1. Gary Shapiro

As CEO of the Consumer Technology Association ®, owner and producer of CES ®, Gary Shapiro has had a front row seat to the launch of nearly every recent major technology. He’s seen tech companies rise and fall, and bankrupt entrepreneurs become billionaires. After more than four decades in the industry, he knows that leaders who make it in the tech world have one thing in common: they know how to pivot.

Drawing upon detailed case studies, economic theory, and personal experience,Pivot or Die offers a behind-the-scenes look at the development of innovative technology and business strategies. Along the way, Shapiro offers a “pivot” framework for leaders in technology and beyond to stay flexible and agile:

• The startup pivot: how startups can shake up industries and maximize the advantage of new ideas
• The forced pivot: adapting to the unforeseeable (or simply unforeseen) and meeting shifting consumer demands
• The failure pivot: why failure can deliver better lessons than success and how to take those lessons forward
• The success pivot: Beating the market by seizing opportunity and out-pivoting your competitors

In laying out each of these pivots, Shapiro shares unique lessons on how leaders can change minds and mindsets and steer their organizations to success in an increasingly competitive environment.