BIO

Edivandro Conforto

Entrepreneur, executive and scientist. I take science, strategy and technology all the way to execution.

From research to practice: innovation and business transformation in global organizations.

ScientistPhD USP · Post-doctorate and Research Affiliate, MIT System Design & Management
ExecutiveAccenture · PMI · Brightline™
EntrepreneurEC Advisory & Insights Group · HiLOOP™ · AI PM Compass™ · Lotik
Edivandro Conforto on the MIT campus in Cambridge
MIT · Cambridge
01 Today

Technology, innovation and transformation: from evidence to execution

Since 2007 I have been building companies and initiatives that take science, strategy and technology all the way to execution.

As a scientist, I took my master’s degree and PhD at USP and my post-doctorate at MIT, where I am now a Research Affiliate in System Design & Management. I have contributed to twelve books, published more than 50 articles and received international recognition from POMS, IPMA, PMIEF and PMI. As an executive, I was Managing Director and Head of Accenture’s Business Agility & Transformation practice for Latin America, led PMI’s Thought Leadership globally and served as Head of Strategy Research at Brightline™. As an entrepreneur, I founded EC Advisory & Insights Group and HiLOOP™, where AI PM Compass™ was born, and I became a co-founder of Lotik.

The scientist demands evidence, the executive answers for results and the entrepreneur takes the risk. Everything I do comes from that meeting point. That is why, where the market brings opinion, I bring methodology, data and evidence.

The path

From strategic advisory to the frontier of Artificial Intelligence

Strategic advisory · since 2007

EC Advisory & Insights Group

I founded EC Advisory & Insights Group while still completing my master’s degree at USP. Since 2007 the firm has run transformation programmes and strategic projects across 21 industries, from automotive to the non-profit sector, on fronts spanning business transformation, innovation, R&D and product development.

A pioneer in integrating science, strategy and technology, EC Advisory & Insights Group has developed exclusive, proprietary models to diagnose, design and implement large-scale business agility programmes, adoption frameworks for AI and Generative AI, and digital transformation journeys. Anchored in leading-edge research, the firm offers a singular combination of strategic foresight, evidence-based insights and Executive Advisory, equipping professionals and decision-makers, including executives of Fortune 500 organizations, to navigate complexity and unlock new sources of innovation, performance and growth.

My most recent initiative

Humans in the Loop (HiLOOP™)

HiLOOP™ was born from the conviction that, in a landscape of accelerating artificial intelligence, human beings must remain at the centre of decision-making, creativity, ethics and value creation. It is a research-driven organization with a simple and powerful mission: to amplify human potential, not replace it.

As Founder and Chief Science Officer, I lead the development of research and thought leadership on AI, the future of work and collaboration between humans and technology; I deliver talks, workshops and learning experiences that have already inspired and equipped thousands of professionals from Fortune 500 companies; I develop proprietary, practical tools and frameworks for the responsible adoption of AI; mentoring initiatives focused on international career growth and human-centred leadership; and content and events that broaden awareness of the social, organizational and labour impacts of emerging technologies.

At the heart of the initiative is AI PM Compass™, a proprietary analytical tool able to map real productivity windows in project work and translate data into high-performance action plans. It synthesizes years of experience in project environments and technological transformation, measuring and transforming productivity at global scale, supported by proprietary algorithms and scientific rigour: the same management-science DNA that sets HiLOOP™ apart from traditional consultancies and technology vendors.

I advocate a responsible, transparent and human-centred transformation, in which technology strengthens rather than diminishes people’s purpose, identity and autonomy.

Deep tech · co-founder since 2026

Lotik

I became a co-founder of Lotik in January 2026. It is a blockchain-based platform for running collaborative R&D projects with authorship records, per-partner permissions, versioned agreements and full traceability of decisions and contributions. It serves companies doing collaborative R&D, research and technology organizations, funded centres and programmes, and open innovation initiatives.

Development carried out between partners rarely stalls on the science; it stalls on trust. Sharing intellectual property and sensitive information, proving that deliverables and contributions matched what was agreed, accounting to funders: all of it is still done by hand, and the absence of traceability turns into dispute and risk.

It is this philosophy that unites everything I build: from strategic advisory to the frontier of artificial intelligence, always with the human at the centre and science as the compass.

Presentation on the Agile Economy: anticipate, adapt and accelerate
The Agile Economy
Talk on hybrid management models
Hybrid Management Models
Project Management Institute Jul 2023 – Oct 2025

Global Executive Director of PMI Thought Leadership

Between July 2023 and October 2025, on a consulting and Executive Advisory engagement for PMI (Project Management Institute), I served as Global Executive Director of Thought Leadership, responsible for redefining and rebuilding the Institute’s Thought Leadership research practice.

I brought a new vision to the area, along with expertise and a distinctive industry background, repositioning PMI’s research as a strategic asset of global influence. Acting as a specialist in emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence and Generative AI, I contributed broad experience in digital transformation, innovation, technology strategy and organizational agility, connecting the technological frontier to the project management agenda.

  • Intellectual leadership and a global reference in AI. I built and led PMI’s Advanced Research Programme in Artificial Intelligence, an initiative that positioned the Institute as the leading voice on AI for project management worldwide. The programme established its own research agenda on the impact of AI and Generative AI on the profession, anticipating trends and equipping leaders and organizations with applicable insights at a moment of accelerated market transformation.
  • Strategic thought leadership and research output. Under my leadership the practice delivered more than 20 major research reports from 2023 onward, addressing critical themes such as artificial intelligence, organizational agility and sustainability. Beyond volume, the work raised the standard of depth and relevance in PMI’s output, establishing the area as a reference source for professionals, leaders and executives globally.
  • Innovation in the research model. I defined and launched a new research approach with organizations (B2B thought leadership), incorporating organizational insights from Fortune 500 companies in areas of strategic importance to PMI. This approach widened the reach and applicability of the research, bringing the Institute closer to the concrete realities and challenges of large corporations.
  • People, culture and global diversity. I scaled and developed a high-performing team, growing it from 3 to 17 members across full-time employees, contractors and advisors, and building global diversity across more than 5 countries. Beyond growth in numbers, I structured a multidisciplinary, international team capable of sustaining an ambitious research agenda of worldwide reach.
  • Influence, executive presence and reach. I represented PMI as a specialist in AI for project management in more than 50 keynotes delivered at large global organizations, governments and universities, including Accenture, AT&T, AXA, Bosch, Government of Canada, DXC, Hitachi, CDW, Boeing, Amazon US, Amazon UK, Cognizant, US DOE, Citi, Boston University, KPMG UK, KPMG Brazil, MTN, Nestlé, Nokia, SLB and TCS, among many others. This work reached more than 20,000 professionals, senior leaders and executives around the world, significantly extending the Institute’s presence and authority in the global debate on technology and management.
Business Agility & Transformation · Latin America 2020 – 2023

Managing Director & LATAM Head of Business Agility & Transformation

Managing Director and Head of the Business Agility & Transformation practice for Latin America, responsible for leading strategic technology consulting programmes at some of the largest organizations in the region, across multiple sectors: consumer goods, energy, fashion, financial services, food and beverage, healthcare, insurance, pharmaceuticals, retail, telecommunications and media.

Heading a regional operation, I managed the strategic and operational functions of a team of 35 direct reports, including managers, senior managers and directors, alongside more than 70 specialists distributed across Latin America. I served as a key representative of the Business Agility and Transformation practice on the company’s global committee, helping to shape the direction and global positioning of the discipline.

I defined and led a strategic restructuring that refocused the area on differentiated, high-value services, resulting in 400% revenue growth in just 18 months. This transformation was supported by a new vision, strategy, offerings and capabilities, designed for a market changing at speed and marked by high uncertainty. I implemented a go-to-market strategy that strengthened the positioning of the Business Agility & Transformation practice and consistently widened the company’s competitive advantage.

  • Intellectual leadership and market reference. During my tenure I designed and coordinated one of the first Business Agility studies conducted in Brazil, carried out in partnership with IDC Custom Solutions, which surveyed executives and leaders at 200 Brazilian companies to map the state of agile transformation in the country. The study found that 9 out of 10 companies already had Business Agility initiatives under way, and that in more than half of them those initiatives ran across the whole organization. The research was widely picked up by the executive and business press, with coverage in outlets such as Valor Econômico, Exame, G1 and IT Forum, and helped establish the idea of the “decade of business agility” in the Brazilian corporate debate, positioning both the company and myself as reference voices on the subject.
  • Offerings and value proposition. I developed differentiated services and value propositions that allowed the group to deliver outstanding solutions, outperforming even the most established competitors in the market. I led a comprehensive repositioning of the practice, effectively engaging strategic clients and specialist media, a move whose impact was corroborated by an independent market research study showing the company’s improved standing against competitors.
  • People, culture and operating model. I led a complete reorganization of the team, attracting new talent from the market and from different disciplines and investing in the hiring and development of new professionals. I implemented a new operating model and a knowledge-advancement programme anchored in advanced certifications, building a high-performing team prepared to deliver consistency and quality at regional scale.
  • Brand and communication. I played a central role in the global rebranding of the Business Agility division, recommending communication strategies and leading a high-impact brand relaunch and marketing initiative that reinforced the relevance and differentiation of the practice in the markets where it operated.
In the media
Business Agility: transformation is a strategic necessity for business Read the article → Three steps to put business agility into practice Read the article → Has your company entered the decade of agility? Read the article → For 45% of companies, business agility increases productivity Read the article →
Brightline™ Initiative · Think Tank 2016 – 2020

Head of Strategy Research, Global Executive Advisor, Thought Leader

As the intellectual architect behind the thought leadership of the Brightline™ Initiative, a think tank of the Project Management Institute (PMI) run in partnership with globally recognized organizations including Bristol Myers Squibb, BCG, Saudi Telecom Company, NetEase and MIT, I provided the vision, strategic recommendations and research direction that shaped the initiative’s development and impact.

Conceived to close the costly and recurring gap between strategy design and strategy delivery, Brightline™ addressed executive leaders in large companies, governments and non-profit organizations, particularly Chief Strategy Officers, Chief Transformation Officers and Chief Sustainability Officers.

  • Intellectual leadership and executive reference. I advised senior executives and leadership teams across sectors on solving complex challenges and achieving transformative results. My work helped position Brightline™ as an authority on bridging strategy and execution, one of the most critical and expensive points in modern management, translating leading-edge research into practical direction for decision-making at the highest level of organizations.
  • Multidisciplinary expertise applied to transformation. My experience spanned business agility, digital transformation, business transformation, strategy execution, innovation management and product development, equipping organizations to genuinely convert strategy into action. That breadth made it possible to connect disciplines that usually operate in silos, offering leaders an integrated, actionable view of their transformation processes.
  • Scale, impact and global delivery. Under my leadership more than 100 projects were delivered internationally, a combination of research, content, books, events, talks and articles. Beyond volume, this body of work consolidated a set of knowledge and practices that widened Brightline™’s relevance among the global executive community.
  • Presence and influence on the world’s main stages. I travelled the world representing the intellectual arm of Brightline™ at the most relevant global forums on management, strategy and innovation, including TED, in Vancouver, in the 2017, 2018 and 2019 editions, Web Summit, the Global Peter Drucker Forum in Vienna, the Thinkers50 Strategy Awards in London, the CSO/CXO Summit and the Strategy@Work conference, Brightline™’s invitation-only gathering for strategy and transformation leaders from world-class organizations. That presence carried the initiative’s ideas and research to the highest level of international executive debate.
  • World-class academic partnerships. I established and led research collaborations with some of the most respected academic institutions in the world, ensuring scientific rigour and intellectual depth in Brightline™’s work. Partners included MIT (Consortium for Engineering Program Excellence), Duke Corporate Education (Duke University), IESE Business School, the Technical University of Denmark, the University of Tokyo Global Teamwork Lab and The Blockchain Research Institute, alongside studies developed in association with Harvard Business Review, The Economist and Quartz Insights. These alliances brought together leading researchers and professors with industry leaders, keeping the initiative at the forefront of thought leadership in governance, strategy and transformation and influencing executive practice worldwide.
INVITATION

Let’s build the next
transformation together.

Strategy, organizational agility and human-centred AI, from research to practice. Tell me about your context and we will look at how I can contribute.

Fale comigo → See the books