Ed is a founding partner of Strategic Talent Solutions http://www.strattalent.com/, a consulting firm that helps executives increase their personal effectiveness and align their organizations and employees to be passionate about business goals. As founder, he builds on his long career with Hewitt Associates, most of them creating and leading its global practice in Organization Effectiveness. Ed consults, speaks, writes and researches about, leadership development, talent management, employee engagement, organization design and innovation.

Ed's clients have included companies as diverse as Abbott Laboratories, Allina Health Systems, Baxter Healthcare, Best Western, Boeing, BP Oil, Capital One, Cargill, CDW Corporation, Coca-Cola, the Federal Reserve, Great Plains Energy, Health Care Services Corporation (Blue Cross Blue Shield), Intel, Nextel, Northwestern Mutual, S.C. Johnson, Seyfarth Shaw, Shell Oil, Snap-On Tools, True Value, Whirlpool, and W.W. Grainger.

Ed inspires his speaking audiences with his energy, humor and down-to-earth style. Audiences love his personal and practical examples. He has spoken to standing room only crowds at companies, trade groups and professional associations around the world. His speeches mix his business and managerial experience, real-life stories and background as one of Hewitt's leaders during its involvement with Fortune Magazine's list of the "100 Best Places to Work in North America." 

Ed has appeared on CNBC and CNN and is quoted frequently in leading periodicals. He was a founding board member of Winning Workplaces, where he helped Fortune Small Business select the nation's most innovative leaders. He is also on the board of the Human Resource Planning Society and helps edit its journal, Human Resource Planning. He received the 2005 Walker Prize, the Society's highest award, for his article, "From Birth to Business Results: 25 Years of Human Resource Strategy." He teaches in the MBA and executive education programs at Cornell University and the University of Wisconsin. He holds a B.A. from the University of Minnesota and a Ph.D. from Cornell. He can be reached at ed@strattalent.com or (847) 722-3992.