In this role, Dr. Heckman has responsibility for the design and delivery of client solutions in areas of Talent Strategy, CEO Succession, Executive Coaching, and Leadership Development. His passion is to work at the intersection of strategy, data, and speed to transform organizations through the optimal development and deployment of talent.

Prior to joining Korn Ferry, Dr. Heckman was the president and CEO of Personnel Decisions International. During that time, he had global P&L responsibility across the firm’s 30 worldwide offices, he built assessment analytics capabilities and led PDI’s M&A efforts. 

Dr. Heckman has worked as an internal and external consultant with boards and top executives at many of the world’s largest organizations. He prefers to measure his impact by the financial performance his clients deliver to their shareholders. 

As a published author and sought-after speaker, Dr. Heckman is a frequent presenter at both professional and academic venues such as the Harvard Business School, INSEAD, New York University, University of Colorado-Boulder, University of Minnesota, National University of Singapore, the University of Southern California, Texas A&M, the Human Resources Planning Society, HR Technology Conference, Conference Board, Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology, and the Bombay Management Association.

Dr. Heckman’s thought leadership has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, HR Executive Magazine, Chief Learning Officer Magazine, and Human Resource Management Review,  among others. In 2019 he published The Talent Manifesto: How Disrupting People Practices Maximizes Business Results.

Dr. Heckman earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, began his graduate work at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Business, then completed his graduate studies with a Ph.D. in industrial/organizational psychology from the University of Tulsa.