Stewart D. Friedman

Stew Friedman is an organizational psychologist at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he has been on the faculty since 1984. He founded Wharton’s Leadership Program and its Work/Life Integration Project. Friedman has been recognized by the biennial Thinkers50 global ranking of management thinkers every cycle since 2011 and was honored with its 2015 Distinguished Achievement Award as the foremost expert in the field of talent. He was listed among HR Magazine’s most influential thought leaders, chosen by Working Mother as one of America’s most influential men who have made life better for working parents, and presented with the Families and Work Institute’s Work Life Legacy Award.

While on leave from Wharton, Friedman was the senior executive responsible for leadership development at Ford, where he created Total Leadership. This program, now in use worldwide, measurably improves performance and well-being in all parts of life. His research is widely cited, including among Harvard Business Review’s “Ideas That Shaped Management,” and he has written two bestselling books, Total Leadership and Leading the Life You Want. His latest book is Parents Who Lead: The Leadership Approach You Need to Parent with Purpose, Fuel Your Career, and Create a Richer Life (March, 2020). Winner of many teaching awards, Friedman inspires students’ “rock star adoration,” according to the New York Times. He is an in-demand speaker, consultant, coach, workshop leader, and advocate for family-supportive policies. He hosts the SiriusXM Wharton Business Radio show and podcast, Work and Life.