Speaker Bio
As CEO of Walk West, Donald leads strategy, partnerships, and business development. Under his leadership, Walk West has been recognized by Inc 5000 as the fastest growing marketing agency in North Carolina in 2018 and 2019. As a Certified Diversity Executive (CDE), Donald takes pride in Walk West’s diversity and inclusion initiatives, with 80% of the leadership team consisting of women and minorities. One of his key initiatives is to transform Walk West into a digital consultancy that provides strategic thinking to clients across the marketing landscape, while consistently providing measurable business outcomes for its clients.
Donald lives by the philosophy of ‘giving back’ and is passionate about advising, coaching, and mentoring dream chasers. As a member of the National Speakers Association, he is a keynote speaker sharing actionable insights and strategies on business strategy, entrepreneurship, leadership development, and diversity and inclusion.
He serves on boards for several organizations in the fields of technology, marketing, sports and entertainment and is an emeritus member of the NCSU computer science department strategic advisory board and a mentor for Google for Entrepreneurs Exchange. He also conducts workshops with c-suite executives of leading organizations who are looking to develop, expand or optimize their diversity and inclusion practice.
When he’s not speaking, he’s often writing. In fact, Donald has written for multiple publications including entrepreneur.com and CNBC.com and has published his own eBooks on both decision-making and diversity. He is currently authoring his autobiography, Underestimated: A CEO’s Unlikely Path to Success.
Visit Don’s new website at donaldthompson.com