Mike Bechtel

Mike Bechtel, a renowned futurist, corporate innovation expert, and venture capitalist, is making a name for himself in the technology space. With an extensive academic background in anthropology, government, philosophy and economics, he became the Chief Futurist at Deloitte and an Adjunct Professor of Corporate Innovation at the esteemed University of Notre Dame. Mike discovered his passion for emerging technologies back in 1998 when he started his career at Accenture Labs, where he helped Fortune 500 companies bring pioneering technologies to their businesses. Over the course of twelve years, he would develop a company-wide intrapreneurship culture, resulting in patents and earning him the title of Accenture Management Consulting's first Global Innovation Lead. He then co-founded Ringleader Ventures, where he invested in early-stage software startups that built straightforward solutions to complex corporate challenges. Mike has served on numerous corporate, university, and not-for-profit boards. He is an avid writer, with his work being featured in several publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Inc. Magazine, and Business Insider. Mike is an engaging speaker who regularly addresses corporate, not-for-profit, and university audiences.