Anne Bahr Thompson is a listener, collaborator and tireless innovator above all else. Gifted in seeing the potential in people and brands, she invites others to gain new perspectives alongside her and guides them to strategically bring these new possibilities to life.
An early pioneer of the purpose space, a Superbrands Branding Leader, a Trust Across America Top Thought Leader and a GCPIT Global Woman in Leadership, Anne is the author of DO GOOD, which details her pioneering Me-to-We continuum of Brand Citizenship®. With her unique, career-long perspective of branding and marketing, Anne built the research-based insights for the 5-step model over more than ten years. Like the proverbial canary in the coal mine, she started to observe how people’s definitions of value and connections to brands were getting turned upside down—without many of us noticing, or too many of us failing to understand the import.
Today, Anne advises leaders and brands on . After spending some time at an INGO and working with philanthropists, in the wake of COVID pandemic she chose to return to consulting to brands adapt to the shifting Zeitgeist. Concurrent to working with clients, speaking and volunteering, she is helping to advance IAA’s Global Sustainability Council; an Ambassador for Meaningful Business, a global community of leaders combining profit and purpose to help achieve the UN Global Goals; an advisor to Overflow pbc, an open talent platform for Independent Strategy Consultants; on the Council of Aspiration and Inspiration for the Spirit of Humanity Forum; and an active advocate for women’s issues, equity and belonging.
A former executive director of strategy and planning and head of consulting at Interbrand, the world’s leading brand consultancy, Anne founded Onesixtyfourth, a strategic and creative consultancy to help brand leaders across sectors connect more meaningfully with people and enhance growth through through brand-led transformation. She has previously worked in strategic planning and product management corporate and wholesale banking and began her career at Grey Advertising.
To every client, regardless of sector or size, Anne brings a depth of knowledge and understanding that only comes from interacting with a lengthy list of the world’s most valuable brands including Aegon, adidas, American Cancer Society, Citibank, Deloitte, Emerson, Hard Rock Cafe, IBM, ING, Jameson Irish Whiskey, JPMorgan Chase, Kingfisher, L’Oreal, Microsoft, NBCUniversal, Pearson, Pepsi, Prudential, Save the Children, Scandanavian Airlines, Skanska, Stolichnaya, Symantec, Thomasville, ThomsonReuters and UNICEF, among many others.
Anne’s writings have been published in Brands and Branding (Economist Books), hbr.com, Bloomberg News, The Guardian, Journal of Brand Strategy and many other industry publications. She’s been interviewed on numerous podcasts, radio shows and Fox Business, and spoken at the United Nations, international conferences, business schools and client events. An active community volunteer, she is extremely proud of the work she has done for non-profit and humanitarian aid organizations. She’s served on boards and committees for non-profits in both the US and the UK.
Anne holds an MBA from the Darden School of Business at UVA and has been an adjunct professor at NYU Stern School of Business’s London campus. She’s GRI Trained in Sustainability Reporting, a certified Image Consultant, and has completed certificate/matrix programs in fine and decorative arts at the Victoria & Albert Museum and Christie’s Education in London. And reflecting her belief that as humans we all are paradoxical and there is more to each of us than meets the eye, Anne is a Reiki Master who dabbles in other healing modalities and aroma therapy, and also has been studying the Quantum Human Design system for several years.
