Michael Ventura

Author of Applied Empathy and Constellation Thinking

Most of what matters at work is felt before it is understood. Empathy. Purpose. The sense that a room has turned before anyone has said so.

We tend to treat these as temperament, something a person either has or doesn't. I've spent two decades arguing otherwise, and building the methods that prove it. The capacities we call soft are learnable, teachable, and structural. They have simply gone unwritten.

That's the work. Two books, a stage, and a small number of people I sit with directly.

“Empathy without accountability is not just hollow, it's deceptive. It lulls people into false security. And it fractures the very trust it pretends to build.”

The Dark Side of Empathy The New York Times, Sunday Opinion, May 4, 2025

read the article

Author

Two books on empathy, purpose, and the disciplines underneath them. Plus an essay most weeks.

Speaker

Keynotes and workshops for audiences who want something they can use on Monday.

Advisor

A small practice with executives, board and advisory service, and organizational work through Equalls.

Explorer

The Explorers Club, Esalen, and a practice that sits alongside the rest of it.

"Over and over the resounding feedback was, the keynote was amazing. Many folks reached out for the link to hold watch parties later and share with clients. He was by far the best keynote I've ever worked with."

— Learning & Development Team Leader, Fortune 500 Management Consultancy
“Meaningful change happens when people come together with open arms, minds and hearts. Honed through his experience working with a range of companies, Michael Ventura provides great insights and tools for how you too can make meaningful change happen.”

— Beth Comstock, Former Vice Chair of General Electric and Author of Imagine it Forward
"Michael Ventura was the first call for help I placed after joining the ACLU. He has an ability to help me think big with care and compassion. And he can also hone in on details and practices that ensure successful implementation of those big plans. He has been a great co-creator and coach for me and my team."

— Rebecca Lowell Edwards, Chief Communications Officer, ACLU
"Empathy has been the most underrated characteristic of the biggest winners in society. Michael has a depth and an execution with this skill that I admire tremendously."

— Gary Vaynerchuk, Entrepreneur and New York Times Bestselling Author

Michael Ventura has built a career connecting the practical with the reflective. He is the author of Applied Empathy (Simon & Schuster, 2018) and the forthcoming Constellation Thinking (Authors Equity, 2027), which explore emotional intelligence, purpose, and systems thinking as cultivated practices for personal and professional growth.

During his nearly two decades founding and leading the strategy and design firm Sub Rosa, Michael worked with influential organizations from the American Civil Liberties Union, Google, LVMH, and Nike to the United Nations and the Obama-Biden Administration, translating empathy from a feeling into a practical discipline. He has served as visiting faculty at Princeton University, the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, the Esalen Institute, and the United States Military Academy at West Point, as well as executive education programs, where he translated real-world brand and organizational challenges into methods that prepare leaders to succeed amidst complexity.

Presently as co-founder of the advisory firm Equalls, he partners with leaders, teams, and boards at moments of transformation. Alongside the organizational work, he is a member of the Explorers Club and serves as Board President of Tribal Link Foundation, a United Nations affiliated organization supporting Indigenous leaders and their communities worldwide.

His work has been featured in Fast Company, Forbes, PBS NewsHour, and The New York Times, and he has spoken at SXSW, The TED Conference, and conferences globally. Across all of Michael's work, there is a through-line of bringing intuitive judgment and operational rigor to moments when we must confront reality, take ownership, and move forward with clarity.