20 million textbooks a year, down to less than 1 million. John Fallon led Pearson through one of the most dramatic digital transformations in corporate history.

The ed-tech "unicorns" everyone bet on? He calls them "uni-corpses." In this conversation about digital transformation and leadership, the former Pearson CEO reveals why the human side of transformation is harder than the technology, what the Fortune 500 data actually shows about disruption, and how purpose kept a 190-year-old company alive when the stock price was in freefall.

John Fallon served as CEO of Pearson for nearly a decade, steering the education giant from print to digital. He is co-author of Resurgent: How Established Organizations Can Fight Back and Thrive in an Age of Digital Transformation, and is now Professor of Practice at Northeastern University.

📉 How Pearson's textbook business collapsed from 20M units to under 1M in a decade

📊 Why 474 of the 1995 Fortune 500 are still thriving today

🚨 The CEO mistake of calling middle managers "permafrost" instead of shock absorbers

💸 How a failed $200M bet on self-publishing revealed the truth about disruption

⚡ Why AI will transform work over a decade, not six months

🎯 How surviving throat cancer reshaped his entire philosophy on leadership

About the Guest: John Fallon served as CEO of Pearson PLC for eight years, leading the 190-year-old education company through a major digital transformation. He is now Professor of Practice at Northeastern University, Chair of GEMS Education, and an executive fellow at London Business School.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnfallonpearson

Pearson: https://www.pearson.com

📖 Get Resurgent: How Established Organizations Can Fight Back and Thrive in an Age of Digital Transformation

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Resurgent-established-organizations-digital-transformation/dp/1399422014

Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/resurgent-how-established-organizations-can-fight-back-and-thrive-in-an-age-of-digital-transformation-john-fallon/ebdeee7c51062b46

About the Host: Paula Caligiuri is a Distinguished Professor at Northeastern University's D'Amore-McKim School of Business and co-host of International Business Today. Her research focuses on cultural agility, global leadership, and workforce development.

Northeastern: https://damore-mckim.northeastern.edu/people/paula-caligiuri/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulacaligiuri

🎬 Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/bfSWh7h_wiQ

International Business Today Podcast:

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InternationalBusinessToday

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🍎 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/international-business-today/id1665009512

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/international-business-today-by-northeastern-university/

🌐 https://damore-mckim.northeastern.edu/podcasts/international-business-today/

🎓 Ready to lead through the next wave of digital transformation? Explore Northeastern's online business programs → https://online.northeastern.edu/

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