About John

John was born and raised in Iowa. Having an abundance of energy and a multitude of curiosities growing up, John pursued guitar, boxing and eventually a double major in Psychology and Philosophy from Marquette University. He received a doctorate degree in IO Psychology from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1999. He founded JBG in 2002 to impact organizations through the personal development of their leaders. 

20 years later, John is an internationally recognized expert in the areas of executive coaching and executive assessment. He has worked with thousands of executives at over 100 companies in the United States and leading companies in Europe, India, China, Japan, and Southeast Asia.

Although his coaching is founded on empirical data and tested leadership principles, his open-ended approach engages global leaders in a process of authentic self-discovery that narrows the gap between the leaders they are today and the leaders they want to be. 

In 2020, John founded LeaderBridge (LeaderBridge.com), a platform where founders, C-Suite teams, and leaders can connect with their peers to ask and answer questions, and share knowledge and experience.  LeaderBridge grew out of John’s practice of matching clients with a peer so that each had someone with a similar background to talk with.

John is also active with the American Psychological Association, the Illinois Psychological Association, and the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. He is certified in a multitude of professional assessment tools and has served on the board of examiners for the Lincoln Award for Business Excellence (Baldrige Award for Illinois). He teaches courses in business psychology and psychological testing and measurement at Northwestern University.