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SCOTT BELSKYFounder & CEOBehance
Scott Belsky believes that the greatest breakthroughs across all industries are a result of creative people and teams that are especially productive. As such, Scott has committed his professional life to help organize creative individuals, teams, and networks. Scott is the founder of Behance, a company that develops products and services for the creative industries. Behance oversees the Behance Network (Behance.net), the world's leading online platform for creative professionals; The 99% (The99percent.com), Behance's think tank and annual conference devoted to execution in the creative world, and Action Method (ActionMethod.com), a popular online/mobile productivity application and line of organizational paper products. Scott is also the author of the national bestselling book Making Ideas Happen (Portfolio, Penguin Books).
Through his work at Behance, Scott has become an advocate for technology and community initiatives that empower the careers of creative professionals. He has consulted for leading media and Fortune 500 companies, including GE and Hewlett-Packard, and has traveled as far as the Kaospilots School in Aarhus, Denmark to talk about his findings. He has appeared in the Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek, and has shared Behance's research in segments on ABC News, MSNBC, and with the United States State Department. Scott was also included in Fast Company Magazine's list of "100 Most Creative People in Business." Scott has guest lectured at Cornell University, Harvard University, VCU Brand Center, and UC Berkeley among other institutions, and serves as a small business expert on American Express' Open Forum website.
Prior to founding Behance, Scott helped grow the Pine Street Leadership Development Initiative at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Scott was especially focused on organizational improvement and strengthening relationships with Goldman Sachs' key clients. Scott chairs the Board of Reboot, serves on Advisory Board of Cornell University's Entrepreneurship Program, is a board member for the Art Director's Club, and is a member of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. He attended Cornell University as an undergraduate and received his MBA from Harvard Business School.
On the web:
Scott Belsky On "Making Ideas Happen" (PSFK)
Rachel is the co-author of the upcoming book "What's Mine Is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption" (Harper Business, October 2010). She consults, writes, and speaks on the power of collaboration and sharing through current and emerging technologies, and on how it will transform business, consumerism, and the way we live. She received her BFA (Honors) from the University of Oxford, and undertook her postgraduate studies at Harvard University. She has consulted to businesses around the world on brand and innovation strategy and was a former director at the William J. Clinton Foundation. Rachel has lived and worked in the UK, USA, Asia, and Australia.
On the web:
Collaborative Consumption (Economist)
John Forte is a Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and producer from Brooklyn, New York. A graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy, Forte is a classically-trained violinist who is known for his work with the multi-platinum group "The Fugees." On November 24, 2008, Forte was granted a commutation by President George W. Bush after having served more than seven years of a fourteen-year federal prison sentence. Those who campaigned on his behalf include famed singer/songwriter Carly Simon and Senator Orrin Hatch (R) of Utah.
Prior to his incarceration Forte released two solo albums, PolySci (Columbia) and I, John (Transparent). On December 22, 2008, Forte walked out of Fort Dix Correctional Institution to resume his life and tell his story through music, film and prose. In addition to working on his album, Forte is a contributor to The Daily Beast and is working with at-risk youth through organizations such as "In Arms' Reach," a community-based arts, counseling and mentoring program for the children of incarcerated parents.
On the web:
Interview With John Forte, The Man Behind The Music (Guest of a Guest)
Patri Friedman received a bachelor's degree in math from Harvey Mudd College, an MS in computer science from Stanford University, and an MBA from Cardean University. After four years at Google as a software engineer, he founded TSI in 2008. Patri has co-founded two intentional communities, served on the board of Humanity+, is a prolific writer on political theory and philosophy, and an active participant in festivals such as Burning Man and Pennsic (founded by his father).
On the web:
Live Free or Drown: Floating Utopias on the Cheap (Wired)
Naveen is co-founder of foursquare, a mobile-service which helps people connect with people and places around them. Prior to this, he was Lead Architect at Socialight and was a Senior Software Architect with the Global Digital Business group at Sony Music Entertainment. In this role, he oversaw and developed various applications that dealt with content management and distribution of mobile products and was the lead developer of Sony's Music Box mobile application. Before Sony, he consulted for New York-based Run Tones and has enjoyed software engineering stints at Sun Microsystems and Lucent Technologies. Naveen holds a Master's degree in computer science from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
On the web:
Behind Foursquare and Gowalla: The great check-in battle (Wired)