The Sweeney Agency

About Jerry Porras - Management and Leadership Speaker:

An esteemed academic who is widely published in both academic and management journals, Dr. Jerry Porras helps you focus on organizational vision and change. Dr. Porras co-authored (along with Jim Collins) Built to Last: Successful Habit of Visionary Companies, which is one of Forbes’ 20 most influential business books of all time. In this book the authors debunk many myths about visionary organizations by tracing a selected group of companies that demonstrate enduring core values, a purpose beyond profits, and a highly devoted workforce. Professor Porras is also the author of Stream Analysis: A powerful Way to Diagnose and Manage Organizational Change and co-developer of Stream Analysis Software.

In 2006 Dr. Porras co-authored Success Built to Last with Stewart Emery and Mark Thompson. As preparation for this book, the authors interviewed over 200 world renowned high achievers over a ten year period and distilled their secrets to success. This book is a Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek bestseller, and was selected in the Top 3 of Amazon’s best Books of 2006 Editors’ Picks: Business.

Jerry is Stanford Graduate School of Business Lane Professor of Organizational Behavior and Change, Emeritus. Porras has taught courses in leadership, interpersonal dynamics, and organizational development and change in the MBA and executive programs. He directed the School's Executive Program on Leading and Managing Change for 16 years. During the period 1988 to 2001 he served as the University's Faculty Athletic Representative to the Pacific-10 Conference and the National Collegiate Athletic Association and on two occasions was President of the Pacific-10 Conference Council. From 1991 to 1994 he was an Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the GSB.

Winner of numerous awards, Porras' honors include the Brillante Award presented by the National Society of Hispanic MBAs; the Silver Apple Award presented by the Stanford Business School Alumni Association; the Kantor Medal awarded by the Pacific Graduate School of Psychology; 2002 Community Educator of the Year from the Hispanic Net, and the Robert T. Davis Award from the Stanford Business School.

A student of organizational change, Porras has helped numerous clients in the U.S., Mexico, and Argentina improve their organizational performance. As a lecturer on visionary companies he has delivered presentations to over 200 senior management audiences worldwide. Porras has served on the editorial boards of many academic publications, including the Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Journal Review, Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, Business Reviewand the Journal of Organizational Change Management.

What Jerry Porras Talks About:

Built To Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies
Working with Jim Collins, Jerry completed an exhaustive research project to discover the approaches and behaviors of the most visionary companies of the past century. In the process, they concluded what led those organizations to greatness. Now, you can know too. And you can apply those traits to your organization's future.

Jerry Porras helps you build an organization that can stand the test of time, management changes, economics and other influences. He shows you how to adopt a proven approach to lasting greatness; study a company's commitment to its corporate identity; understand the differences between truly visionary organizations and those that are less successful; separate a guiding philosophy from your challenging, shorter-term goal or mission.

Other Programs Include:

• Beyond The Charismatic Visionary Leader
• What A Truly Useful Organizational Vision Looks Like And How To Use It
• Individual Behavior: Why Should It Be The Primary Target Of Organizational Change And What Is The Best Way To Change It?
• Vision Driven Organizational Change