Craig’s Bio
Professional Passions
- Hanging out with cool people (leaders) to affect change locally and globally
- Driving change through capitalism (it’s much easier to help when you have cash)
- Supporting entrepreneurship and innovation through speaking, writing, and consulting
Personal Passions
- Food. Cooking, eating, being around it.
- Art. Painting, designing, creating, buying, hanging around artists.
- Family. Training the next generation.
- Travel. New cultures, new foods, new experiences, new friends.
What Others Are Saying
“Craig is one of those rare business consultants that can see the forest from the trees. He is great at making the right connections to help grow your business and he is very innovative about it. Craig is a team player and an asset to have on your team!” – Sandesh Joshi, Indovance
“Craig is a phenomenal people connector, motivator and advisor. He has a wealth of knowledge and ideas that he freely empowers with all those who are around him. I’ve been to several of his seminars, a life-altering ‘Business Acceleration Program,’ and many personal conversations that all rocked my world. Word of caution though: his ideas are definitely ‘BIG,’ so watch out!” – Alex Ferguson, Epic Realm Productions
“Craig Mathews is one of our era’s great innovators. He is clearly tuned in to how things ARE done, and how things SHOULD be done. Fortunately, that never stops him from seeing how things COULD be done! His “what if?” approach is both refreshing and inspiring. I have enjoyed working on our recent project and hope we will work together on many more.” – Jeff Nash, Durham County Schools
Background
Craig is passionate about business because it has the power to transform lives. The bigger you think, the more you can achieve, and the greater your impact.
From his early work as a pre-teen entrepreneur, to teaching business at age 17, business is in his blood. Over years of experience in executive leadership, and education at a top business school, Craig has honed his holistic business viewpoint into a set of frameworks, insights, and methodologies for driving business innovation.
He has been serving companies for several years in the U.S., Europe, and India, helping hundreds of people design and build highly profitable businesses. He works with larger companies to find and develop the ideas within the organizations, growing profits. He has also taught innovation and entrepreneurship at UNC Business School to the largest entrepreneurship class in the school’s history. Wherever he is, his passion for business is infectious.
Craig started Big Think to provide practical education and consulting for business innovation using principles and strategies that yield geometric growth. He is known for his ability to simplify complex business issues, and for seeing all of the possibilities for revenue expansion – often outside industry norms.
Craig is a strategic, innovative thinker. He has led companies in sales, marketing, IT and as CEO. A serial entrepreneur and constant learner, Craig is also an author and international speaker/consultant on topics as wide-ranging as water security, leadership, business/IT alignment, marketing, sales, corporate strategy, personal development, and marriage.
Experience
- President and CEO of three businesses, including software, biotech, and management consulting
- VP Marketing for GolfSoftware.com, software and SaaS company with customers across the globe
- CTO for McKim & Creed, a Fast 50 consulting engineering firm
- Speaker, author, and change agent
Education
BA in Professional Communication (self-designed major), N.C. State University
MBA, UNC Business School, Beta Gamma Sigma
Lots of classes, courses, book, audiobooks, seminars, conferences, and cool conversations since then.
On the Personal Side
A pilot, risk junkie, artist, and a member of MENSA, Craig enjoys travel and adventure as much as learning and building businesses. Craig lives in Holly Springs, NC with his fabulous wife of 23 years, and two incredible sons.