John Taylor McEntire

Innovation Ecosystem Enabler & Author

Growing up in a faith-based home, John Taylor McEntire developed a fascination for world cultures and people via a unique family dynamic that, in addition to four brothers and sisters, included cousins, Native American foster brothers, foreign exchange students and humanitarian refugees.

After two years as a missionary in Japan during his college years, John changed his major to Japanese. While researching ringi seido, a decision-making process in Japanese management systems, John learned about nemawashi, an informal process of quietly laying the foundation for some proposed change by gathering support and feedback from the people involved.

He said, “The knowledge I gained from the study of these powerful, time tested consensus building philosophies has served me throughout my career as an Innovation Ecosystem Enabler – a flexible role I define as helping to take cutting edge science from research organizations to the market.”

John has brought his expertise and vision for innovation ecosystem development and growth to numerous companies/institutions/governments having visited and/or worked in 40 countries and residing in the US, Japan, Taiwan, and Qatar over the years.

His first professional engagements were in Japan, starting with TOLA, Inc, an international public relations company, and then UMI Japan, a firm specialized in licensing of U.S. businesses in Japan. After five years in Japan, John held management positions at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, WA, and various corporations. This past year, he wrapped nine years with Qatar Foundation in Qatar, as Director of the Industry Development and Knowledge Transfer office. He continues now as Senior Advisor from his home in Richland, WA.

John recently completed the three levels of training as a trainer in (Jack) Canfield Success Principles. He is a Certified Success Principles Trainer, Canfield Certified Virtual Facilitator and Certified Canfield Methodology Trainer. His latest venture, Mutual Prosperity, LLC is a fusion of his personal business and cultural background and the Success Principles offers the ultimate East meets West approach to forging business and relationship solutions.