Jerry Sternin

Jerry Sternin is a renowned author, speaker, and consultant best known for his work developing creative solutions to social and economic problems. He is most famous for spearheading the "positive deviance" approach to finding effective solutions to difficult challenges. Sternin's work has helped countless organizations—from Fortune 500 companies to government agencies to nonprofits— better succeed in their goals.

Sternin was born in 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts. He attended Northeastern University for his undergraduate degree and later obtained his Ph.D. in psychology from Boston University. After completing his studies, Sternin worked as a lecturer in psychology at University of Massachusetts, Boston and Northeastern University.

In 1978, Sternin joined the faculty of the Harvard Business School and became a visiting professor at Boston University over the next few years. It was during this period that Sternin began to focus his research and work on finding creative solutions to social and economic problems. This work eventually led to his pioneering of the “positive deviance” approach.

The positive deviance approach, which Sternin developed in the late 1980s, is an innovative problem-solving strategy based on the idea that successful outcomes can be achieved by examining “deviant” behavior that results in success despite the odds. Specifically, Sternin’s approach encourages members of an organization to identify examples of successful behavior from within their own environment, rather than seeking solutions from outside the organization. As Sternin wrote in his 2003 book Positive Deviance: A Guide to Finding Solutions in the Most Unlikely Places, “the power of positive deviance lies in discovering the successful practices that have been right in front of us all along.”

Sternin has applied his deviance-based approach to many organizations, including government agencies, Fortune 500 companies, and nonprofits. His work has helped them reduce costs, increase efficiency, and generally improve their performance. In addition to this, Sternin has also consulted with and advised many prominent executives, such as John Deere, Bose, Cisco Systems, and NBC Universal, on how to apply the positive deviance approach to their operations.

Sternin has written several books about positive deviance and making it more accessible to organizations. These books include Positive Deviance: A Guide to Finding Solutions in the Most Unlikely Places (2003); Positive Deviance in Action: How to Solve Tough Problems and Implement Lasting Change (2013); and Good People: How to Create a Workplace Where People and Performance Thrive (2015).

Sternin is one of the leading experts on positive deviance and his innovative approach to problem-solving. His work has helped countless organizations improve their performance and reach their goals most effectively. With his books and speaking engagements, Sternin continues to spread his message of creative solutions and lasting change.