Fast Company

Fast Company is the world’s leading progressive business media brand, with a unique editorial focus on innovation in technology, leadership, world changing ideas, and design. Written for, by, and about the most progressive business leaders, Fast Company i

Fast Company3 min read
In Memory of Linda Tischler
Friends and colleagues remember the longtime Fast Company editor, who passed away in April.
Fast Company5 min read
15 Lessons of Creativity for 2016
The Richard Rodgers Theatre, on West 46th Street in Manhattan, has 1,321 seats. But you can’t sit in any of them—not unless you wait a really long time, or pay an extortionate amount of money. That’s because the theater is home to Hamilton, the hotte
Fast Company7 min read
Updates From the MIC Alumni
IT’S ALL ABOUT MI XIAOMI Two years ago, Xiaomi seemed untouchable. The Beijing-based startup had unseated Apple as the top smartphone maker in China, and the success of its strategy—high-end devices sold at ultrathin margins—helped it reach a $45 b
Fast Company13 min read
01 Lin-Manuel Miranda
For making history If you ever find yourself in a position to sit down with Lin-Manuel Miranda, know this: You never really “sit down” with Lin-Manuel Miranda. He is always in motion, on a mission; standing still really isn’t his thing. When the 36-
Fast Company2 min read
04 Jean Liu
For building China’s biggest ride-sharing business at breathtaking speed One of Jean Liu’s first acts after becoming president of the Beijing-based taxi-hailing service Didi Dache in February 2015 was engineering the surprise merger with its biggest
Fast Company2 min read
05 | 06 Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli
For turning a storied fashion house into a $1 billion juggernaut Since taking Valentino’s reins in 2008, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli have reinvigorated the Rome-based brand, which nearly doubled its profit last year on revenue of more
Fast Company1 min readMedical
08 John McDonough
For saving lives by saving time One of John McDonough’s first acts after taking the helm of the med-tech startup T2 Biosystems was to ask clinicians across the country what diagnostic tool they needed the most. The resounding answer: a faster and mo
Fast Company1 min read
10 Amit Agarwal
For extending Amazon’s reach, one vendor at a time Jeff Bezos’s former executive assistant and technical adviser has been on a critical mission in India: to establish a dominant international foothold for Amazon after it all but bombed in China. Wit
Fast Company1 min read
11 Glenn E. Martin
For empowering former prisoners When Glenn Martin was invited to the White House last summer to discuss barriers faced by the more than 65 million Americans with criminal records, he wasn’t expecting to become a real-time case study. But then he was
Fast Company2 min read
12 Katie Nolan
For shaking up sports “Garbage time” is what happens in a blowout game when teams send in their second-string players. It’s also the name of former YouTube vlogger Katie Nolan’s weekly sports and pop-culture comedy show, which premiered in early 201
Fast Company3 min read
Super Social Media Stars
18 Sarah Schaaf COMMUNITY DIRECTOR, IMGUR The Company Imgur, a seven-year-old image-hosting website (founded by Sarah Schaaf’s brother, Alan), is one of the most-visited sites on the Internet, with 150 million monthly active users who post a trill
Fast Company1 min readMedical
22 Anna Young
For enabling nurses to create their own solutions “Nurses have an innate understanding of both the clinical problems patients face and what’s hindering that person right now,” says Anna Young, who cofounded the not-for-profit Maker-Nurse to help fro
Fast Company2 min readFashion
28 Martin Lotti
For stretching Nike in new directions In 2015, 18-year Nike veteran Martin Lotti introduced the company’s first-ever line of soccer cleats (or boots) made especially for women and created the sleek uniforms that the winning U.S. women’s soccer team
Fast Company4 min readMedical
34 Katrine Bosley
For moving at breakthrough speed There’s no cure for Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), a retinal disease that results in severe vision loss at a young age. Its cause is well understood, though: a genetic mutation. If you could find a way to cut out
Fast Company2 min readMedical
36 Sarah Snow
For hearing the deaf community The Problem: For someone whose first language is ASL, texting feels foreign. Deaf people tend to prefer services like Skype or FaceTime, but they require people to be tuned in at the same time. The Epiphany: Sarah Sno
Fast Company1 min read
39 Alex Wolf
For leading a millennial girl gang When Alex Wolf posted “Haters are a good thing” on Instagram in late 2014, asserting that she was the boss of her life, no matter what critics say, it went viral overnight . . . and then it just kept going. “By the
Fast Company2 min read
40 Chance the Rapper
For generating music that’s priceless Rising hip-hop star Chance the Rapper (aka Chancelor Bennett) has a unique voice, three acclaimed releases, and a fast-growing fan base. One thing he doesn’t have? A record deal. Though any label would love to s
Fast Company2 min readWorld
44 Zainab Salbi
For being a voice of change When Iraq-born activist Zainab Salbi launched her TV talk show last fall with TLC Arabia, she had a specific goal: to foster frank conversations about topics not often discussed openly in the Middle East, including transg
Fast Company1 min readInternet & Web
45 | 46 Abby Schneiderman and Adam Seifer
For helping us make arrangements The Problem: When we die, we often leave grieving loved ones to deal with our disorganized affairs. The Epiphany: Entrepreneur Abby Schneiderman was using various websites to help plan her wedding in 2010 and looked
Fast Company3 min read
51 Jeff Turnas
For lowering the grocery bill When the first 365 by Whole Foods Market location opens on May 25 in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, Whole Foods fans will recognize the new grocery store’s quality standards, but not much else: Gone will b
Fast Company1 min read
A Whole New Vision
How Jeff Turnas and his team are trimming costs and lowering prices in the new 365 by Whole Foods Market stores
Fast Company1 min read
54 Brian Bannon
For checking in When Ben Franklin created America’s first public library, he intended it not as a book repository but as a democratic lab for new ideas. As chief of Chicago’s 80-branch system since 2012, Brian Bannon—a veteran of the San Francisco a
Fast Company1 min read
56 | 57 Mareike Geiling and Jonas Kakoschke
For opening doors and hearts The Problem: Germany has accepted more than 1 million refugees in the past two years, but most live a segregated life. “To place many people in a big hall, sometimes far from the city center, with no possibility for soci
Fast Company2 min read
60 Ryan Coogler
For being a knockout filmmaker Though he’s directed just two feature films—the 2013 indie hit Fruitvale Station, the true story of an unarmed black man who was shot and killed by a police officer in 2009, and last year’s Rocky sequel, Creed (both of
Fast Company2 min read
66 B. J. Novak
For putting everything in order Whenever The Office star and executive producer B.J. Novak used to visit New York, he would ask his friend (and College Humor.com cofounder) Ricky Van Veen for restaurant recommendations. “I’d think, I wish I could ju
Fast Company2 min read
71 Ivan Askwith
For knowing how to get fans more of what they want A “crowdfunding guru” who specializes in raising money to resuscitate TV shows and movies of yore, Ivan Askwith helped writer-producer Rob Thomas raise $5.7 million on Kickstarter to revive Veronica
Fast Company2 min readAnthropology
72 Caitlin Doughty
For being an angel of death Caitlin Doughty has dedicated her entire professional life to getting us to rethink—and embrace—death. Her morbid brand includes a blog (The Order of the Good Death), YouTube channel (Ask a Mortician), and best-selling bo
Fast Company2 min readFashion
75 Virgil Abloh
For expanding with style Virgil Abloh, Kanye West’s creative director and the visionary behind three-year-old Milan-based clothing line Off-White, was the only American nominated for the prestigious LVMH Prize for young fashion designers last year.
Fast Company1 min read
76 Susan Salgado
For spreading hospitality Shake Shack’s successful IPO in 2015 was, in part, an endorsement of Danny Meyer’s customer-centric philosophy, which also underpins the dozen-plus beloved restaurants that make up his Union Square Hospitality Group. Hospit
Fast Company2 min read
80 Asako Shimazaki
For importing the cult of Muji to the United States If it seems like the minimalist aesthetic of Japanese housewares brand Muji is everywhere these days, you have Asako Shimazaki to thank. As president of Muji U.S.A., Shimazaki oversaw the launch of
Fast Company1 min readFinance & Money Management
84 Nicole Van Der Tuin
For turning mobile phone payments into credit histories The Problem: Most loan applicants in developing nations lack financial records, which makes each loan high-risk. Applying for even a $400 loan often requires a home visit and interest rates up
Fast Company3 min read
Workplace Warriors
85 Jerry Stritzke PRESIDENT AND CEO, REI The Company The Kent, Washington–based outdoor retailer is known for selling gear and apparel. It is also a consumer cooperative: For $20, customers can sign up for a lifetime membership that offers discoun
Fast Company5 min read
92 | 93 Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway and Kate Roberts
For applying the VC model to philanthropy “It was overwhelming, actually,” recalls Kate Roberts, CEO of the philanthropic initiative the Maverick Collective, of the emotions that flooded in when she gave birth to her daughter in 2011. As a senior vi
Fast Company1 min read
96 Sally-Ann Dale
For energizing brands As chief creation officer at the ad agency Droga5, whose clients include Coca-Cola, Chase, and the White House, Sally-Ann Dale leads a 150-person production team that turns pen-and-paper ideas into national campaigns. “We talk
Fast Company2 min read
100 Lilly Singh
For creating a unicorn business With more than 8 million subscribers, the L.A.–based vlogger Lilly Singh—aka ||Superwoman||—is one of YouTube’s biggest draws, attracting a global audience with her trademark blend of positivity and straight-talk humo

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