John Kao

John Kao Profile

John Kao isn’t simply an innovator; he is a leader in creating and delivering high-end leadership programs for both the public and private sectors. The Economist named him “Mr. Creativity,” but John prefers to call himself an “innovation activist.” He went so far as to coin the term “large scale innovation,” to refer to innovation at a societal level. He even became a chairman of the Institute for Large Scale Innovation, whose i20 group is comprised of 30 national “Chief Innovation Officers.”

John is an advisor to many different nations, cities, and companies about innovation strategy and execution. The list is long and ranges from Abu Dhabi to the City of San Francisco, as well as sectors of US government and the European Union’s innovation policy team.

He is a graduate of Yale College (philosophy), Yale Medical School (psychiatry) and Harvard Business School (management). During his time in the faculty of Harvard Business School, 1982-96, he created executive and MBA programs for innovation.

His books include the Business Week bestseller Jamming: The Art and Discipline of Business Creativity, and Innovation Nation, centered on the challenge of innovation in America. John is a contributing editor to The Daily Beast’s innovation channel. Currently he serves as a director of the Bay Area Science and Innovation Consortium, and is a founding member of Cisco System’s Innovation Commission. He is a chairman of the Global Advisory Council on Innovation of the World Economic Forum and a director of TwoFour54, a Mubadala media company, and Phylotech, a company looking to bring together cleantech and the life sciences.

John has long been a supporter of innovation as an angel investor for emerging technology companies. He is a Tony-nominated producer for film (Sex, Lies and Videotape, Mr. Baseball) and the stage (Golden Child, Flower Drum Song). Ever a creative soul, he spent a summer apprenticed as a pianist to rock legend Frank Zappa in 1969.

• View Extended/Alternate Bio
  • Dubbed “Mr. Creativity” by

  The Economist

  • , John calls himself an innovation activist. He is chairman of the Institute for Large Scale Innovation, whose i20 group is an association of 30 national ‘Chief Innovation Officers.’ John coined the term “large scale innovation” to refer to innovation as a societal agenda. He has advised numerous nations and regions on innovation strategy and execution, including Finland, Singapore, the City of San Francisco, Abu Dhabi and elements of the US government as well as the European Union innovation policy team.

  John is a leader in creating and delivering high end innovation leadership executive programs for both public and private sectors. He was a member of the Harvard Business School faculty from 1982-96, where he created executive and MBA programs on innovation. He wrote Jamming: The Art and Discipline of Business Creativity, a BusinessWeek best-seller, and Innovation Nation, published in October, 2007 about America’s growing innovation challenge.

  Currently John serves as director of the Bay Area Science and Innovation Consortium, founding member of Cisco System’s Innovation Commission, and chairman of the Global Advisory Council on Innovation of the World Economic Forum. He is contributing editor to The Daily Beast’s innovation channel. He is also a director of TwoFour54 a Mubadala company and Phylotech, a company that bridges cleantech and life sciences.

  John has long been an angel investor in emerging technology companies and a Tony-nominated producer of film (sex, lies and videotape, Mr. Baseball) and stage (Golden Child, Flower Drum Song). He is a graduate of Yale College (philosophy), Yale Medical School (psychiatry) and Harvard Business School (management). A jazz pianist at heart, he apprenticed to rock legend Frank Zappa in 1969.