Chip Conley

Conley graduated from the PACE program at Long Beach Polytechnic High School. He received his BA in 1982 and an MBA in 1984 from Stanford University.[1] Holds an honorary doctorate from Saybrook University.

In 1987, Conley founded Joie de Vivre Hospitality, where he held the position of CEO for nearly 24 years, creating and managing around 50 boutique hotels. In 2010, he sold his company to Geolo Capital.[5] The last hotel concept he created for the company was The Epiphany in Palo Alto.[6] Conley remains a private owner in many hotel properties and no longer has an operating role in the company.

Conley spoke at the annual TED conference in 2010[7] on creating a business model driven by our need for meaning as outlined by Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs and as presented in his book Peak: How Great Companies Get their Mojo from Maslow.[8] Conley's other books include The Rebel Rules: Daring to Be Yourself in Business;[9] Marketing that Matters: 10 Practices to Profit Your Business and Change the World;[10] Emotional Equations: Simple Truths for Creating Happiness + Success in Business + in Life;[11] Wisdom@Work: The Making of a Modern Elder.

In 2013, Conley became Head of Global Hospitality and Strategy for Airbnb.[12] and founded Fest300.[2] At Airbnb, he was asked by the three co-founders to help evolve the company into a hospitality company with more than one million hosts in 191 countries.[13] Conley worked closely with CEO Brian Chesky as a mentor and helped to build a bridge to the travel, hotel, and real estate/development/landlord industries.[14] He also conceived and led the annual Airbnb Open.[15] In 2017, he transitioned to the role of Strategic Advisor for Hospitality and Leadership.[16]

In 2016, Fest300 was acquired by Everfest, with Conley joining the Everfest leadership team as Chief Strategy Officer on a part-time basis.[4] In 2018, he founded the Modern Elder Academy (MEA) in Baja California Sur, a wisdom school dedicated to helping people navigate midlife. Modern Elder Academy focuses on Long Life Learning, and is a mission-driven organization that provides scholarships to 50% of students. Graduates receive a certificate in Mindset Management.

Conley founded San Francisco's annual Celebrity Pool Toss fundraiser, which has raised millions for inner city families in San Francisco's Tenderloin District, where Conley's first hotel, the Phoenix, is located.[17] He also created the annual Hotel Hero Awards that recognize the work of line-level hospitality staff.[18] He served on the Glide Memorial Board for nearly a decade,[19] and is now on the boards of the Burning Man Project[20] and the Esalen Institute.[21]

• Northern California Real Estate Entrepreneur of the Year[22]
• Bay Area's Most Innovative CEO[23]
• ISHC Pioneer Award[24]
• GLIDE Cecil Williams Legacy Award[19]

• The Rebel Rules: Daring to be Yourself in Business; Simon & Schuster, 2001
• Marketing that Matters: 10 Practices to Profit Your Business and Change the World; co-authored with Eric Friedenwald-Fishman, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2006
• Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo From Maslow; Jossey-Bass, 2007
• Emotional Equations: Simple Truths for Creating Happiness + Success in Business + Life; Simon & Schuster, 2012
• Wisdom@Work: The Making of a Modern Elder; Currency, 2018

• ChipConley.com