Frans Johansson

Biography

Frans Johansson is the best-selling author of The Medici Effect: Breakthrough Insights at the Intersection of Ideas, Concepts and Cultures. Translated into 18 languages, The Medici Effect was named one of the top 10 best business books by Amazon.com.

In his book and in his presentations, Frans clearly shows how the best ideas and innovation come from collaboration between people with diverse experiences, skills, expertise, perspectives, backgrounds and cultures. Simply stated, Frans is known for making the business case for diversity. He packs his programs with plenty of examples and gives people what they need to know and what they need to do to break down silos and bring out the best that everyone has to give to any challenge or opportunity. Regardless of rank or where they reside on the org chart -- even if they are not on it.

Frans has lived all his life at the intersection where ideas from different fields and cultures meet and collide. He was raised in Sweden by his African- American-Cherokee mother and Swedish father. Frans earned his B.S. in Environmental Science from Brown University and his MBA from Harvard Business School. He founded both a Boston-based software company and a medical device company operating out of Baltimore and Stockholm, Sweden. He has written articles on healthcare, information technology and the science of sport fishing and has been featured on CNN`s AC360, ABC`s Early Morning Show, and CNBC`s The Business of Innovation series along with Jack Welch and Muhammad Yunus.

Frans resides in New York City with his family.

Titles

The Medici Effect: Groundbreaking Innovation at the Intersection of Disciplines and Cultures
What do goat milk, spiders, and fishing lines have in common? Music records and airlines? Ant behavior and telecommunications routing? Most of us would assume nothing. But out of each of these seemingly random combinations have come radical innovations that have created whole new fields. In this talk, Frans Johansson takes us on a fascinating journey to the Intersection: a place where ideas from different fields and cultures meet and collide, ultimately igniting an explosion of extraordinary new innovations. See how companies become global leaders, how products and services yield huge margins, how researchers, managers and artists outdo their peers. Prepare for a talk unlike any other where Johansson will show:
- How to find groundbreaking ideas by combining different fields and cultures
- How to make these intersectional ideas happen
- How to think differently about the risks involved (hint: they are not as great as you may think)

Diversity Drives Innovation
The world is changing fast. More people than ever before are moving between cultures and countries. Companies, cities, even nations, must compete on a global basis just to stay even. In this world, diversity has become the key driver for innovation. Johansson explains how today`s most innovative companies form culturally diverse talent pools and teams as a specific strategy to innovate. These companies have become #1 brand leaders, R&D centers, and very profitable because of the Medici Effect. He clearly and persuasively shows what happens when different cultures collide and ignite an explosion of extraordinary new discoveries. Johansson shows:
- Why diversity drives innovation.
- Why diversity is critical for companies that want to innovate.
- That most companies are far from leveraging the diversity they do have.

The Medici Executive: How to Break out of the Pack
Executives face more uncertainty than ever before - yet the pressure to outperform keeps rising. Successful executives find new markets and create new groundbreaking products, services, policies and strategies. What are the requirements for such an executive? In order to out-innovate their competition today`s executive must search for groundbreaking ideas where others don`t. They must be able to work with all kinds of people. And they must be prepared to think differently abut risks and failures in order to succeed. In this talk, Johansson will show your audience how to:
- How people become successful in generating groundbreaking ideas
- How companies can foster Medici-thinking among their managers and executives
- Think differently about innovation, execution of ideas, and risk-taking.