Erika Andersen

Erika Andersen is a recognized voice in leadership development and organizational strategy in the United States. Andersen is the founding partner of Proteus, a coaching, consulting, and training firm focused on leader readiness. Over more than three decades, she has developed approaches to learning and business-building tailored to clients' challenges, goals, and culture. Her work centers on organizational visioning and strategy, executive coaching, and management and leadership development, serving as consultant and advisor to CEOs and top executives at organizations including Amazon, Disney, Spotify, Revolt Media, Charter/Spectrum, and Yale School of Public Health.

Andersen is the author of six books, including "The New Old: Crafting Your Best Later Life," "Change from the Inside Out: Making You, Your Team and Your Organization Change-Capable," "Be Bad First: Get Good at Things Fast to Stay Ready for the Future," "Leading So People Will Follow," "Being Strategic: Plan for Success; Out-think Your Competitors; Stay Ahead of Change," and "Growing Great Employees: Turning Ordinary People into Extraordinary Performers." Her first book, "Growing Great Employees," was a finalist in both the 800CEOREAD Awards and the Axiom Awards for Best Business Book in the HR and Organizational Development category. Andersen also adapted "Being Strategic" into a Public Television show, "Being Strategic with Erika Andersen."

Andersen's books and learning guides have been translated into Spanish, Turkish, German, French, Russian, and Chinese. She has contributed to and been quoted in national publications, including Harvard Business Review, Wall Street Journal, Fortune, and The New York Times. Andersen is a leadership blogger at Forbes.com and host of "The Proteus Leader Show," a business and leadership podcast ranked in the top 10 percent globally. Inc. named Andersen one of the top 100 leadership speakers.

At the core of Andersen's work is a practical, human-centered philosophy about how leaders grow and adapt. As a leadership readiness expert, she emphasizes the importance of acquiring new knowledge and skills quickly and continuously. In "Be Bad First," Andersen explores how individuals can become proficient in high-payoff learning. In "Leading So People Will Follow," she examines six leadership characteristics that inspire followers to support their leaders, focusing on far-sightedness, passion, courage, wisdom, generosity, and trustworthiness. "The New Old" expands her thinking beyond the workplace, sharing insights on crafting a fulfilling later life, informed by her own experiences living between Spain and America.