs; and other weaknesses compared to international competitors. Drawing from her just-published book, “MOVE: Putting America’s Infrastructure Back in the Lead,” Rosabeth Moss Kanter takes a sweeping look across modes of transportation and changing industries to illuminate the roots of the current system mess and where the leadership will come from to initiate dramatic improvement. Among the important players are visionary civic leaders, app-creating technology entrepreneurs, established companies getting on the Big Data bus, and investors seeing the potential of sector change. Professor Kanter believes bringing infrastructure into the 21st century can net “quintuple wins” in health/safety, efficiency/cost-saving, productivity, cleaner air and economic growth opportunities, but it will require combining innovation with collaboration – in short, leadership.
Videos
Six keys to leading positive change: Rosabeth Moss Kanter
Rosabeth Moss Kanter on six keys to leading positive change
Books
News
Testimonials
GET IDEAS

1 HOUR OR LESS