Doug Conant

Douglas R. Conant, a New York Times bestselling author and sought-after speaker, was appointed President and CEO of the Campbell Soup Company in 2001. He retired in 2011 and was recently recognized by the American Society of Training and Development (ASTD) as the recipient of the 2011 Champion of Workplace Learning and Performance Award. He was the 11th leader in this iconic company’s 141-year history – faced with reversing a precipitous decline in market value. Conant succeeded by dramatically transforming the global leadership team, reconfiguring the portfolio, cutting costs and making strategic investments in Campbell’s products, marketing programs, innovation pipeline and infrastructure. Conant joined Campbell with 25 years of experience from three of the world’s leading food companies: General Mills, Kraft and Nabisco. He began his career in 1976 in marketing at General Mills. After 10 years, he moved to Kraft where he held top management positions in marketing and strategy. Immediately prior to coming to Campbell, he was President of the $3.5 billion Nabisco Foods Company where he led his team to improved marketplace performance and five consecutive years of double-digit earnings growth. Conant and Mette Norgaard co-authored the New York Times bestselling book, TouchPoints: Creating Powerful Leadership Connections in the Smallest of Moments. Conant is working on a new book about the secret to driving high performance in an enduring way in an on-demand world.Along with writing, speaking and teaching on a variety of leadership topics, Conant now devotes his time to helping advance the agendas of organizations at the board level. He has recently joined the Avon corporate board. He is Chairman of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy and an active member of the board of the following organizations: National Organization on Disabilities, the Partnership for Public Service, Enactus (which was formally named Students in Free Enterprise – SIFE), the Families and Work Institute, and the International Tennis Hall of Fame. He is also a former chairman of both the Grocery Manufacturers Associationand The Conference Board, where he remains a Global Counselor, as well as, a former member of the board of Catalyst.A native of the Chicago area, Conant earned his BA degree from Northwestern University and his MBA from the J.L. Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern.