Gustavo Razzetti
CEO | Fearless Culture
Highland Park, IL, UNITED STATES
We help teams do the best work of their lives.
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Biography
Gustavo’s favorite question is “what if?” That simple question has helped him on his quest for continuous exploration and experimentation.
Change has always been a constant to Gustavo. His diverse background is at the intersection of Change Leadership, Marketing Strategy, Innovation and Design Thinking.
He has led and transformed six organizations in different scenarios: start-up, high-growth and turnaround; and has worked in diverse places: New York, Argentina, Chicago, Puerto Rico and Los Angeles.
Gustavo has over 20 years of experience in helping organizations thrive in change in the U.S., Latin America and Europe. He loves advising CEOs from both Fortune 500 and startups alike.
The author of hundreds of articles on change leadership, innovation and self-improvement, Gustavo has just finished writing the –soon to be published- book “Stretch for Change”.
Based on his dedication and hunger to continually experiment, he participated in the cutting-edge -by invitation only- Innovation Leadership program at Stanford University.
Industry Expertise (12)
Management Consulting
Pharmaceuticals
Entertainment
Financial Services
Automotive
Banking
Consumer Goods
Consumer Electronics
Health Care - Services
Telecommunications
Food and Beverages
Beverages - Alcoholic
Areas of Expertise (8)
Team Building & Leadership
Change Management
Innovation & Creativity
Cultural Transformation
Change Leadership
Change & Uncertainty
Team and Group Behavior
Organizational Culture & Culture Change
Education (5)
d.school @ Stanford University: Innovation Leadership 2015
The program focuses on developing coaching and leadership skills needed to drive good innovation process in groups. Participants work on real projects driving design thinking projects within organizations, as they experiment with their leadership style while coaching innovation projects.
d.school @ Stanford University: Innovation Leadership: Design Thinking : Human Centered Innovation Innovation and Problem Solving 2013
Columbia University - Columbia Business School: Agency Management Seminar, Leadership Development Program 1997
Escuela Argentina de Psicología Social: BASc, Social Psychology 1993
Universidad de Ciencias Empresariales y Sociales: BA, Advertising and Marketing 1988
Affiliations (3)
- Junior Achievement of Chicago : Volunteer
- GoodPart : Founder
- Public Narrative : Board Member
Links (4)
Languages (2)
- English
- Spanish
Testimonials (7)
Guillaume Alvarez, SVP Europe and Middle East | Steelcase
Gustavo nailed it perfectly and unlocked “the change agent” gene within each of our employees! Our teams had a blast and were very moved and energized. Gustavo inspired our teams to stretch their minds and start our own “change” revolution!
Emily Meisenzahl, Assistant Director | Northwestern University
A very big piece we took from the retreat was the “accountability piece.” We got back to work with lots of tools to continue having those challenging conversations that allowed us to “speak up.” Gustavo and his team brought a new perspective, through exercises that allowed everyone to feel safe and free to explore.
Sergio Fernandez, Chief Strategy Office | The Alumni Society
Liberationist session was a gamechanger. It created alignment among the leadership team, they got us to think differently through exercises that made us feel uncomfortable and helped us established a concrete, innovative, and forward-thinking platform to scale our events offering. We are still talking about the positive impact that Liberationist created in our team.
Prof. Shimon Amar, CEO | Ohalo College of Education, Israel
Gustavo’s message and insights about the power of adaptability in education were very important and meaningful to our audience. His keynote was a great contribution to the success of our conference. Gustavo's words and mindset have already caused educators to start leading changes in their organizations.
Bonnie Shifrin, Chicago Ideas | Director of Membership
Liberationist led several engaging, eye-opening sold out Labs for Chicago Ideas. Through a series of exercises that uniquely illustrated the many different ways individuals look at something, attendees were led to think about how to use the different styles to build better teams, approach clients and solve problems differently.
Tim Huelskamp, CEO | American Capital
Gustavo makes me think in a way that, when I leave his presence, I take those learnings, strategies, and thoughts, and utilize them throughout my life. He challenges things in a way that I find myself constantly trying to get to the next level, trying to be a better business leader, a better manager, a better individual
Rebecca Reid, Global Accounts Executive | Chicago Executives Club
Gustavo and his team were AWESOME!! We have gotten such great feedback from our staff and thoroughly enjoyed all of the group activities. They turned our company retreat into a cultural transformational experience.
Media Appearances (3)
IndieReader’s Best Reviewed (Non-Fiction) Books of 2017
HuffPost
2017-12-28
IR Verdict: Unlike other books of this type (ie inspirational), Razzetti eschews New Age Zen and Nietzsche concepts of “That Which Does Not Kill Us Makes Us Stronger,” and instead offers practical advice of how to deal with life in our pinball-like age...
Stretch for Change (Review)
IndieReader
2017-07-17
Common and irritating phrases in today’s parlance regarding life’s difficulties are to “own it” and/or “become empowered by it.” But press the proselytizers of such terms as to how, and they stutter and run out of script. It becomes evident that the mere mention of these terms should be enough for them...
A Book That Wants to Make People Uncomfortable: Stretch for Change by Gustavo Razzetti
Cision
2018-03-13
Stretch for Change, a new book by author Gustavo Razzetti, addresses a paradox: people want to change but have a hard time changing. Change is threatening for most people. The good news is that both individuals and organizations can prepare for it. Just as athletes train their bodies to be fitter, people can train their mindsets and behaviors. It’s not easy, but it’s worth the effort...
Event Appearances (7)
Recovering the power of humanity at the workplace
Now & Next (HR Summit) 2018 Istanbul, Turkey
2018-05-09
Adaptability Is the New Competitive Advantage
International Education Innovation Conference Israel
2017-05-17
Stretch for Change
Steelcase Europe & Middle-East Summit Munich, Germany
2017-02-23
Fall in Love with Your Career Again (Or Find a New One)
Chicago Ideas Chicago
2018-02-15
Stretch Your Mind, Stretch Your World
Chicago Ideas Week Chicago, USA
2017-10-19
Fighting the Enemies of Innovation
Indiana Day of Innovation Conference Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
2017-10-12
Build a Band of Misfits
Matter Member Workshops Chicago, IL, USA
2018-03-20
Style
Availability
- Keynote
- Moderator
- Panelist
- Workshop Leader
- Author Appearance
- Corporate Training
Research Focus (3)
Embracing Outside Perspective - Chicago Ideas Week Workshop
Oct 2015 Looking for new solutions? Start by challenging your own perspective. Borrowing a fresh pair of eyes can open up new possibilities and spark innovation. That was the theme behind our Our Chicago Ideas Week workshop. A highly interactive session challenged participants own perspectives, and pushed them to look at things in a fresh way—all in order to solve business challenges they were facing.
Origami Office: Space, Culture, and Creativity
Dec 2014 It’s no secret that workplaces and workspaces are changing. Adaptive, collaborative, inspirational, and fun are some of the solutions that creative organizations are exploring to foster more innovation and productivity. Understanding space, both physical and emotional, has become critical to design a culture of creativity. How does this affect collaboration for those of us in the “Idea” business? How might we hack space to better work together? How might a culture of vulnerability and collaboration promote creativity? Chicago's creative agency community joined us for an interactive panel discussion with industry leaders as they shared their perspectives about the intersection of space, culture, and creativity.
The Change Gap
How to unleash your organization desired state
Change is taking a toll every organization. Regardless of our roles, we all suffer from the gap created by antagonistic expectations. The tensions between current and desired state, between where leaders and teams expectations add stress and slow change down. This framework and tools will help assess the Change Gap and develop a strategic approach to accelerating transformation.
Partnerships (1)
Member of Global Network of Boutique Consulting Firms
Konsalidon Konsalidon
2018-03-14
Liberationist has become a member of Konsälidön, a global network of independent boutique management consulting firms. Konsälidön is the tipping point ushering in the new era in consulting. It's first-of-its-kind digital platform connects organizations with consulting teams more efficiently than in the traditional consulting partnership model. The platform enables an agile, decentralized and distributed global consulting offering.
Courses (7)
Team Timeout Offsite
When was the last time your team called a timeout? Playing is important, but it's not everything. Your team needs time to practice and reflect. Pause. Regroup with your team to make necessary adjustments. What's working and what can be improved? This workshop will improve your team's game by uncovering potential blind spots and crisis as well as experimenting with new tactics.
Team Reboot Offsite
Has your team lost its mojo? Does your team feel stuck? Before you team becomes dysfunctional, play the reset button. Even the most successful teams get stuck from time to time. This workshop will help you unblock your team and improve its performance. Join us and reboot your team.
Fight The Enemies of Innovation Workshop
Innovators have to survive attacks from both friendly and unfriendly fire. Disguised as a "Friend" or exposed as a "Thief", they will try to stop you. Understand, fight and neutralize the Enemies of Innovation. Book this in-company workshop.
Build a Band of Misfits Workshop
Innovation is a dangerous mission. Building the right team is critical. It can make or break your innovation operation. Learn how to design the perfect team to drive change in your organizations. A team of misfits encourages diversity of thinking by having clear roles, accountabilities and team purpose.
Accelerate a Culture of Innovation
Organizations invest a lot of money and time in innovation. Yet, when it comes to driving adoption, or scaling cultural change, most companies struggle. Over 70% of innovation failures are due to employee resistance and unsupportive management. This 30-day sprint will help you change that. Prepare your culture. Accelerate Innovation.
Improve Your Cultural Fitness, Not Just Cultural Fit
Culture is the glue that brings a team or organization together. But if the glue is too sticky, it can make them stuck instead of making them stay together. Our workshop will inspire you to stretch your organizational culture.
The Power of Opposites: drive multigenerational collaboration
Multigenerational employees create a divide. Digital natives versus experienced managers. Millennials versus Baby Boomers. Different characteristics, values, and attitudes toward work hinder collaboration. This workshop will help you turn “opposites” into “collaborators.”
Articles (6)
Smart Teams Know How to Adapt-Like Jazz Bands Do
LinkedIn2018-03-13
The ability to deal with uncertainty can make or break a team. Famous jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald made her biggest career mistake on a German stage back in the 60’s. That performance earned her two Grammy Awards though...
How to Win the Blame Game: Stop Playing
LinkedIn2018-03-12
A fisherman is heading home at dusk. The river is narrow. Suddenly another boat is headed straight for him, coming faster and faster. He gets upset and starts to yell: “Watch out! Turn!.”...
5 Steps to Reigniting Career Development For Today’s Workforce
LinkedIn2018-03-08
Career development ain’t what it used to be. Success meant a linear climb to the top of one’s profession or employer. Though some organizations have embraced a flexible approach to career development, we are just scratching the surface...
How to Free Yourself from Limiting Beliefs
LinkedIn2018-03-05
We don’t see reality; we see our version of reality. One morning, while eating breakfast, a young woman couldn’t believe what she saw while looking through the window of her new apartment. Her neighbor is hanging the washed laundry outside...
How to Fall in Love With Your Career All Over again
LinkedIn2018-02-28
That question is keeping almost everyone awake at night. And why 50% of employees might not show up to work tomorrow...
Why Your Team Should Make Mistakes But Not Celebrate Them
The StartupGustavo Razzetti
2018-03-16
Does your company have a 'mistakes policy'? Are errors tolerated, punished, encouraged or rewarded? Celebrating mistakes has become, not only accepted but cool. The problem is that we are rapidly shifting from a culture of fear to one of zero accountability. Your team should make more mistakes, but celebrate what they’ve learned not just the error. Read about corporate mindsets regarding mistakes, the different types of learnings your team can get, and how to build a culture that encourages learning with accountability.
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