About Terry R. Bacon

I am now retired from Korn/Ferry but am still affiliated with the firm as an Emeritus Scholar-in-Residence. Today, in addition to my writing, I continue to consult with select clients and continue to conduct research on leadership, power and influence, and other topics of interest to me.

I was born in Topeka, Kansas in 1947 and grew up in Missouri and Iowa. I graduated from Treynor High School (in southwestern Iowa) in 1965 and did my undergraduate work at the United States Military Academy at West Point. I was in Company E2 and graduated with a BS in General Engineering in 1969. Shortly thereafter, I spent a year in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division and then several more years as a military intelligence officer. I left the Army in 1974 and went to The American University, Washington, DC, where I received a PhD in Literary Studies in 1977.

I moved to Utah after graduation, taught briefly as an adjunct professor at the University of Utah, and then joined a consulting company, Shipley Associates, where I became the vice president of research and development. I created a number of corporate education programs while at Shipley and co-authored, with Larry Freeman, the Shipley Associates Style Guide, which was published by John P. Wiley & Sons. In 1989, I left Shipley and founded Lore.

Besides providing leadership at Lore and doing considerable client work, I developed dozens of executive education programs and authored or co-authored the books featured on this site. I also continued my own education by studying strategic planning at the Wharton School of Business (University of Pennsylvania), sales management at the University of Chicago, leadership at Stanford University, psychology at Goddard College, and leading professional services firms at the Harvard Business School.

Prior to joining Korn/Ferry, I was the president and CEO of Lore International Institute, which I founded on July 1, 1989. Lore was a professional and executive development consulting firm that focused on the assessment, education, and coaching of professionals, managers, and executives around the world. As Lore grew, we formed a sister company in Europe and eventually had a global network of more than 300 faculty and coaches to serve primarily Fortune 500-type clients. In 2008, Lore was acquired by Korn/Ferry and is now part of one of the world’s largest talent management firms.

I have been active on the boards of a number of nonprofits, including the Women’s Resource Center in Durango, Colorado; the advisory board of the Durango Arts Center; the advisory board of Friends of the Fort Lewis College Theatre; the board of Music in the Mountains (where I served as president for two years); and the Fort Lewis College Foundation Board (where I served as chairman for three years).

In 2011, Amacom Books published two of my books:  Elements of Influence: The Art of Getting Others to Follow Your Lead, appeared in July 2011.  It is a companion to The Elements of Power: Lessons on Leadership and Influence, which appeared in January 2011. Together, these books present nearly two decades of research on power and influence.  Both of these books have been translated into Chinese, and Elements of Influence is now being translated into Estonian.

In 2012, Nicholas Brealey published my latest book (coauthored with Dr. Laurie Voss):  the 2nd edition of Adaptive Coaching, which initially appeared in 2003.

About Korn/Ferry International

Korn/Ferry International is widely known as the world’s leading executive recruiting firm, but it is much more than that.  Over the past two decades, Korn/Ferry has evolved into a comprehensive talent management firm.  As our Web site says, “With the business community now facing many more challenges in attracting, developing and retaining talent, Korn/Ferry’s services also include a full suite of leadership and talent consulting offerings, as well as talent acquisition solutions.”  Our capabilities in leadership and talent consulting include strategic and organizational alignment, leadership and executive development, and talent and performance management.

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