Dick Cross 
The Cross Partnership Ltd.
Concord, MA, UNITED STATES
8-time turnaround CEO, Private Equity Partner, Harvard Instructor, Professional Speaker
Media
Publications:
Videos:
Biography
Dick Cross, Top Gun CEO and author of Just Run It! Running and exceptional business is easier than you think,, has been the catalyst for unlocking Hidden Greatness in mainstream businesses for more than 25 years .... getting them "unstuck" to achieve their next level of success. Dick has been the "hands-on" Chairman, CEO or President of eight "against the odds" turn arounds. Through two and a half decades of consulting he has advised more than 100 other CEOs and their organizations to similar results. He holds degrees from the University of Virginia, Harvard and Columbia. A frequent speaker, he also created The President's Course at Harvard's Executive Program at the Graduate School of Design. Dick also has spent much of his career in private equity circles, including a post as President of Fenway Holdings. He is currently a partner at Alston Capital Partners. Dick continues to consult and speak enthusiastically and has served on the board of numerous corporate, philanthropic and civic organizations. Through his writing, speaking and consulting, workshop and training activities at The Cross Partnership, Ltd, he is spreading the word that running your business exceptionally well is easier than you think. Learn more at dickcross.com.
Industry Expertise (7)
VC and Private Equity
Management Consulting
Furniture
Consumer Goods
Construction - Commercial
Automotive
Manufacturing
Areas of Expertise (2)
The Single Greatest Determinant in Business Performance
Driving Performance Through Portfolio Company Oversight
Accomplishments (3)
Published Just Run It! Running an exceptional business is easier than you think (professional)
2012-04-03
Amazon best selling new release now in its second printing
Recent Articles and Interviews (professional)
2012-07-24
Chief Executive Magazine, The Conference Board Review, Inc.com, WGN Radio, Investors Business Daily, Chicago Tribune, Under 30 CEO, Personal Excellence Magazine, Leader's Edge Magazine, CEO Read Manifesto, Blog Business Success, 33 Voices, Costco Connection, AMEX Open Forum
CEO Turnarounds (professional)
CARSTAR Inc. Spaulding & Slye Colliers, MW Manufacturers Inc, Valley Manufacturers Inc, Dateq Inc, PBG Inc, Bear Archery Inc. NORCOM Inc.
Education (3)
Columbia Business School: MSc Business, Business 1981
Harvard university : MLA, Deisgn 1976
University of Virginia: BA, Architecture 1971
Links (2)
Testimonials (7)
Peter Lamm, Managing Partner | Fenway Partners
Dick Cross’s capacity to distill outwardly complicated concepts into comprehensible, value- creating, ideas that can be put into immediate action is rare. Listen to him speak. Read his book... you’ll learn something and be entertained.”
Jack Faris, Past CEO of The National Federation of Indeoendent Business | Multiple workshops and speaking engagements for NFIB
Listening to a Dick Cross speech or reading his book is the equivalent of spending two full days, one-on-one, in a casual setting with this leading American business thinker. His presentation style is conversational, easy to understand and will make a lasting impression on everyone who hears him.
John Adams, Past Chairman and CEO, AutoZone, Inc | Multiple speaking events and workshops
Take a very bright architect who is trained to know how things "fit." Put him in positions of leadership where he invests the front half of his career as an advisor to CEO's and the back half actually being the CEO...and get one incredibly believable business leader and speaker. LIstening to Dick is a personal gift of a lifetime.
Mike Toth, CEO and Managing Partner | Toth Brand Imaging, Inc.
Save your time and money on other speakers. Dick Cross is one of those rare, generous birds who shares all he's learned from taking the theoretical and applying it to the real-life practice of running companies. His speeches and his book are musts for anyone in management searching for strategic enlightenment.
Howell Hollis, Managing Partner, Smith Moore Law | Multiple addresses and events
Dick Cross combines his real-world experience with his attention to design and functionality to examine the inherent structural dynamics of a successful business venture. His speeches carry a a universal message which is as relevant to a small professional personal service business as it is to a large manufacturer of branded merchandise.
Frederick Mayerson, Chairman, The Walnut Group | Various corporate meetings and events
Having owned, operated, and invested in many businesses over the years I can say that Dick Cross's messages go right to the core of running successful companies --- outlining and explaining core platforms succinctly and with emphasis on fundamentals. Dick's focus is "old school" in the people matter most, both on the inside and with customers/ clients on the outside. Dick's speeches present a framework for businesses of all types in a dramatically convincing and easy to understand way.
Doug Diamond, Managing Partner, Equity South Advisors, LLC | Several corporate keynotes and addresses
Dick Cross has a way of distilling complex ideas, like running a business, into simple to understand concepts. He talks about how to make sure that those simple ideas are constantly delivered to the organization and its constituents so that everyone understands the possibilities. He instills a positive outlook on his audiences with solid anchorages in integrity and values --- and in the process helps them to reach high insetting and achieving their goals. He conveys his deep commitment that a better world is always available to those who believe in themselves.
Event Appearances (1)
Greatest Factor Business Performance --- Nothing Even Comes Close.
Virginia Counsel of CEO's Richmond, Virginia
2012-06-14
Sample Talks (3)
The Greatest Question Never Asked
“How Do You Run A Business?” Why never asked? Because no one expects an answer. In this edgy keynote Dick demystifies this most important determinant of business success with simple, proven methods that audiences can use the very next day to be more effective in their jobs at the tops of their organizations.
Your Business On The Back Of An Envelope
It’s that simple? In this fast moving message Dick leads audiences through an immediately credible and adoptable model that reveals the points of leverage and how to exploit them to unlock the hidden potentials in both investor- owned and independently-owned businesses.
Character At The Top
The ways most people handle themselves at the top don’t work any more! Extreme support from today’s social workforce requires a new principles for how to handle yourself at the top. In this thought provoking message Dick lays out nine underpinnings for compelled followership.
Style
Availability
- Keynote
- Workshop Leader
- Author Appearance
- Corporate Training
Social