Willie Jackson helps teams and organizations find harmony. He brings compassion and levity to the challenging work of cultural transformation, inviting groups to lead with their shared humanity.
Willie started his career with Accenture in Atlanta as an IT Consultant, working on enterprise software deployments across the nation. The siren song of adventure beyond the cubicle walls was too great, so in 2010 he set sail in search of more meaningful work.
Willie served as Founding Technical Lead of business luminary Seth Godin’s altMBA program, and CTO of The Domino Project, an award-winning publishing company also founded by Seth Godin and powered by Amazon.com. His decade-long stint as a professional technologist came to a close following these projects.
His belief in the transformative power of media to change narratives led him to found Abernathy in 2015, a magazine for Black men that published 400+ articles and produced events across the nation in its four year run. During this time, Willie published a popular newsletter on culture and inclusion that led to his next act as a consultant and speaker.
In 2017, Willie joined ReadySet, a culture consulting firm, as hire #3 to serve the burgeoning demand for a more rigorous and dynamic inclusion consulting practice in the San Francisco Bay Area. He led trainings for audiences from Portland to Portugal, eventually serving as Partner & Head of Growth.
He’s been featured in documentaries (I’m Fine, Thanks), on HGTV (House Hunters International), and in print (Icarus Deception). Originally from Jacksonville, Florida, Willie splits his time between Delta Sky Lounges and Brooklyn, New York.
🎤 Public Speaking & Keynotes 🎤
I’m a dangerous man with a microphone.
MAKERS Keynote | Los Angeles, California
CultureCon West Keynote | Orange County, California
Giving & Receiving Effective Feedback Keynote | Miami, Florida
“I’ve been facilitating groups for over 20 years, and in my experience, Willie Jackson has a rare, natural talent for engaging people while being authentically himself and connected to everyone in the room. I’ve seen him masterfully moderate high profile panels to feel like an intimate living room conversation that includes and activates every participant.
He is a joy to witness on stage, and is adept at both having a strategic plan and allowing for the spontaneity of the moment, making everyone feel that they are in the presence of something unique and alive.”
—Jenny Sauer-Klein, Founder & Executive Director at The Culture Conference
“Just wanted to drop you a line of gratitude. The session yesterday was extremely powerful both for our team and for me personally.
It’s one thing to hear you talk about the program on our calls but going through it with my colleagues was an opening experience mentally, physically and maybe even spiritually.
Quite simply, thank you for the moving experience. I can’t wait to partner on future programs and adventures!”
—Director of HR, Global Financial Services Company