Robert Johnston

Robert Johnston is founder & CEO of The Executive Council network of cutting edge senior executives, leaders, and thinkers who come together to explore the challenging issues impacting business and the economy. The Executive Council represents companies from sectors such as healthcare, media & entertainment, financial services and sustainability and curates full-day conferences as well as private events in conjunction with its members. The Council is known for its annual Ten Awards gala, dubbed "The Oscar's of Business" by CNBC, which honors ten extraordinary business leaders each year. See tenawards.com On the entrepreneur side, the Council also operates the New York Venture Capital Association (NYVCA), representing 120 venture capital and private equity firms in the NY, NJ and CT region. The NYVCA members have an aggregate of over $22 billion dollars in assets under management. The NYVCA is best known for its annual INGENUITY Conference, which brings together 500 investors and entrepreneurs every Fall in New York City. See nyvca.org Johnston regularly participates as a speaker at industry events and is an advisor or director to the following organizations: Business Council for the United Nations (BCUN); Lollipop Theater, which brings the magic of movies to hospitalized children; NYU Stern School's Venture Mentor Program; Columbia Business School's Organization of Rising Entrepreneurs (CORE); and Friends of Belfast, a non-profit organization that fosters business relations between Northern Ireland and the US. Johnston is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts and earned a law degree at Suffolk Law School in Boston, with a focus on intellectual property and high technology law. Johnston also completed certificates from The Program on Negotiation and The Program on Advanced Negotiation at Harvard Law School.