A principal of the Allison Group, Mary Ann Allison works with businesses, governments, and NGOs around the world to improve their capacity to generate positive results in rapidly-changing environments. Her approach combines real business experience ranging from Citigroup VP to directing an Internet start-up and rigorous scientific theory.In her work as a futurist, Dr. Allison conducts research into the nature of community and social change and teaches Media Studies at Hofstra University. Allison is an insightful and engaging speaker who helps audiences to understand how the changes in society today affect everything in our lives. More, she provides a practical roadmap to help us make better decisions for our children, in our businesses, schools, and government agencies, and—not least—in our individual lives.
Among those Dr. Allison has worked with are the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of the Treasury, the Administrative Office of the US Courts, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Scottish Enterprise, National Commercial Bank of Saudi Arabia, Dancing in the Streets, and the Historic Districts Council.

Allison was with Citibank for 16 years where she worked with emerging technologies on a global basis. She was part of the team that took the credit card division from near bankruptcy to profitability. She led the team that designed and implemented service, operations, and back office systems for Citibank’s first consumer banking via personal computer service, opening the first virtual branch bank and coordinating the first publicly-displayed 24 hour banking “face” (integrating 57 separate back office systems). Her CitiPhone Banking strategy increased the percentage of retail financial transactions by phone from less than 1% to over 44% in two years in 16 countries in Asia.

Allison coauthored The Complexity Advantage: How the Science of Complexity Can Help Your Business Achieve Peak Performance, which the Wall Street Journal described by saying: “Anyone who grasps the concepts in The Complexity Advantage will have the power to change a business in startling ways. … These are big ideas.”