Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D.
Futurist, best-selling author, psychologist, gerontologist, entrepreneur
Over the past 35+ years, Dr. Ken Dychtwald has emerged as North America’s foremost visionary and original thinker regarding the lifestyle, marketing, health care, and workforce implications of the age wave.
Ken is a psychologist, gerontologist, and best-selling author of 16 books on aging-related issues, including Bodymind; Age Wave: The Challenges and Opportunities of an Aging Society; Age Power: How the 21st Century Will Be Ruled by the New Old; The Power Years: A User’s Guide to the Rest of Your Life; Healthy Aging; Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills and Talent; Gideon’s Dream: A Tale of New Beginnings and, most recently, A New Purpose: Redefining Money, Family, Work, Retirement, and Success. He is currently writing a new book, Destiny Knocks: Lessons From an Irregular Life. He was the executive producer and host of the highly rated/acclaimed PBS documentary, The Boomer Century: 1946–2046.
Since 1986, Ken has been the founding President and CEO of Age Wave, a firm created to guide companies and government groups in product/service development for boomers and mature adults. His client list has included over half the Fortune 500, and his explorations and innovative solutions have fertilized and catalyzed a broad spectrum of industry sectors—from pharmaceuticals and medical devices, to automotive design and retail merchandising, to financial planning and health insurance.
He has served as a fellow of the World Economic Forum, and was a featured speaker at two White House Conferences on Aging. Ken has twice received the distinguished American Society on Aging Award for outstanding national leadership, and American Demographics honored him as the single most influential marketer to baby boomers over the past quarter century. His article in the Harvard Business Review, “It’s Time to Retire Retirement,” was awarded the prestigious McKinsey Award, tying for first place with the legendary Peter Drucker. PBS Next Avenue named him a 2016 Influencer in Aging for his work pushing beyond traditional boundaries and changing our understanding of what it means to grow older. Ken was recently honored by Investment Advisor as one of the 35 most influential thought leaders in the financial services industry over the past 35 years. Ken and his wife, Maddy, just received the Esalen Prize for their outstanding contributions to advancing the human potential of aging men and women worldwide.
During his career, Ken has addressed more than two million people worldwide in his speeches to corporate, association, social service, and government groups. His strikingly accurate predictions and innovative ideas are regularly featured in leading print and electronic media worldwide, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, USA Today, the Financial Times, Fortune, Time, Newsweek, BusinessWeek, U.S. News and World Report, the Economist, South China Morning Post, the Standard, the Straits Times, 60 Minutes, Good Morning America, ABC World News Tonight, Today Show, PBS, NPR, and BBC.
In addition to his role at Age Wave, he is deeply involved in numerous activities for the public good including the Alzheimer’s XPRIZE which he co-envisioned with XPRIZE Founder Dr. Peter Diamandis in 2012. The Alzheimer’s XPRIZE team is now preparing to globally crowdsource a new 21st century approach to ending Alzheimer’s disease.
Through his highly acclaimed presentations, his breakthrough research and consulting initiatives, and his leadership within both the social science and business communities, Ken Dychtwald has dedicated his life to battling ageist stereotypes while promoting a new, vital, and purposeful role for life’s second half. Ken and his wife Maddy live in the San Francisco Bay Area.
