Brian Napack is a recognized leader in education, scientific research, publishing and media. His impact-driven career includes successful episodes as CEO, chairman, director, investor, entrepreneur and advisor for numerous mission-driven organizations.  His is known for his strategic vision and ability to turn vision into sustainable commercial success.  Personally, he is driven to deliver scaled, lasting, positive impact in the world, and this has been a consistent throughline in his career.

From 2013 through 2023, Brian was the President and CEO of John Wiley (WLY), a 216-year old public company and one of the world’s leading publishers.  In that role, he led Wiley’s re-emergence as a global leader in both scientific research and career-connected education.

During this period, he served proudly as the Chairman of the Association of American Publishers (AAP) which protects freedom of expression, intellectual property, and competitive markets for content, and promotes the central role that publishers play in advancing culture, scholarship, education, the workforce and democracy.  Brian has also been a long-standing, passionate director and supporter of Zero-To-Three, a science-based advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring that all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life.

From 2012 to 2017, Brian was Senior Advisor at Providence Equity Partners, a leading investor in media, education and information.  During this period, he invested in and served as an active director on numerous boards including those of Blackboard, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Burning Glass, Ascend Learning, Recorded Books, Ingram, myON, EDMC, and Synergis Education.

Brian proudly served as President of Macmillan, the global publisher, from 2006 to 2012.  During his tenure, he oversaw businesses in education, consumer book and magazine publishing, and digital media.

Prior to Macmillan, Brian was a partner at L.E.K. Consulting, a global consulting firm, serving as co-head of its Media and Entertainment practices and leading its Publishing and Education practices.  He also founded and served as CEO of ThinkBox, a successful digital education company focused on the early childhood market.

At The Walt Disney Company, Brian founded Disney Educational Publishing and was a co-founder of Disney Interactive. Earlier in his career, he also held senior roles at Simon & Schuster, the publishing company and at A.T. Kearney, a leading management consulting company.

Brian received an MBA from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts from Middlebury College in Vermont.