David Ulrich

Dave Ulrich is the Rensis Likert Collegiate Professor of Business Administration at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan and a partner at the RBL Group (http://www.rbl.net) a consulting firm focused on helping organizations and leaders deliver value. He studies how organizations build capabilities of leadership, speed, learning, accountability, and talent through leveraging human resources. He has helped generate award winning data bases that assess alignment between strategies, organization capabilities, HR practices, HR competencies, and customer and investor results.

In 2012, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from HR Magazine in 2012 for being the "father of modern human resources." In 2011, he was ranked #1 most influential international thought leader in HR by HR Magazine. The same year, he was ranked #23 in Thinkers 50 as a management thought leader; and was ranked in the Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Leadership Behavior. In 2010, he received the Nobels Colloquia Prize for Leadership on Business and Economic Thinking; he received a lifetime Fellowship in Australia Human Resources Institute (AHRI); was ranked #1 most influential international thought leader in HR by HR Magazine; received the Kirk Engelhardt Exemplary Business Ethics Award from Utah Valley University; and his book Why of Work (co-authored with Wendy Ulrich) was #1 best seller for Wall Street Journal and USA Today.
He has consulted and done research with over half of the Fortune 200.

Ranked as the #1 management guru by Business Week, profiled by Fast Company as one of the world’s top 10 creative people in business, a top 5 coach in Forbes, and recognized on Thinkers50 (Hall of Fame) as one of the world’s leading business thinkers, Dave Ulrich has a passion for ideas with impact. In his writing, teaching, and consulting, he continually seeks new ideas that tackle some of the world’s thorniest and longest standing challenges.

His bestselling books and popular speeches inspire the corporate and academic agenda. Dave has co authored over 30 books and 200 articles that have shaped three fields:

Organization. With co-authors, he has influenced thinking about organizations by empirically showing how organization delivers 4 times business results over talent (Victory Through Organization), defined organizations as bundles of capabilities (Organization Capability) and worked to delineate capabilities of talent management (Why of Work; Talent Accelerator), culture change (GE Workout), learning (Learning Organization Capability), and collaboration (Boundaryless Organization). Leadership. With colleagues, he has also articulated the basics of effective leadership (Leadership Code and Results Based Leadership), connected leadership with customers (Leadership Brand), shown how leadership delivers market value (Why the Bottom Line Isn’t), shaped investor expectations and ability to measure leadership (Leadership Capital Index), and synthesized ways to ensure that leadership aspirations turn into actions (Leadership Sustainability). Human Resources. He and his colleagues have shaped the HR profession and he has been called the “father of modern HR” and “HR thought leader of the decade” by focusing on HR outcomes, governance, competencies, and practices (HR Champions; HR Value Added; HR Transformation; HR Competencies; HR Outside In). He spearheaded a “gift” book on the future of HR (The Rise of HR) distributed to over 1,500,000 HR professionals), in which 70 thought leaders freely share their insights. He has spoken to large audiences in 88 countries; performed workshops for over half of the Fortune 200; and coached successful business leaders. He is co-founder of the RBL Group (www.rbl.net) a consulting firm that increases business results through leadership, organization, and human resources. He gives back to the profession and others, having worked as Editor of Human Resource Management for 10 years, being a Trustee and advisor to universities and other professional groups, and serving on the Herman Miller board for 15 years. He is known for continually learning, turning complex ideas into simple solutions, and creating real value to those he works with.

Wendy and Dave serve frequently in their church, have 3 children, 8 grandchildren, and get their greatest glee when their grandkids’ eyes light up at seeing them.