JEFFREY ERNSTOFF

ABOUT JEFFREY ERNSTOFF

Diverse CEOs, senior managers and professors at Hertz, The Wall Street Journal,  Mercedes, Fortune, Castrol,  Herman Miller,  Northwestern U.  Syracuse U.,  Jazz At Lincoln Center,   and others describe  Harvard  Graduate School alumnus Jeffrey Ernstoff  as:

 “…The  perfect  hybrid … a great resource in  fostering  innovative  thinking at the individual or organizational level ... bringing an artist’s  perspective to stimulate fresh  approaches… (as)  a  gifted performer  who really knows how to make his perspective relevant to others … in a way that’s both captivating and often  funny…”

A triple threat musician, writer and showman,   Jeffrey   served  ten years as Creative Director  for Radio City Music Hall’s diverse corporate events,  TV specials and five Super Bowl halftimes. 

In 2005, he was named Creative Director for  the Kellogg Innovation Network at Northwestern University’s  Kellogg School of Management, consistently rated among the nation’s top 5  business graduate schools by Business  Week.  

Complementing his on-going public cabaret performances, his  “informances” for business and academic institutions  foster truly innovative thinking:

"It’s about  REAL insights  geared to real challenges.  For example:  How can the way Duke Ellington customized his band’s repertoire help us develop innovative products, management and programming?” 

After completing an off -Broadway run and three Fellowships at the Nat’l Endowment for the Arts, Jeffrey served as  music production coordinator/researcher  for the Los Angeles and Atlanta Olympic Ceremonies.  He has since served as creative director for Fortune Magazine’s  Innovation Forums in New York City and their Global  Forums in  Washington, DC,  Delhi, India, and Cape Town, South Africa. 

A member of the Writer’s Guild of America and ASCAP  his  non- fiction scripts, music and/or  musical arrangements  have been performed by Michael Jackson,  Stevie  Wonder, Gloria Estefan,  Whitney  Houston, Walter Cronkite,   Mike Wallace,  Presidents Clinton &  G.H.W.  Bush, Tom Brokaw, Katie Couric, John McEnroe  and many others - on   all three major networks,  HBO,  and at  Boston’s  Symphony Hall,  Jazz at Lincoln Center and  The White House.

He also  serves on the Admissions Committee of the Harvard Club of New York. 

No wonder he’s got great stories and innovative insights to provide.          

 “Great imagination.  . Great presentation.   Great effectiveness.”

  - Geoffrey  Colvin , Senior Editor – Fortune.

PROGRAMS

Innovative Thinking And All That Jazz  (Lessons from the Arts)

Running Time:  1 hour.

Format: Lecture demonstration with live music, power point  and dvd playback.    

Synopsis:   Concepts and anecdotes re: innovations Arts and Entertainment as they apply to business,  including:

• Breakthrough  concepts  based upon individual personalities - linking  Duke Ellington’s  Jazz Orchestra and  ESPN’s breakthrough hit:  “Pardon the Interruption.” 
• Avoiding pitfalls  that come with thinking  MUCH, MUCH BIGGER  - linking Olympic Ceremonies/Super Bowl Halftimes with product and company expansions ( Kimball Piano Co.,  Visa Sponsorships.  )   
• Knowing when NOT to use an internal marketing expert:   linking Paramount’s  The Godfather  with the launch of the Mercedes E Class Sedan.    
• Creating Product Line Extensions –  linking artistic  Theme and Variations  of  Jazz arranger Oliver Nelson,  painter Andy Warhol and Sculptor  Alexander Calder with   Yamaha Corporation,  Apple and the I-pod.
• Freeing up your thinking  by  intentionally LIMITNG your options – linking traditional and contemporary Haiku with concepts at Raytheon and Herman Miller. 
• “Now What?”  I. e., ( Q & A and Leave-behind exercises) 

Note:  Expandable  to  full  jazz trio and/or 90 minutes..

An Insider's Guide to Outside The Box Thinking

Running Time: 1 hour.

Format: Lecture demonstration with live  music instruments, power point slides and dvd playback.

Synopsis:   Understanding  the real story behind  remarkably innovative projects in which Jeffrey himself played a key role,  including:

• The  Fortune Innovation Forum
• The Golden  Anniversaries  of  the  Int’l Tennis hall of Fame,  Polaroid and The Fortune 500
• Launch of the Mercedes E- Class Sedan and International Paper’s  “Accolade” line.
• The unusual casting and scripting  of celebrities,  rank and file employees and children for powerful tributes to  Intel Founder Andy Grove, ( Time Man of the Year), Colin Powell,  Ted Turner,  and company programs and  honorees at Callaway (Golf equipment)  , Hertz, Kraft, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Polaroid, KFC  and more. 
• How to stimulate this kind of Out Of The Box thinking by really understanding it.
• “Now What?”  I. e., ( Q & A and Leave-behind exercises:

The Odd Couples- Unusual Partnerships That Work (sometimes  in spite of themselves)

Running Time: 1 hour.  

Format:  “Informance/”  ( lecture and performance with  2 live  musicians  (I.e., an “odd couple” in itself –  Jeffrey is joined by a second  player)    Power point  and dvd playback.

Synopsis:   Understanding  how  often unanticipated partnerships can have  successful  results.  ( despite the occasional tempest or two ( or three or four)  citing:

• The Original Couple: Felix &  Oscar
• Mega Spectacle Producers Tommy Walker & David L. Wolper (Olympics, Statue of  Liberty Centennial)
• Film moguls Louis B. Mayer &  Samuel Goldwyn ( of MGM)
• Musicians George & Ira Gershwin 
• Sports figures Reggie Jackson  & Billy Martin
• Corporate  Philanthropy’s  Aetna  &  The Arthur Ashe Foundation.
• Sonny & Cher
• Frank & Jesse James
• Disney Corporation and The California  Institute of the Arts
• Great live musical interudes drawn from the above

LINKS

http://www.ernstoffcreative.com/

http://www.kinglobal.org/