Thomas Kolditz

Thomas Kolditz is a former Brigadier General, who served in the US military for 34 years. Since retiring from the force, Thomas has channelled his time into writing to document his time in service and has appeared on several major national and international broadcasts. He is also currently acting as the Executive Director of the Doerr Institute for New Leaders at Rice University and is also a Fellow of the American Psychological Association. A career that demands great teamwork and leadership, Thomas is now highly sought to deliver a range of leadership keynotes to a variety of high-profile companies.

Serving in the military for 34 years, Thomas built a resilient character and learned to perform under pressure. During his tenure in the armed forces, Thomas was the leader of the Department of Behavioural Sciences and Leadership at the US Military Academy, performing duties with the academy for 12 years. Responsible for teaching and research involving management, psychology and sociology, Thomas is now considered an authority of emotional intelligence and leadership in his keynote addresses. Thomas is also well known for founding the West Point Leadership Centre and being a skydiving instructor for the West Point Sport Parachute Team.

Since leaving the life of the armed forces behind, Thomas has dedicated his time to becoming an educator. He is currently the founding Executive Director of the Doerr Institute for New Leaders, located at Rice University. Thomas is also a Visiting Professor at the Yale School of Management, having designed and now directing the Leader Development Programme. Highly knowledgeable in leadership, Thomas is also a senior advisor to the Future of Executive Development Forum and has written In Extremis Leadership: Leading as if Your Life Depended on It, using over 175 interviews that he conducted during his time in combat in Iraq. Thomas has received great recognition for his work throughout his career. He has been recognised as a Leadership Thought Leader and been named as a Top Leader Development Professional by Leadership Excellence.

Now a highly sought-after keynote speaker, Thomas has engaged over 150 global audiences hailing from corporate, social and governmental sectors. In his proficiency as a professor, Thomas has engaged countless students with his expertise at establishments such as the University of Missouri, Duke University, Peking University and Columbia University. He has also delivered to Metropolitan law enforcement and firefighters, showing how diverse and relatable his expertise is. Various news broadcasters have also sought Thomas to appear on their shows, such including the likes of ABC World News, Al Jazeera, CBS and ABC. Sought to cover topics such as measuring what matters, leaders developing leaders, how to prepare organisations for crisis and leadership takeaways, Thomas is the perfect speaker for a range of corporate events.