Influence
How Innovation Thinking Transforms Leaders and Organizations
For four decades, Jeff’s work has shaped innovation practice across enterprises, defense institutions, and global organizations—moving beyond simplistic notions toward frameworks capable of sustaining innovation at scale
Shaping the Innovation Conversation
For decades, much of the innovation conversation focused on creativity as a trait, a toolkit, or a moment of inspiration. This work helped shift that conversation toward a more disciplined and realistic understanding of innovation as a system—one shaped by competing demands, organizational context, and leadership choices over time. By reframing innovation as something that must be intentionally designed and led, rather than discovered or managed piecemeal, it provided leaders and organizations with a more durable way to navigate complexity and sustain innovation beyond isolated successes.
Key Contributions
The Competing Values Framework
Co-created with Robert Quinn, Kim Cameron, and John Rohrbaugh—now one of the most widely used organizational effectiveness models globally
Innovation Genome™
Understanding organizational innovation patterns as a “genetic code” that can be mapped and developed
Innovation Code™
Providing practical tools for reconciling competing priorities through Constructive Conflict™
Paradox-Based Change
Reframing transformation as embracing contradictions rather than resolving them
Democratization of Innovation
Making systematic innovation accessible to everyone, everywhere, every day
Academic Foundation
As a Clinical Professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, Jeff DeGraff has taught innovation, strategy, and leadership across the full range of academic and executive programs—including undergraduate (BBA), MBA, Executive MBA (EMBA), and executive education. His work bridges rigorous academic inquiry with applied practice, making his frameworks relevant to students, senior executives, and institutional leaders alike.
Research & Publications
Selected Books
- The Innovation Code — Jeff DeGraff & Staney DeGraff (Berrett-Koehler, 2017)
- The Creative Mindset — Jeff DeGraff & Staney DeGraff (Berrett-Koehler, 2020)
- The Art of Change — Jeff DeGraff & Staney DeGraff (Berrett-Koehler, 2025)
Selected Scholarly Contributions
- Co-development and extension of the Competing Values Framework, a widely used model for understanding organizational effectiveness, leadership, and innovation
- Research integrating organizational theory, systems thinking, and leadership studies to explain how innovation operates in complex, competing environments
- Scholarly articles and chapters translating academic research into practical frameworks for organizations and institutions
Academic Appointments & Affiliations
- Clinical Professor of Management and Organizations, University of Michigan Ross School of Business
- Long-standing involvement in applied research and executive education at the intersection of innovation, strategy, and organizational design
A full academic publication list is available upon request.
Corporate Impact
Over the past four decades, this work has shaped how organizations prepare for futures defined by ambiguity, disruption, and accelerating change. At critical moments, these approaches helped leaders move beyond linear planning toward stronger sensemaking and adaptive decision-making—enabling organizations to interpret shifting conditions, navigate competing priorities, and act with coherence under uncertainty.
Selected examples include:
- GE Ecoimagination — Reframing sustainability as a strategic growth platform through shared sensemaking across the enterprise
- Hulu — Contributing to the creation of a new digital media platform in an emerging and uncertain market
- Coke Zero — Shaping the innovation narrative behind a major brand extension amid changing consumer dynamics
- Thomson Reuters 3000 Xtra — Informing the design of a next-generation financial information system in a volatile global context
- Prudential Day One — Supporting a strategic repositioning grounded in long-term relevance and organizational alignment
- Munger Hall, University of Michigan — Contributing to an interdisciplinary environment designed to support collective sensemaking and innovation
These efforts reflect how innovation frameworks, when applied at moments of uncertainty, support shared understanding, coordinated action, and sustained impact.
Military & Defense Innovation
Military and defense organizations operate in environments where ambiguity, uncertainty, volatility, and consequence are constant. This work has been applied in these contexts to help leaders and service members develop stronger sensemaking capabilities—the ability to interpret complex situations, align understanding across units, and make informed decisions when clarity is limited.
By emphasizing sensemaking alongside adaptive thinking, these approaches support judgment, coordination, and resilience under pressure—helping institutions balance discipline with adaptability and immediate action with long-term readiness. Defense and national security environments, including allied and NATO contexts, serve as a rigorous proving ground for innovation frameworks designed to hold up when the stakes are highest.
- U.S. Air Force, Space Force
- NATO forces
- Joint Chiefs of Staff
- Allied forces in 45 countries
- Department of Defense fellows
His work earned him the Władysław Eugeniusz Sikorski Medal from the Polish Armed Forces (2024) for contributions to defense innovation leadership.
Media Presence
Jeff DeGraff has played an active role in shaping public conversations on innovation, leadership, and change through respected media and ideas-focused platforms.
He has served as host of PBS’s Innovation You and NPR’s The Next Idea, stewarding long-form discussions on how innovation shapes organizations, leadership, and society.
His work and perspectives have also been featured in leading publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Harvard Business Review, and he has appeared as a TED speaker, translating complex innovation frameworks for broad audiences.
In addition, he has been a regular contributor to business and ideas platforms such as Fortune, Inc., Psychology Today, and Big Think, reflecting sustained engagement with leaders across sectors.
- Host of PBS’s “Innovation You”
- Host of NPR’s “The Next Idea”
- Original LinkedIn Influencer (2007)
- TED speaker
- Regular contributor to Inc., Fortune
- Psychology Today, Big Think
- Featured in WIRED Magazine
- Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review
Global Speaking Impact
Recognized as one of the world’s foremost speakers on innovation ecosystems, Jeff has delivered transformative keynotes across six continents—teaching leaders how to build the cultures, competencies, and communities that make innovation sustainable and scalable.
With over two million frequent flyer miles logged across 45 nations, his energetic, practical presentations move beyond inspiration to deliver actionable frameworks that create lasting change. From Fortune 500 boardrooms to military academies, government summits to startup gatherings, Jeff’s influence as a speaker extends far beyond the stage—catalyzing the innovation ecosystems that drive organizational transformation worldwide.
Creating Lasting Change
The true measure of influence is not found in books sold or speeches delivered, but in how organizations and institutions change over time. Across enterprise, defense, and educational contexts, this work has contributed to shifts in how leaders make sense of complexity, design innovation systems, and act under uncertainty. From organizations that have reinvented themselves to leaders and institutions operating in high-stakes environments, the lasting impact lies in innovations brought into practice—and sustained—long after the initial engagement.