Through creative storytelling and bold illustrations, The CEO’s Time Machine takes readers on an unexpected journey as they step, along with a retiring leader’s protégé, into a strange garage to discover the secret to the CEO’s success in building one of the most innovative companies in the world.
The book is a simple business parable that can be read in less than 30 minutes while leaving you with a lasting message that will transform how you view your own leadership and innovation. The CEO’s Time Machine will make you a better leader because it powerfully reminds everyone that envisioning the future doesn’t mean forgetting about the past or ignoring the present.
The story: Why does this CEO collect weird artifacts? What can we learn from a DELCO 8-track car radio and antique NCR cash registers? Why did this CEO build a game room where an eclectic group of men and women play checkers, poker and X-Box? What do these games have to do with leadership and innovation? Will we ever go to Mars? And how in the world can this CEO travel to the future? Inside The CEO’s Time Machine, you’ll discover the answers to these questions and more.
As the History Factory’s CEO Bruce Weindruch writes in the book’s foreword, “Geoff Thatcher draws upon his skills as a masterful storyteller and experience designer to guide his readers through a genuine inventory of history to ultimately arrive at a singular moment of insight shared by generations of legendary leaders. (His) storytelling is elegantly simple and profoundly complex. His message is both timely and timeless. And the imaginative craft-like illustrations by Zoe Thatcher complement and embed the narrative to the mind’s eye. No matter where you are on your life’s journey…you’ll experience an ‘aha moment’ in The CEO’s Time Machine.”
Geoff Thatcher's work as a creative leader has taken him from Maracanā Stadium and the opening ceremonies of the Rio 2007 Pan American Games to the grand opening of Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi. He is a student of the themed entertainment industry who got his start as a train engineer and stuntman. He is a writer and teacher who once facilitated a leadership workshop at The CIA University (yes, that CIA). After a long career creating brand experiences, visitor centers, museums, theme parks and live events, he launched his own experience design firm, Creative Principals, in 2017.
Zoe Thatcher is a young and talented designer and illustrator. After being named the female scholar athlete of the year, the NCAA Championships-qualifying swimmer graduated summa cum laude from Auburn University in 2018. She immediately went to work as a costume designer at Weissman in St. Louis, one of the largest dance wear companies in the United States. In addition, Zoe worked on costume designs for the grand opening of Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi and uniforms and merchandise for the Quest themed experience center in Doha. In August 2019, she joined Creative Principals as a designer and illustrator.
