7 Conscious-Business Visionaries You Need to Know, August 2020

From spreading Indigenous wisdom to alleviating poverty and hunger, these leaders are changing the future of business-as-we-know-it.

Dr. Anita Sanchez

After founding and leading Conscious Company Media, I get asked all the time about who is pushing the envelope in conscious business — who are the people at the forefront of thought leadership, taking a stand, setting new standards, or creating new business models that the rest of us can follow? 

Here I bring you the August 2020 list of conscious-business visionaries who are leading the pack — innovators who are ahead of their time, devising a powerful plan for change for the future of business-as-we-know-it.

Dr. Anita Sanchez
Co-founder & CEO of Sanchez, Tennis & Associates LLC

Dr Anita L. Sanchez is a beacon of transformational wisdom. In 1976 she co-founded the comprehensive organizational development consulting firm Sanchez, Tennis & Associates, which has been celebrated for its principled large-scale organizational change initiatives. As CEO, international consultant, trainer, speaker, and coach, Anita guides leaders and Fortune 500 executives in transformational advancement, interlacing the insights of Indigenous elders with best practices in human systems design and modern science. She is also the author of the international award-winning bestseller author, “The Four Sacred Gifts: Indigenous Wisdom for Modern Times.”

Dr. Riane Eisler
Co-founder & President of The Center for Partnership Studies

Dr. Riane Eisler is a pioneer of partnership. She is a cultural historian, systems scientist, internationally renowned keynote speaker, and co-founder and president of the Center for Partnership Studies (CPS), an organization whose mission is “to catalyze movement towards partnership systems on all levels of society through research, education, grassroots empowerment, and policy initiatives.” Riane pioneered inclusion of women and children in human rights theory and action, and is the Editor in Chief of the Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, an online peer-reviewed journal at the University of Minnesota.

Hamdi Ulukaya
Founder, Chairman & CEO of Chobani

Hamdi Ulukaya walks the conscious-business talk. In 2007 Hamdi Ulukaya founded Chobani, one of the fastest growing food companies in the last decade and a pioneer for the natural food movement, with the mission of making better food more accessible. Hamdi has implemented a handful of conscious-business practices, including six-week, fully paid parental leave and a profit-sharing program for the company's 2,000 employees. He launched the Chobani Food Incubator to mentor and support socially responsible food entrepreneurs, and he founded the Tent Partnership for Refugees to mobilize the private sector to improve the lives and livelihoods of refugees around the globe. Hamdi also signed the Giving Pledge, committing the majority of his personal wealth to the cause.

Jeffrey Hollender
Co-founder of Seventh Generation
Founder & CEO of American Sustainable Business Council
Co-founder of Sustain Natural

Jeffrey Hollender has a track record for launching businesses for good. In 1988, he co-founded Seventh Generation (you might have heard of it), a company that sells eco-friendly cleaning, paper, and personal care products. In 2009, Jeffrey founded the American Sustainable Business Council, where he currently holds the title of CEO and Board Chair. And in 2014, he and his daughter Meika co-founded Sustain Natural, the first company to provide sustainable, fair trade, and non-toxic condoms. A Certified B Corp, Sustain strives “to educate and help people connect the dots between condoms and hunger, health care, poverty, and climate change.”

John Hope Bryant
Founder, Chairman & CEO of The Promise Homes Company and Operation Hope

John Hope Bryant makes meaningful change happen, and then some. He is an entrepreneur, philanthropic investor, thought leader, bestselling author, and the founder, Chairman, and CEO of organizations dedicated to growing the dignity of those who live in underserved communities: Operation HOPE is an organization that provides financial-dignity education and economic empowerment programs for low- or moderate-income people in underserved communities, and The Promise Homes Company is one of the largest minority-controlled owners of institutional-quality, single-family residential rental property in the United States. In addition to launching and running successful social enterprises, John has been an advisor to the last three sitting US presidents, and his work has been recognized by the last five US presidents. He is a thought leader on economics and business leadership and is the bestselling author of “How The Poor Can Save Capitalism: Rebuilding The Path to the Middle Class.”

Lynne Twist
Co-founder of The Pachamama Alliance
Founder & President of Soul of Money Institute

Lynne Twist has been committed to alleviating poverty and hunger, and supporting social justice and environmental sustainability, for more than four decades. In 1997 she co-founded The Pachamama Alliance, a global community whose mission is “to empower Indigenous people of the Amazon rainforest to preserve their lands and culture and, using insights gained from that work, to educate and inspire individuals everywhere to bring forth a thriving, just, and sustainable world.” In 2003, she founded the Soul of Money Institute, inspired by her experiences as a global fundraiser for The Hunger Project and the Pachamama Alliance, as detailed in her book, “The Soul of Money: Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Life.”

Simon Sinek
Founder of Simon Sinek Inc.

Simon Sinek calls himself an “unshakable optimist,” and with good reason. A trained ethnographer, he is fascinated by (and has discovered) incredible patterns about how the greatest leaders and organizations think, act, and communicate — and his findings and philosophies inspire people to do inspiring things. He became a household name with his 2009 TED Talk “How Leaders Inspire Great Action,” which began his journey of popularizing the concept of “Why” and is now one of the most popular TED Talks of all time. Since then, Simon has served as a prolific speaker and has authored several bestselling books, including “Start With Why,” “Leaders Eat Last,” “Together is Better,” and “Find Your Why.”