Dr. Howard Rasheed is the Chief Global Strategist of IBIS Partners and a Director of the IBIS Partners Social Venture. Dr. Rasheed is responsible for devising and implementing our international “Fourth Sector” social venture intermediary initiative. Dr. Rasheed is a professor, speaker, and author, internationally known as “The Innovation Strategist” for his ground breaking ideas on innovation and creativity. As an entrepreneurial visionary, Dr. Rasheed has owned, operated, and created a number of multi-million dollar ventures. He is the Founder of The Institute for Innovation (www.idea-act.com) and inventor of the Idea Accelerator®, a patent-pending innovation and ideation system and software for strategic transformation.

 
Dr. Rasheed earned a Ph.D. from The Florida State University in Global Strategic Management and Entrepreneurship and has written over 30 practitioner and academic publications. As an Associate Professor of Business Strategy and Entrepreneurship at the University of North Carolina Wilmington he teaches in the areas of Innovation and Technology, Business Strategy, and Entrepreneurship.
 
His work in Strategic Foresight has included planning for multiple sectors of the Brazilian economy on behalf of their Minister of Science and Technology.  His work in Brazil was recently featured in Black Enterprise October 2010 issue.  He was lead consultant for the 5 year strategic plan for the Research Triangle Region.  Dr. Rasheed also founded the Leadership Development Institute’s Virtual Think Tank, a social policy group.  He also served as the Executive Director of the Region IV 8(a) Contractors Association.

Previously, Dr. Rasheed has been the Chief Operating Officer of a $20 million aerospace manufacturing company, acquiring and managing over $100 million in Section 8(a) contracts.  During the two year period prior to working on his doctorate has won over $16 million in grants and contracts for entrepreneurial firms.  Additionally he worked as a manager in telecommunication and data communications with AT&T.  His first professional job included working in the original Model Cities Program in Chicago. He was a Certified Business Developer (Howard University, 1973) under the original Office of Minority Business (OMBE) program.

Dr. Rasheed has received the Outstanding Alumni and Outstanding Instructor awards from his alma mater, the University of West Florida where he received a B.S. in Marketing and an MBA in entrepreneurial studies. He was the first Chairman of the Minority Economic Task Force for the Pensacola Chamber.  He has also served on the Executive Committee of the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce.  He is currently the Vice Chairman of Programs for the 100 Black Men of America, an international mentoring organization of 10,000 professional men.

Dr. Rasheed received the first Knight Leadership Award from the 100 Black Men of America.  He has been awarded the McKnight Doctoral Fellow and is a member of the Sigma Epsilon National Management Honor Society.

As an author and speaker, Dr. Rasheed has recently co-authored a book with Dr. Warren Bennis and Jim Rohn entitled Yes you Can! Reaching your Potential While Achieving Greatness.  His chapter, “Opportunity Never Knocks: The Power of Innovative Leadership” describes his unique contribution to innovation around the world. As a long-time member of the World Future Society his work on "A Scientific Approach to Collaborative Innovation and Strategic Foresight," was published in the book: Seeing the Future Through New Eyes.
 
His work in social innovation and the effects of Youth Entrepreneurship has been featured in two books and he was featured in the PBS documentary “These Kids Mean Business.”  His research has been the catalyst for mandatory youth entrepreneurship programs in the US and around the world.

Dr. Rasheed has been a public speaker for many years and is a graduate of Dale Carnegie.  His recent keynote presentations include: “Innovate or Perish: Finding Opportunity in the New Global Economy”. His upcoming book entitled Innovation Renaissance: 7 Steps to Winning the Future is due in 2011.