Don Kieffer’s 40-year career in operations spans from front-line work to executive roles, including 15 years at Harley-Davidson where he was VP of Operational Excellence. Since 2007, he has been advising executive teams around the globe in operational strategy and improvement. His clients range from large organizations, including Fannie Mae and Standard Chartered Bank, to biotech startups and nonprofits.
Don was instrumental in transforming the production and technical development areas of the Broad Institute in Cambridge, MA. It is now the industry leader in genomic sequencing and research. He is a Senior Lecturer at MIT’s Sloan School of Management and AVT Business School in Copenhagen. He founded ShiftGear Work Design and co-authored There’s Got to Be a Better Way; How to Deliver Results and Get Rid of the Stuff That Gets in the Way of Real Work, published in August 2025.
Contact information: donkieffer@mit.edu