Alumni: Leader of Consequence

Kurt Baumberger MBA '89

Senior Managing Director, Innovation 90

Kurt Baumberger has launched everything from Advil to PowerAde to iPhone Apps to Electric Vehicles. He’s worked at Young & Rubicam and The Coca-Cola Company, started several technology companies collaborating with Apple, Microsoft, Google, Electronic Arts, SEGA, and served as Lead Innovation Consultant for the American Hospital Association and their 5,000 member hospitals.

His experience with large organizations in multiple industries demonstrated a need for a structured process to organize the messiness of innovation. Kurt captured his findings and proven "best practices" in his latest book, Innovation Navigation: How To Get From Idea To Reality In 90 Days.

Kurt has been featured in USA Today, FORTUNE and Entrepreneur Magazine, and US News & World Report. He earned a B.A. from William & Mary and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and has taught Design Thinking at Duke, GA Tech, Emory, and Stanford.

What impact has your Fuqua experience had on your career/life?

In 1988 while serving as MBAA President, I invited Coach K to come speak at Fuqua for the first time. He spoke to a packed auditorium about the five fundamental qualities that make every team great: communication, trust, collective responsibility, caring, and pride.

He asked us to think of each quality as a separate finger on your hand. Any one finger individually is important. But all of them together as a fist are unbeatable. I have shared this experience with countless innovation teams, many facing what I call "aggressive antibodies" to change, and it has made all the difference.

Professionally or personally, what are you excited about right now?

Today! There are so many big, hairy problems to solve that will improve the human condition. I’ve been lucky enough to work with teams to launch electric vehicles, lower diabetic A1C levels, build GPS driven phone apps, and assist children of the working poor to find a pathway forward.

There’s a saying that "Change is certain, but progress is not." Now is the time for Fuqua grads to make things simpler, easier, safer, and healthier for others. Fortunately, Fuqua has provided the tools and skills required to generate ideas, leverage ecosystems, launch products and services that will scale to help the world progress.

What does this award mean to you?

This award is a tangible demonstration of Fuqua’s commitment to innovation and exceptionalism. But this is not new. In 1989, my classmates launched what was then called the Fuqua Games for Special Olympics. It is now one of the largest and longest-running fundraisers contributing $4+ million to Special Olympic athletes.

Being named a Fuqua School of Business Leader of Consequence is a cherished and precious moment for me to be a small part of this storied legacy of excellence.