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About Ranjay Gulati
Ranjay Gulati studies how organizations prosper in good times and bad. In 2010 he examined 4,700 companies across past recessions and found that only 9 percent emerged stronger, outperforming competitors by at least 10 percent in sales and profit growth. The findings, published in Harvard Business Review as "Roaring Out of Recession" and extended in 2023's "Investing in Growth Through Uncertainty," anchor his work on resilience. He advises companies including Google, Microsoft, Ford, GE, Bank of America, Adidas, Unilever and BlackRock. Holding a computer science degree alongside his Ph.D. in organizational behavior, Gulati is as much at home with AI strategy as with turnarounds: his Turnarounds and Transformations MBA course, with nearly 30 case studies including Lyft, Best Buy and the U.S. Marine Corps, is being adapted into his next book.
Fieldwork at LEGO, Gotham Greens, Warby Parker, Microsoft and the Seattle Seahawks runs through his books. Deep Purpose identifies the specific levers a small set of companies use to convert purpose into superior financial and social performance. "Deep purpose leaders go beyond just a statement to put their purpose to work by connecting it to all they do, from their customers and employees to communities at large," he says. His latest, How to Be Bold, distills more than 200 real-world stories collected over 12 years into the "9 C's," a framework that treats courage as a learnable practice rather than an inborn trait.
Ranjay's Keynote Topics
Spurred by uncertainty about the future, many companies are rushing to become an agile organization to remain competitive. Despite the increasing need for agility, organizations may resist the change, and agile-curious leaders may not know or have have the skills to bring this strategy to life. Management expert and award-winning author Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., has spent decades bridging strategy, organizational design and leadership to form a comprehensive model for developing agile leadership, especially during tremendous market uncertainty. Interactive and accessible to any audience, Gulati first provides leaders with a detailed assessment of the inertial forces that perpetuate stagnation and failure, making it hard for established organizations to be agile. Building on these derailers, he introduces leaders to specific actions they can take to anticipate and ultimately transcend them. Finally, he concludes with a personal leadership roadmap for those seeking to develop agile and self-management skills in themselves, providing a path to embracing agility with a winning mindset.
Much research has been conducted on successful organizational leadership. But does that research leave out some of the world’s most successful leaders? According to Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., when it comes to empowering teams to perform at their best, sports coaches are among the most focused leaders of all. In this eye-opening presentation, he reveals insights from some of the sports world’s most successful coaches such as NBA legend Phil Jackson, iconic MLB manager Bobby Cox, innovative football coach Pete Carroll and more. Gulati outlines “the 5 T’s of coaching” – talent, training, teamwork, tenacity and transformation – to provide lessons that are as immediately applicable in the business world as they are in the sports world. Audiences will leave with proven strategies for getting the best out of their teams whether they’re on the field or in the boardroom.
According to award-winning author and Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., the pursuit of purpose can translate into superior financial and social performance, but that pursuit must go beyond a well-intentioned purpose statement to net real results. Through in-depth fieldwork assessing companies that truly embrace purpose as an organizing principle, he has identified four specific levers that allow leaders of deep purpose companies to achieve superior results. Drawing from his 2022 book “Deep Purpose,” Gulati uses colorful storytelling, inspiring case studies and relatable research analysis to break down why and how to form a corporate purpose that translates into growth. In interactive and practical presentations, Gulati showcases how the vast majority of businesses today can better employ purpose to serve society while also achieving economic success.
In uncertain times, organizations often retreat, finding themselves playing not to lose instead of striving to win. But what if courage, both individual and collective, is a mental muscle that leaders and teams can build? In deeply researched presentations, Harvard Business School professor and bestselling author Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D. draws on his latest book “How to Be Bold: The Surprising Science of Everyday Courage” to reframe courage as a learnable practice. Sharing insights from psychology, neuroscience, history and leadership, as well as more than 200 real-world stories collected over 12 years, Gulati reveals how individuals and organizations can cultivate boldness in the face of fear, uncertainty and risk. Highly inspiring, Gulati’s framework is built on practical steps for activating nine key levers of courageous leadership, which he calls the “9 C’s.” This includes how to build the support systems that fuel brave action, how to reframe fear as a signal instead of a stop sign, and how to turn adversity into innovation. By using historical and contemporary cases as vivid examples, Gulati reveals that learning to act with courage entails developing a purposeful and powerful self-narrative. With research showing that leaders can trigger courage when they help others to reframe their self-narratives in specific ways, Gulati delivers practical exercises for changing how we think about the stories we tell ourselves. Attendees exit with a clear understanding of what it takes to foster the cultural and structural conditions that empower teams to act boldly, especially when the stakes are high.
In a time of rapid technological and economic changes, how can healthy organizations stay healthy and how can struggling organizations turn around? Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., one of the world’s top experts on organizational strategy and change management, has created accessible frameworks for enacting practical transformation and turnaround initiatives. In this eye-opening session, he presents a preview of his upcoming book featuring real-world examples of businesses who have undergone such initiatives, including Lyft, Best Buy, the U.S. Marine Corps and more. Audiences will discover new internal processes for creating a strategically unique place in the market that can boost successful businesses and pull fraught businesses back from potential failure.
In this age of unprecedented uncertainty, how can leaders ensure fear of the unknown won’t paralyze organizational progress? According to Harvard Business School professor and award-winning author Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., while times like this can trigger the primal human emotion of fear that paralyzes us – practical strategies can help leaders take decisive and bold actions that, in turn, allow them to pursue new opportunities in turbulent markets. In this timely presentation, Gulati draws on his latest book “How to Be Bold: The Surprising Science of Everyday Courage,” to explain that while uncertainty can’t be eliminated, courageous actions are still possible. Outlining his detailed, on the ground research, Gulati reveals how ordinary people and organizations alike can resource themselves in ways that make fearful tasks appear less daunting. Arming attendees with the “9 C’s” of how to cultivate courage in uncertain times, he empowers audiences to act with conviction, dive into the unknown and seize opportunities to leapfrog their competition.
In 2010, renowned researcher and Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., looked at past recessions to find that 9% of the 4,700 companies studied didn’t simply recover in the three years after a slowdown — they flourished, outperforming competitors by at least 10% in sales and profit growth. What set these resilient companies apart, says Gulati, is their multipronged strategy that reduces costs and prevents derailment today while investing in a better tomorrow. As described in Gulati’s 2010 article in Harvard Business Review, “Roaring out of Recessions,” and its 2023 follow up, “Investing in Growth Through Uncertainty,” only a small fraction of firms turn adversity into opportunity. He expands on this in his book “Reorganize for Resilience: Putting Customers at the Center of Your Business,” where he describes why a leader in a turnaround or transformation environment must be a strategist, architect, decision maker and change agent who plays to win, as opposed to playing not to lose. In this highly interactive presentation, Gulati invites participants to analyze potential opportunities in turnaround situations and decide if it’s reasonable to create value. By repositioning disruption as a positive, Gulati demonstrates how to revitalize an organization, turning it into one that doesn’t just survive, but thrives. Loaded with practical, “how-to” examples drawn from decades of fieldwork, Gulati offers strategies that can help companies survive a recession, get ahead during a slow-growth recovery and be ready to win when good times return.
The digital age has truly transformed how organizations operate; especially as artificial intelligence becomes more consequential by the day. What do leaders need to understand to build effective companies in today’s digital-first business world? In this insightful presentation, Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., examines the myriad ways digital systems like AI are influencing the business process as a whole. From how engagement with customers and markets is changing to the implications for supply chains, R&D and manufacturing, Gulati draws on his years of research on corporate strategy and leadership as well as his academic training as a computer scientist to provide real world examples of companies that have completely transformed using tools like AI. Audiences will leave with a blueprint for creating new opportunities with the latest technology, backed by practical change management frameworks.
Some of the best sports coaches usually find ways to elevate individual and team performance beyond what the players themselves thought was possible. Great leaders do the same. Top-rated Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., is an expert in understanding what different types of leaders across industries do to unleash human potential and unlock superior performance. Engaging, energetic and relatable, Gulati draws from case studies on leaders ranging from Pete Carroll, coach of the Seattle Seahawks, to Satya Nadella of Microsoft, to illustrate how organizations can draw out a higher level of achievement and consistency from their employees. In interactive engagements, he demonstrates to leaders how to build trusting relationships and move from imaginary empowerment to real empowerment, deftly displaying how to transform a transactional mindset into a relational one. By breaking down each of the powerful levers that leaders have at their disposal, Gulati delivers an effective analysis of how individuals and teams discover new levels of performance.
In turbulent markets, management expert and top-rated Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati, Ph.D., has found that customer-centric organizations with an “outside-in” perspective are the most resilient. His research-backed recommendations reveal how companies can unlock growth potential, regardless of market conditions, by immersing themselves in the lives of their customers. “Most companies with an inside-out perspective become attached to what they produce and sell to their own organizations. In contrast, the outside-in perspective starts with the marketplace and delves deeply into the problems and questions customers are facing in their lives,” Gulati describes. “The goal is to bring value to customers in ways that are beneficial for them while also creating additional value for the company itself.” The author of “Reorganize for Resilience: Putting Customers at the Center of Your Business,” Gulati presents a practical and authoritative guide to how companies can close the gap between awareness and action. He then draws a map for organizations to identify and break down internal barriers that impede results, build bridges across divisions and create collaborator networks within teams. By drawing out the customer-centric company’s journey, Gulati helps organizations jumpstart a cycle of profits, growth and competitive advantage.
Books by Ranjay Gulati
Articles by Ranjay Gulati
Ranjay in the Media
The Valuable Lesson That Alaska Airlines Learned From Its Merger With Virgin America
LEGO’s Secret: How the Courage to Say ‘No’ Led to Winning
Can Boldness Be Learned? Ranjay Gulati Says Yes
Ranjay Gulati – ‘The Science of Courage'
How to Be Bold and Courageous With Ranjay Gulati
Our Favorite Management Tips on Leading Through Uncertainty
Running a Business Takes Courage. Here’s How to Build Yours.
Business Books: What to Read This Month
How to Lead With Courage in Chaotic Times
How Lyft’s CEO Got the Company Moving Again
How to Keep Your Team’s Spirits Up in Anxious Times
Now Is the Time for Courage
How Ranjay Works with Organizations
Each engagement is built around your goals and audience.
01 · WORKSHOPLearn to Cultivate Courage Within Your Teams
In Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati’s research, he has found that courage is not just an individual psychological trait, but one that can be actively cultivated in oneself and others. This is crucially important because managers need employees to not just call their attention to things that are amiss (as in the case of whistleblowers), but because customers and clients have increasingly high expectations that must be met. Instilling courage means top managers must not only demonstrate this quality themselves, but also foster it among others. As market turbulence continues unabated, courage can be the new currency for organizational success.Giving people the mere permission to make decisions isn’t enough, because most people still need to feel a sense of direction. This means leaders must cultivate in their teams the courage to make the right decisions on their own – and not just on a day-to-day basis, because leaders will never have the specific information at any given moment that their teams have. Building in a capacity for risk-taking and the tolerance for failures allows the company as a whole to learn and try again.In this interactive workshop, Gulati draws on historical and contemporary cases to explore how learning to act with courage entails developing a purposeful and powerful self-narrative. With research showing that leaders can trigger courage when they help others to reframe their self-narratives in specific ways, exercises will include proposing thoughtful re-framings such as: “Am I playing a heroic part in a virtuous quest?” “Do I feel that I have my teammate’s back, and that they have mine?” “If I’m facing a daunting task, does my manager support rather than punish me?” “Am I achieving mastery in my job?” “Am I trusted to act under my own power?” By empowering teams answer these questions in the affirmative for themselves, participants learn to encourage their team members to become courageous leaders in their own right. Workshop attendees will learn how each of us can be a catalyst for courageous action not only within ourselves but also in those around us.
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