Soren Kaplan

Affiliate Research Scientist

Soren Kaplan is the bestselling and award winning author of Leapfrogging and The Invisible Advantage, an Affiliated Practitioner at the Center for Effective Organizations at USC’s Marshall School of Business, a writer for FastCompany and Inc. Magazine, a globally recognized keynote speaker, and the Founder of InnovationPoint and upBOARD. He has been recognized by the Thinkers50 as one of the world’s top thought leaders in business strategy and innovation.

As a leading expert in disruptive innovation, innovation culture, and business model innovation, he works with Disney, NBCUniversal, Kimberly-Clark, Colgate-Palmolive, Hershey, Red Bull, Medtronic, Roche, Philips, Cisco, Visa, Ascension Health, Kaiser Permanente, CSAA Insurance Group, American Nurses Association, and numerous other organizations.

Soren previously led the internal strategy and innovation group at Hewlett-Packard (HP) during the roaring 1990’s in Silicon Valley and is a co-founder of upBOARD, the world’s first Collaborative Dashboard software platform.

He has lectured at the Harvard Business School, Copenhagen Business School, Melbourne Business School, and with other MBA and executive education programs globally. His Wall Street Journal bestseller, Leapfrogging, was recognized as “Best Leadership Book” by the Axiom Book Awards and his latest book The Invisible Advantage was awarded “Best General Business Book” by the International Book Awards.

He has been quoted, published, and interviewed by Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Forbes, CNBC, National Public Radio, the American Management Association, USA Today, Strategy & Leadership, and The International Handbook on Innovation, among many others. He holds Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in Organizational Psychology, resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, and possesses dual US-French citizenship.

Recent Research


Leading Innovation

In this webinar, two of the world’s leading experts on innovation and creativity, Soren Kaplan and Jennifer Mueller will share insights from their research and consulting with organizations. CEO’s Alec Levenson will lead a lively discussion with Drs. Kaplan and Mueller on how to overcome the cultural barriers and leadership biases to breakthrough innovation.

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How to Create a Culture of Innovation

In this webinar, Dr. Soren Kaplan, one of the world’s leading experts in disruptive innovation and innovation culture, reveals how the most innovative organizations carefully consider both what goes into the innovation process and what should come out of it.

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How to Measure, Reward, and Foster a Culture of Innovation

In this webinar, Dr. Soren Kaplan, one of the world’s leading experts in disruptive innovation and innovation culture, reveals how the most innovative organizations carefully consider both what goes into the innovation process and what should come out of it.

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How to Create a Culture of Innovation

In this webinar, Dr. Soren Kaplan, one of the world’s leading experts in disruptive innovation and innovation culture, will provide practical insights into the levers that influence innovation culture, including leadership behavior, innovation metrics, formal and informal rewards, talent development, collaboration technology, and organizational structures and processes.

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