Printable Biography of Marilyn Tam

Marilyn Tam has had an extraordinarily diverse life, from her beginnings in a traditional Chinese family in Hong Kong to her meteoric rise in the international business world to become an influential corporate leader, speaker, corporate consultant, author and respected humanitarian.

Her long, distinguished background includes prominent executive roles at numerous of world-class companies, including CEO of Aveda, President of Reebok Apparel & Retail Group and Vice President of Nike. She is also a successful entrepreneur, having developed and built three companies in diverse fields: corporate consulting & training, a web portal company and a web-based supply chain software company. She is currently co-leading a cutting edge, non-invasive integrated healthcare services and products company, HealthWalk, www.healthwalk.com.

Ms. Tam consults and speaks globally with Fortune 500 companies, governments and non-profit organizations on Leadership, Diversity, Change Management and how to Integrate Social & Environmental concerns into Businesses profitably.

She is a director on the national board of SCORE Association. SCORE is the Resource Partner of the U.S. Small Business Administration and is dedicated to entrepreneurial education and the development, growth and success of small businesses nationwide, www.score.org.

She was the Co-Chair of the N. American Marketing and Promotions for Universal Forum of Cultures, Barcelona a global project of UNESCO to gather all societies to create a better planet based on cultural diversity and economic and environmental sustainability.
 
Ms. Tam is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Us Foundation whose mission is to facilitate global action and dialogue on social, economic and environmental issues. Us Foundation is one of the partners for United Nations Habitat-II, and was nominated as a candidate for the “Best Practice Award” from the United Nations’ Habitat II. www.usfoundation.org

She served for five years on the international board of The Reebok Human Rights Awards, along with former President Jimmy Carter; renowned musicians Peter Gabriel, and Sting, Rafer Johnson, Chairman of the Special Olympics; and Kerry Kennedy Cuomo of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center, and Paul Fireman, Chairman of Reebok International Ltd. She was awarded The Reebok Human Rights Award for her humanitarian work. 
 
Whether she is directly improving the lot of workers in her contract factories around the world, consulting with corporations and governments or developing and conducting seminars and lectures to train other entrepreneurs in business leadership programs at several prestigious Universities internationally, Ms. Tam always gives back. She is committed to the belief that humanitarian service is integral to and provides an essential balance and relevance to her work.

Her work has included appearances with esteemed colleagues on television and radio, as well as international conferences. One aspect involves developing and presenting for a wide range of audiences in global corporations and non-profit organizations. Among many other venues, she was invited by the Chinese government to appear as a keynote speaker at The Canton Fair, the biggest manufacturing fair in China, attended every year by tens of thousands of manufacturers and retailers from around the world.
 
She regularly serves as producer and Master of Ceremonies for international business and non-profit events around the world, including as the spokesperson and keynote speaker for Universal Forum of Culture’s conference on the Role of the Corporation in the 21st Century, in Barcelona, Spain, presenting at the United Nations Habitat-II Conference in Torino, Italy, as well as organizing the inaugural Season for Non-Violence Event commemorating M.K. Gandhi and M.L. King in 30 countries.

Ms. Tam is an advisor to the country of Bhutan, working with the Ministers and government officials to transition the country into the 21st Century while retaining their cultural and environmental heritage. 

Marilyn was recognized as one of the Top 30 Female Entrepreneurs in the USA by Fempreneur magazine. Jack Canfield detailed her work in his book on the strategies for success, “The Success Principles”. She is featured as one of 50 women in the best selling book, “Fearless Women, midlife portraits” by Alspaugh, Kentz, and Halpin. Daryn Kagan, former CNN anchor featured Marilyn as one of the 50 people who dared to dream that they can make a difference, in her book, “What’s Possible”. Marilyn is featured as one of fourteen accomplished, influential and inspiring women along with Cathie Black, president of Hearst magazines, Sheila Johnson, co-founder of BET, in GLOW, a documentary movie released in November 2008.

Marilyn is featured in The Compass, a movie released in mid February 2009, as one of four story tellers along with other respected experts in the fields of personal development, relationships, fulfillment and motivation. The Compass is a movie on personal growth, a story about the journey through life and the lessons we learn along the way.

She was honored with the Artemis Award for her business and humanitarian work by the Greek government and the Euro American Women’s Council in Athens, Greece, 2006 with her likeness on a Greek postage stamp. In 2007 she was honored with the Femtor Lifetime Achievement Award from eWomenNetwork. Ms. Tam is a lifetime member of Who’s Who World Wide and is listed in Who’s Who in American Women.

Because of her exceptional reputation, the following is a partial list of some of the keynote addresses and workshops Ms. Tam has been invited to give:

“Diversity, Leadership and Your career”
 Credit Suisse

“Global Leadership in the 21st Century”
 Development Dimensions International, Inc. (DDI) Annual Conference

“Leadership, Heritage and Health”
 Pfizer Inc. Global Webcasted Conference

“The Role of Business in the 21st Century”
 Corenet Global’s Global Summit in Beijing, China

“International Women’s Day, How to Use What You’ve Got to get What You Want”
 Accenture global webcast from Manila, Philippines

“The Power of Partnership in Distribution Channel & Retail Excellence”
 Nokia Global Sales & Distribution Conference in Dubai

"Competitive Edge - Tools for 21st Century Success"
 US Small Business Administration’s SBA Expo

“Leadership, Diversity and Career Development”
 Sumitomo 3M Energizing Committee Meeting in Tokyo, Japan

“Leading Growth, Leading Change”
 3M International Technical Council Annual meeting

“Executive Training: How to Use What You’ve Got to Create, Lead and Manage a Sustainable and Successful Operation”
 Women In Technology International (WITI) National Conference

“Leadership, Role of the Executive - What is your role in IBM's Diversity Community”
 IBM Leadership Conference, Driving Leadership, Ownership, and Career Development

“Diversity, How to Use it to Everybody’s Benefit”
 Walt Disney World and Walt Disney Parks & Resorts HR Executives Seminar

“Keeping the Job You Have or Finding a New One: Career Planning in Uncertain Times”
 California Governor’s Conference for Women

Topics and Workshops

 How to Use What You’ve Got to Get What You Want
 Leadership Excellence, How You Can Achieve It
 Diversity: How to Reap the Rich Harvest of Culture, Creativity and Community
 The Role of Business in the 21st Century
 Global Business today, the opportunities and challenges
 Today’s Social and Environmental concerns and how to integrate them into a business profitably
 Change Management: How to Increase Productivity & Morale in Rapid Change & Uncertainty
 Mid Career Transitions, How to Reassess and Accomplish Your Dreams
 Corporate Humanity: The Benefits of Community Service
 Women in the Workplace and Marketplace
 Life Balance: How to Juggle Work, Home, Personal and Spiritual Health
 Enlightened Productivity: Bottom Line Benefits of a Values Driven Organization