Douglas Conant

Douglas R. Conant is a New York Times bestselling author and keynote speaker with over 35 years of leadership experience at world-class global companies. In 2011, he founded ConantLeadership, a growing community of people dedicated to improving the quality of leadership in the 21st century. Deeply committed to leadership, he also serves as Chairman of Avon Products, on the board of AmerisourceBergen, as well as Chairman of the Kellogg Executive Leadership Institute (KELI) at Northwestern University. The newly formed KELI initiative is designed to help leaders of today enhance their ability to lead in the “here and now.” This program combines the best insights of the Kellogg academic curriculum with the best practices of “world class” leaders across the landscape at the highest levels of the organization.

An advocate for ethical practices and corporate responsibility, Conant is the current Chairman of CECP (formerly known as the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy). He is an active member of the boards of the National Organization on Disabilities (NOD), the Partnership for Public Service (PPS), Enactus, the Families and Work Institute (FWI), the Arthur Ashe Learning Center (AALC), and the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF). He is also a former chairman of both the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and The Conference Board (TCB), where he remains a Global Counselor, and he is a former board member of Catalyst.

From 2001 to 2011, Conant served as CEO and President of the Campbell Soup Company. He was the 11th leader of this iconic company’s 141-year history – faced with reversing a precipitous decline in market value. Conant dramatically transformed the global leadership team, reconfigured the portfolio, cut costs, and made integral strategic investments. These visionary changes resulted in cumulative shareholder returns in the top tier of the global food industry. Conant’s mission to achieve superior employee engagement levels was a crucial contributor to the company’s exemplary performance. Under his leadership, employee engagement at Campbell Soup went from being among the worst in the Fortune 500 to being consistently among the best. The company was also celebrated as a leader in social responsibility and ethical leadership during his tenure. Campbell has been widely recognized for its progress; its many honors range from being recognized by the Gallup organization with its “Great Workplace Award” for four years running to receiving the 2010 Catalyst Award for helping women advance their careers. During his tenure, the company was also recognized as a leader in social responsibility and ethical leadership.

Conant joined Campbell with 25 years of experience from three of the world’s leading food companies: General Mills, Kraft and Nabisco. He began his career in 1976 in marketing at General Mills. After 10 years, he moved to Kraft where he held top management positions in marketing and strategy. Immediately prior to coming to Campbell, he was President of the $3.5 billion Nabisco Foods Company where he led his team to improved marketplace performance and five consecutive years of double-digit earnings growth.

Conant earned his BA degree from Northwestern University and his MBA from the J.L. Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern.

He speaks widely to people and organizations on effective and enduring leadership practices for the modern age. He is the co-author with Mette Norgaard of the New York Times bestseller Touchpoints: Creating Powerful Leadership Connections in the Smallest of Moments. He is a featured blogger on leadership issues at Harvard Business Review online and also writes about leadership on the ConantLeadership website. Conant is dedicated to disseminating quality leadership information as well as sparking robust digital leadership conversations on twitter at @DougConant as well as on Facebook.

Education M.B.A., Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

B.A., Northwestern University

Academic Positions Chairman of Kellogg Executive Leadership Institute, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2013-present

Other Professional Experience Board of Directors, AmerisourceBergen, 2013-present

Board Member, Arthur Ashe Learning Center, 2013-present

Chairman, Board of Directors, Avon, 2012-present

Founder and CEO, ConantLeadership, 2011-present

Chairman, Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, 2011-present

Board Member, National Organization on Disability, 2010-present

Board Member, Enactus, 2010-present

Board Member, Partnership for Public Service, 2009-present

Global Counselor and Former Chairman, The Conference Board, 2007-present

Board Member, International Tennis Hall of Fame and Museum, 2006-present

President and CEO, Campbell Soup Company, 2001-2011

President, Nabisco, 1999-2001

Education Academic Positions Other Professional Experience