about Richard Florida

In the last 5 years, Florida has penned two national bestsellers, The Rise of the Creative Class and The Flight of the Creative Class.

His new book, Who’s Your City? takes a look at the way that people choose the places they live and how that affects everything from their real estate to their families.

His previous books, especially The Breakthrough Illusion and Beyond Mass Production, paved the way for his provocative looks at how creativity is revolutionizing the global economy.

Florida has authored pieces for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, The Economist, The Harvard Business Review, The Atlantic Monthly, The Chronicle for Higher Education, U.S. News and World Report and more.

Richard Florida is one of the world’s leading public intellectuals on economic competitiveness, demographic trends, and cultural and technological innovation.

Not content to live life in the ivory tower, he has become a self-taught dynamic and inspirational speaker, leveraging his natural curiosity and ease with people to disseminate ideas on economics, technology, and society to a broad public audience. Combining in-depth analysis, cutting-edge trends, a fascinating personal story, and just a touch of self-deprecating humor, it’s no wonder Florida – recently named one of Esquire Magazine’s Best and Brightest, alongside luminaries such as Bill Clinton and Jeffrey Sachs – is one of the world’s most sought after speakers and consultants.

To find out more about Richard as a speaker email rana@creativeclass.com

Florida is Professor of Business and Creativity at the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. Previously, Florida has held professorships at George Mason University and Carnegie Mellon University and taught as a visiting professor at Harvard and MIT. He is a former senior scientist with the Gallup Organization. Florida earned his Bachelor’s degree from Rutgers College and his Ph.D. from Columbia University. As a result, he provides unique, data-driven insight into the social, economic and demographic factors that drive the 21st century world economy.

Also at Rotman, he is the Academic-Director of the Lloyd & Delphine Martin Prosperity Institute which takes an integrative approach to the study and creation of jurisdictional advantage.

Florida’s ideas on the “creative class,” commercial innovation, and regional development have been featured in major ad campaigns from BMW and Apple, and are being used globally to change the way regions and nations do business and transform their economies. His holistic approach to problem-solving and strategy development makes him a perfect partner for everyone from international diplomats to documentary filmmakers, and Fortune 100 businesses to community organizers. He’s proud to have worked with a clientele that is as broad as his intellectual interests. Needless to say, Florida is available for consultation or interview on a variety of topics.