CEO & Founder

Adrian C. Ott is CEO and Founder of Exponential Edge Inc. consulting which is headquartered in the Silicon Valley. She and her team have uncovered opportunities that produced exponential growth in the areas of market strategy, routes-to-market and new product concepts for companies such as: Microsoft, P&G Technology, Ricoh Innovations, EMC, Symantec, and venture-funded start-ups.

In 2014, The Harvard Business School (HBS) recognized her as one of the most inspiring leaders in Northern California in a ceremony led by the Dean.

Adrian is a best-selling author of two award-winning books that have received Best Business Book of the Year accolades. She is an expert contributor to Fast Company and her work has been featured in Harvard Business Review, Strategy & Leadership Journal, and other major publications.

She was interviewed by Bloomberg TV, Fox Business, The Washington Post and Forbes for her work helping companies to innovate and bring breakthrough technology offerings to market. In addition, Adrian regularly lectures at major business schools such as USC, Carnegie Mellon Silicon Valley, Stanford, and the University of California.

She has served for more than a decade on the advisory board of WITI (Women In Technology International), a privately-held company, that provides a technology and social networking platform that enables corporations to support the advancement of women in STEM careers.

She also served for a decade as Chair of the Strategy and Innovation Roundtable for the HBS Alumni Association of Northern California, bringing cutting-edge trends and ideas to the HBS Alumni base and Bay Area business community.

Prior to founding Exponential Edge, she was an HP executive for more than 15 years.  While at HP she led teams that exponentially grew billions in revenue in the areas of Product Management, Strategic Alliances, Solutions Marketing, and IT Development.

Her most recent position was leading the HP Garage Program Business Unit for Start-ups. She was recognized for her work in an HP annual report for “infusing HP with new revenue streams, new technologies, and new business models.”

She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.S. from U.C. Berkeley.

Awards and Honors

• Harvard Business School Most Inspiring Women Leaders in Northern California, Awarded by the Dean and HBS Alumni Association, 2014
• 50 Marketing Thought Leaders List 2014/2015/2016, Brand Quarterly Magazine
• Silicon Valley Enterprising Woman of the Year Award, 2011, National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO-SV) (one honoree per year)
• California State Business and Leadership Award for a Women-Owned Business, 2011 (NAWBO, California)
• 50 Marketing Leaders to Know List. Global CMO Magazine, May 2013
• Commencement Keynote, Carnegie Mellon Silicon Valley Graduate School, 2011
• Best Business Book Awards (2), (Exponential Influence: Digital Habits), 2015, Independent Publishers Association and IndieFab
• The Best Business Book of the Year Award (The 24-Hour Customer. HarperBusiness), 2011, USA Book News
• Best Business Book of the Year Award (The 24-Hour Customer. HarperBusiness), 2010 Library Journal
• Best Business Book of the Year Award (The 24-Hour Customer, HarperBusiness), 2010 Small Business Trends
• #1 on Stanford Business School Summer Recommended Reading List, 2012
• #1 Business Bestseller, Shanghai Daily (China)
• #1 Business Bestseller, Amazon
• Editors’ Commended Paper Award, 2012, Strategy & Leadership Journal
• Nominated to Leaders Network by WIC Consulting industry association as a top Silicon Valley consulting firm leader.
• Recognized in the HP 2000 Annual Report for “Infusing HP with new revenue streams, new technologies and new business models.”
• Duncan Citation for the highest G.P.A. in major at U.C. Berkeley.

Publications

• The 24-Hour Customer: New Rules for Winning in a Time-Starved, Always-Connected Economy (HarperBusiness, business publications unit of Harper-Collins Publishers). Awarded Best Business Book of the Year 2011 by Library Journal, USA Book News and Small Business Trends magazines. Best Business Book of the Year Awards 2010, 2011.
• Exponential Influence: Designing Digital Habits That Engage Distracted Customers. Awarded a best business book by the IP and IndieFab Associations in 2015. Multiple awards.
• Time Value Economics: Competing for Customer Time and Attention, Jan 2011, Strategy & Leadership Journal / Emerald Group Publications. Received Editors’ Top Commended Paper Award 2012, by Strategy & Leadership Journal
• Fast Company Expert Contributor Column, Article Series
• Harvard Business Review, Contributor
• The Invisible Hand of Time: How Attention Scarcity Creates Innovation Opportunity, IVEY Business Journal, March/April 2011

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