Nicholas Pearce

A scholar, speaker, entrepreneur, and pastor, Dr. Nicholas Pearce (@napphd) serves as an award-winning Clinical Professor of Management & Organizations at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and as the founder and chief executive officer of The Vocati Group, a boutique global management consultancy, and assistant pastor of Chicago's historic, 12,000-member Apostolic Church of God. A leading expert on values-driven leadership and organizational transformation, Dr. Pearce is the author of the bestselling book The Purpose Path: A Guide to Pursuing Your Authentic Life's Work (St. Martin's Press) and has served as a trusted strategic adviser, executive coach, and keynote speaker for over 200 leading corporations, social impact organizations, governments, and communities of faith on six continents, including Allstate Foundation, Archdiocese of Chicago, Aspen Institute, BP, Capital Group, Chicago Public Schools, Echo, The Episcopal Church, EurFacebook, FMC, Google, Greater Chicago Food Depository, Health Care Service Corporation, Hearst, Hyatt, JPMorgan Chase & Co., KPMG, McDonald's, Morningstar, NASA, Nike, Northern Trust, PepsiCo, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Surge Institute, Teach for America, United States Department of State, United States Olympic Committee, and Whirlpool.

Dr. Pearce is deeply committed to civic engagement and philanthropy, serving as a trustee of the Field Foundation, Chicago Children's Museum, Fuller Theological Seminary, McCormick Theological Seminary, and Seminary Co-Op Bookstores. He has been a Fellow of Leadership Greater Chicago since 2015 and has also been named one of Chicago's 40 Game Changers (under 40) by WVON/Ariel Investments, a Galbraith Scholar by Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, a Public Voices Faculty Fellow by The OpEd Project, and Kellogg's MSMS Professor of the Year (2015). He has also been honored for excellence by the White House, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Mustard Seed Foundation, Wentcher Foundation, Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, National Black MBA Association, and Union League Club of Chicago, among other notable institutions. He and his award-winning work have been featured in global media outlets including ABC, The Atlantic, Bloomberg Businessweek, CBS Evening News, The Chicago Tribune, Christianity Today, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, CNN, Crain's Chicago Business, Fast Company, Forbes, Fortune, Harvard Business Review, The Huffington Post, iHeart Radio, The Los Angeles Times, Marketplace, MSNBC, The New York Times, Newsweek, NPR, PBS, Time, U.S. News & World Report, Univision, UrbanFaith.com, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post.

Dr. Pearce holds the Ph.D. and M.S. in Management & Organizations from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, the M.A. in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, and the S.B. in Chemical Engineering & Management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with a concentration in Religious Studies earned in conjunction with Harvard Divinity School.

Research Interests

• Leadership & change in organizations
• Morality & values-driven leadership
• Building healthy organizational cultures
• Diversity, inclusion, and belonging
• Motivation & Influence strategies
• Executive succession
• Mission-driven & non-profit organizations
• Leading intergenerational organizations
• Negotiation strategies
• Church leadership & administration

Education

• M.A., Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary
• S.B., Chemical Engineering and Management, Concentration in Religious Studies, School of Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Ph.D, Management & Organizations, Kellogg School of Management, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
• M.S., Management & Organizations, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Academic Positions

• Clinical Professor of Management & Organizations, Management & Organizations, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2020-present
• Clinical Associate Professor of Management and Organizations, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2016-2020
• Clinical Assistant Professor of Management and Organizations, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2013-2016
• Visiting Assistant Professor of Management & Organizations, Management & Organizations, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2012-2013

Professional Experience

• Founder & Chief Executive Officer, The Vocati Group, 2017-present
• Assistant Pastor, Apostolic Church of God, 2012-present
• Aon Hewitt Global Diversity and Inclusion Consulting Practice, 2012-2012
• Northwestern University Center for Leadership, 2011-2012
• Research Associate, MIT Sloan School of Management, 2005-2007
• Deloitte Consulting, LLP, 2004-2005

Awards

• Kellogg Chairs' Core Course Teaching Award, Kellogg School of Management
• Chicago Black History Maker
• Professor of the Year Award, Russell Fellows Program, Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management
• Fellow, Leadership Greater Chicago
• Named one of Chicago's 40 Game Changers Under 40, Ariel Investments/WVON
• Northwestern Public Voices Faculty Fellow, The OpEd Project
• H. Naylor Fitzhugh PhD Fellowship Award, National Black MBA Association
• Harvey Fellow, Mustard Seed Foundation
• John Kenneth Galbraith Scholar, Harvard University Kennedy School of Government

Teaching Interests

• Leadership & change in organizations
• Morality & values-driven leadership
• Building healthy organizational cultures
• Diversity, inclusion, and belonging
• Motivation & Influence strategies
• Executive succession
• Mission-driven & non-profit organizations
• Leading intergenerational organizations
• Negotiation strategies
• Church leadership & administration