Michele Wucker
M.A.
IL, US
Michele Wucker coined the term gray rhino to call attention to how surprisingly likely we are to get trampled by obvious, probable, high impact risks and to help decision makers improve their response. The gray rhino has became emblematic of the missed opportunities to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Making headlines in more than 65 countries and 35 languages, gray rhino theory has influenced government policies and business strategies in finance, sustainability, technology, human capital, business continuity, emergency response, and cybersecurity. It also inspired a lyric in the K-pop BTS hit song Blue & Grey about anxiety and depression. Michele is the author of four books including the influential global bestseller, THE GRAY RHINO: How to Recognize and Act on the Obvious Dangers We Ignore, and YOU ARE WHAT YOU RISK: The New Art and Science of Navigating an Uncertain World (April 2021). Her popular 2019 TED Talk has been viewed more than 2.5 million times. With three decades of experience in media and non-profit management and content, turnarounds, and strategy, she founded the strategic advisory firm Gray Rhino & Company in 2015 to help organizations to better respond to the gray rhinos they face. She has been honored as a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum and a Guggenheim Fellow. She writes about risk regularly for strategy+business. Her work has appeared in publications around the world including The Economist, The New York Times, the Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. She has been interviewed by many media including National Public Radio, CNN, CNBC, and MSNBC.
Michele Wucker coined the term gray rhino to call attention to how surprisingly likely we are to get trampled by obvious, probable, high impact risks and to help decision makers improve their response. The gray rhino has became emblematic of the missed opportunities to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Making headlines in more than 65 countries and 35 languages, gray rhino theory has influenced government policies and business strategies in finance, sustainability, technology, human capital, business continuity, emergency response, and cybersecurity. It also inspired a lyric in the K-pop BTS hit song Blue & Grey about anxiety and depression. Michele is the author of four books including the influential global bestseller, THE GRAY RHINO: How to Recognize and Act on the Obvious Dangers We Ignore, and YOU ARE WHAT YOU RISK: The New Art and Science of Navigating an Uncertain World (April 2021). Her popular 2019 TED Talk has been viewed more than 2.5 million times. With three decades of experience in media and non-profit management and content, turnarounds, and strategy, she founded the strategic advisory firm Gray Rhino & Company in 2015 to help organizations to better respond to the gray rhinos they face. She has been honored as a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum and a Guggenheim Fellow. She writes about risk regularly for strategy+business. Her work has appeared in publications around the world including The Economist, The New York Times, the Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. She has been interviewed by many media including National Public Radio, CNN, CNBC, and MSNBC.
Gray Rhinos in the Global Economy
This is one of my most frequently requested presentations, combining my deep experience and personal network in global policy, finance, and economics with the powerful framework I developed for helping decision makers to improve their responses. Join the CEOs, risk professionals, boards, thought leaders, and senior financial and national policy officials around the world who apply gray rhino theory to their strategic decision making.
NEW! The Risk Your "Free-From" Brand Cannot Afford to Take
Format: 20 to 40 minute keynote (optional Q&A)
Hear first-hand from someone who lives with celiac disease how to avoid unforced errors and remove barriers to the lucrative “free-from” market while diversifying your ingredient sources.
Companies are wise to recognize the attractions of the fast-growing “free from” consumer market segment. People with food allergies and sensitivities are loyal, resulting in high-customer lifetime...
Climate Risk Gray Rhinos: Strategic Responses
Format:
30-45 minute keynote with Q&A
The summer wildfires and multiple new record high temperatures set in 2023 are a clear reminder that climate change is a global, obvious, impactful “gray rhino” risk for boards of directors. Climate risk and the net-zero transition affect strategy and operations involving issues that range from supply chains to agriculture, property values, energy, finance, insurance, regulatory changes, reputational risk, and...
Risk Skills in the Future of Work
Can be customized to include follow-up (breakouts can be separated out depending on group size) and read-out report. Also available in person depending on location and public health situation status.
This program is perfect for:- Senior management focused on human capital strategy
- HR Professionals building human capital
- Teams needing help managing change
Understanding Your Risk Fingerprint
Do you see sitting still or making a bold move as being the bigger risk? Do you see opportunity where a colleague sees danger? Do you look before you leap or just take the plunge? When you see an obvious risk, do you face it head on or do your best to ignore it? The answers to these questions shape every choice you make about every risk you take. Recognizing why you answer them the way you do --the personality traits, experiences, group dynamics and deliberate decisions that make up your...
Risk Empathy for Team Building
Risk empathy is the ability to understand how others experience risks and adapt your own behavior to meet those needs. Just as analyzing your own risk fingerprint -that is, the influences behind the risks you take- gives you valuable insights into your own risk choices, seeking insights into the risk fingerprints of your colleagues, clients, friends, and family can be a powerful tool in business and life.
Gray Rhino Proofing Your Organization
Gray Rhino events are highly probable, give clear warnings and have high impact. All too often, leaders fail to plan for, recognize, or respond to obvious dangers, from the personal to the organizational to the political to the global level: financial crisis, industry disruptions, failing infrastructure, the aging of the workforce, climate change and more. But it's far from inevitable that we must ignore them. The most successful organizations are the ones that identify and confront Gray...
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