USA TODAY & LA Times Best-selling Author
Meet Bill Fournet
For 30 years, Bill has led through change. He runs his own firm and advises the leaders who run theirs.
- Founder & CEO, The Persimmon Group
- Author, The Map vs. the Terrain
Why leaders trust Bill
Advice that holds up when conditions change.
Some leaders meet Bill from the audience at a keynote. Others meet him across a boardroom table as their strategic advisor or executive coach. Either way, they get practical guidance grounded in workforce trends and in what works when a team is under pressure.
Bill works with leadership teams in the boardroom and on the stage.
“You gave me clarity on where my mind and energy should be.”
From the trenches
Insight earned from the inside.
- 50+
- Organizations advised
- $10B+
- In projects overseen
Over more than three decades, Bill has helped leaders navigate complex transformation, advising more than 50 organizations across the private, public, and nonprofit sectors.
His clients include Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, and major public-sector agencies. His strategic insight was honed while directing large-scale initiatives at AT&T, IBM, and MTV Networks.
That history is why he connects so easily with leaders who feel overwhelmed by change. He has stood where they stand.
2004
He founded The Persimmon Group
Bill built the award-winning management consulting firm on a belief that work can be engaging, inspiring, and human. He still leads it as CEO, and under his leadership Persimmon has earned national recognition.
- Two-time U.S. Chamber of Commerce Blue Ribbon Award winner
- Inc. 500/5000 recognition as one of the fastest-growing companies in the U.S.
- Families and Work Institute’s Effective and Flexible Workplace Award
- Great Places to Work Certified
- Top 5 Best Places to Work in Consulting
Living what he teaches
Balance isn’t a slogan. It’s a practice.
Bill believes great leaders model balance and purpose. He’s an avid outdoorsman who has backpacked hundreds of miles and summited 14,000-foot mountains.
He has paddled the Canadian Boundary Waters multiple times. He has also served as an Assistant Scoutmaster and as an Executive Board Member for the Boy Scouts of America’s Indian Nations Council.
The book
A field guide for leading through uncertainty.
In 2026, Bill published The Map vs. the Terrain: A Leader’s Field Guide to Navigating Uncertainty with Wiley. It became a USA TODAY and LA Times bestseller. Inside are 30 of his PowerPlays™, practical techniques leaders can use with their teams.
“Leaders looking for practical guidance in a complex world will find it here.”
Giving back
Central to the work.
-
Collins College of Business, University of Tulsa
Executive Advisory Board
Empowering the next generation of leaders.
-
Growing Together, Inc.
Past Chair
Working to end the cycle of poverty through vibrant community-building.
-
STEAM Post 26 & FIRST Robotics
Committee Chair
Supporting STEM education.
Accolades
- USA TODAY & LA Times best-selling author
- Multi-nominee for “Most Admired CEO” in Oklahoma
- Distinguished Alumni, Oklahoma State College of Arts and Sciences
- Cowboy 100 Honoree, Oklahoma State University Riata Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and the Oklahoma State University Foundation
Education
- Master’s Degree in History, Oklahoma State University
- Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy, Vanderbilt University
Family
Rooted in family. Shaped by service.
Bill and his wife, Christy, split their time between Oklahoma and Colorado. They have three adult sons.
Bill’s father, Douglas Fournet, was awarded the Medal of Honor, the United States military’s highest decoration, for his actions in the Vietnam War. Bill describes him as “an ideal—the bar against which I measure myself.”
What do you want to leave behind, pass on, and be remembered for?