About Me

Adria Dunbar, PhD, is a bold voice in leadership and innovation. As Managing Director of The Christensen Center for Innovation at Duke University and faculty in the Pratt School of Engineering, she teaches business leadership and directs Duke’s A. James Clark Scholarship Program. A respected scholar and practitioner, she is co‑author of The Leader’s Playbook (with Mike Salvino) and the author of numerous peer‑reviewed articles that bridge rigorous research with practical application.

Raised outside Asheville after being born in New York, Adria’s career has spanned the Research Triangle—she’s a UNC graduate and served as a professor at NC State for nine years—giving her deep roots across North Carolina’s academic and innovation ecosystems. Her background as a former counselor combined with a relentless passion for innovation creates a unique approach: human-centered, evidence-based, and results-oriented.

Adria helps leaders become their best by emphasizing four essentials: knowing yourself, leading with intention, building your world with purpose, and playing the long game. She partners with leaders and entrepreneurs to optimize productivity and wellness together—demonstrating that joy and striving can, and should, coexist.

At home she’s powered by family: an amazing husband and three boys who keep her on the sidelines of soccer fields, baseball diamonds, and basketball courts. Barre3 keeps her grounded, the beach is where she reads, and the DPAC is where she catches a Broadway show when she can. Devoted to thoughtful leadership and joyful striving, Adria brings clarity, courage, and compassion to every leader she coaches and every program she leads.