Leo Tilman

Leo M. Tilman (born 1971) is an American financier, author, and a leading authority on strategy, <a href="/facts/Risk_intelligence/L1QeSYV3">risk intelligence</a>, and finance. He is a long-time advisor to companies, governments, and investors around the world. Tilman currently serves as Chairman & CEO of Agilion Systems, an advanced technology and strategic advisory firm. Before founding Agilion (formerly Tilman & Company), Tilman was an executive at <a href="/facts/BlackRock/bQWj1qcj">BlackRock</a> and <a href="/facts/Bear_Stearns/uYsrEdP4">Bear Stearns</a>
and adjunct professor of finance at <a href="/facts/Columbia_University/Hlf1gw53">Columbia University</a>.
Tilman is credited with predicting the global <a href="/facts/Financial_crisis_of_2007%25E2%2580%25932008/qw8n1pSN">financial crisis of 2007–2008</a> by revealing unsustainable global imbalances in his book Financial Darwinism. His equally-prophetic 2019 book Agility: How to Navigate the Unknown and Seize Opportunity in a World of Disruption (2019), co-authored with former NORAD Commander General <a href="/facts/Charles_H._Jacoby_Jr./Jr7ylEfE">Charles H. Jacoby Jr.</a>, introduced a new theory of organizational agility. The book's call for action that leaders must learn how to navigate disruption and uncertainty—foreshadowed the subsequent global crises, including the <a href="/facts/COVID_pandemic/0xTsh7Ut">COVID pandemic</a>, corporate blowups, military conflicts, and social strife.
Tilman is the author of dozens of original works, including <a href="/facts/Risk_Management/xGhxtxdp">Risk Management</a> (2000) co-authored with <a href="/facts/BlackRock/bQWj1qcj">BlackRock</a>’s co-founder Bennett Golub. In collaboration with <a href="/facts/Edmund_Phelps/dvveB22j">Edmund Phelps</a>, he co-authored a 2010 <a href="/facts/Harvard_Business_Review/leWeeqyj">Harvard Business Review</a> proposal to reignite U.S. <a href="/facts/Economic_dynamism/ud2xuDrL">economic dynamism</a> by creating the First National Bank of Innovation. In a 2012 European Financial Review article, he redefined the concept of <a href="/facts/Risk_intelligence/L1QeSYV3">risk intelligence</a> as an essential new competence for companies and investors.
Tilman was one of the main architects of a public/private partnership involving the <a href="/facts/White_House_Rural_Council/ta6pgS3j">White House Rural Council</a>, <a href="/facts/U.S._Department_of_Agriculture/3PK2rx7C">U.S. Department of Agriculture</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Farm_Credit_System/VSAjeB1B">Farm Credit System</a> that brought billions of private capital to innovative companies and projects.
He was profiled as a "Business Visionary" by <a href="/facts/Forbes/lyULpGhW">Forbes</a> among "influential authors, decision makers, and thought leaders in the field of business" and named <a href="/facts/Young_Global_Leader/LwaCPXMw">Young Global Leader</a> of the <a href="/facts/World_Economic_Forum/91KlC7Cb">World Economic Forum</a> for "professional accomplishments, commitment to society and potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world."

Leo Tilman open-in-new

Leo Tilman