Jeff DeGraff is an innovation keynote speaker, author, Professor at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, and founder of the Innovatrium. Jeff is well-known as a speaker with a mission to bring innovation to everyone everywhere. His simultaneously creative and pragmatic approach to making innovation happen has led clients and colleagues to dub him the “Dean of Innovation.”
He has consulted with many Fortune 500 companies, such as General Electric, Coca-Cola, Google, and Mercedes-Benz, about building innovation strategy and competency. An author of many books and articles published in Inc. and LinkedIn, his opinions appear in Business Week, US News and World Report, and the Wall Street Journal, just to name a few. His Public TV program “Innovation You,” his book with the same title, and his segment in Michigan Radio called “The Next Idea” encourage and empower individuals to innovate in their every-day life. His latest book is “The Innovation Code,” co-authored with his wife, Staney DeGraff. They are collaborating on “The Creative Mindset” to be released in September 2020.
Jeff Degraff’s Full Bio:
Jeff DeGraff is the Professor of Management and Organizations at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He teaches MBA, EMBA, BBA, and Executive Education courses on leading creativity, innovation and change. Jeff’s research and writing focuses on innovation strategy, change and innovation competency development, creativity and innovation practices and methods, creativity communities and innovation networks, and leadership development.
He is an author and co-author of the books Innovation You, Creativity at Work: Developing the Right Practices to Make Innovation Happen, Leading Innovation: How to Jumpstart Your Company’s Growth Engine and Competing Values Leadership: Creating Value in Organizations. His book, Making Stone Soup, was a finalist for several book awards. In his newest book Innovation Code: The Creative Power of Constructive Conflict, he argues that diversity of thought is essential to innovation. He urges everyone to practice constructive dialogue and work in diverse teams to find hybrid solutions and develop unique approaches to solve difficult problems.
Jeff’s mission is “the democratization of innovation.” He brings innovation to everyone, every day and everywhere through his books, his public television program (Innovation You), columns (Inc.) and radio program (The Next Idea). His articles and thought leadership on contemporary business matters have been covered by Business Week, US News and World Report and the Wall Street Journal, to name a few.
His client list reads as a ‘who’s who’ within the world of innovators, including, among many others, General Electric, Coca-Cola, American College of Surgeons, and Google. In working with these prominent firms, he has developed a broad array of widely used change and innovation methodologies and tools. Jeff was a member of the executive team at Domino’s Pizza when it was one of the fastest growing businesses in the world in the 1980’s. Jeff’s creative and direct take on making innovation happen have made him a world renowned thought leader and have prompted his clients and colleagues to dub him as “The Dean of Innovation.”
Jeff is a Managing Partner of Innovatrium, an innovation center and consulting practice that specializes in teaching companies how to grow and become more innovative. He serves as an advisor to think tanks and governments. Jeff has worked all over the world, with significant experience in Europe and Asia, and in most industry and market segments.
More About Speaker, Jeff DeGraff. . .
Jeff is the creator of the Certified Professional Innovator Program at the University of Michigan. This certificate program develops innovation leaders through an integrated curriculum and practicum of assessments, on-line modules, project jumpstarts and coaching.
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He holds a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Stay up-to-date and read more about Jeff at his blog, http://jeffdegraff.com/, and follow him on LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/influencer/degraffjeff