Press

Productivity

MIT Sloan senior lecturer to auction off the business school’s first literary NFT

By

Winner to receive package of minted content, consulting, and executive education

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Sept. 23, 2021 – MIT Sloan School of Management Senior Lecturer is auctioning off a non-fungible token (NFT) related to his book Extreme Productivity: Boost Your Results, Reduce Your Hours. This is the first NFT auctioned by a faculty author at MIT Sloan. The winner of the auction will receive a 3D NFT of a new cover and a new preface, together with Pozen’s digital signature. In addition, the winner will receive an hour of free consulting with Pozen and a free seat in his related upcoming MIT Sloan Executive Education class, Maximizing Your Personal Productivity: How to Become an Efficient and Effective Executive. The course uses a series of case studies, practical exercises, and readings to encourage self-evaluation, exploration of work habits, and adoption of best practices.

The auction for the NFT opens on October 1, 2021 on the OpenSea platform.

“NFTs have the potential to radically change the book industry. We are offering a unique NFT package to test the waters and see what works best to create value for the buyer,” says Pozen, noting that the auction will be conducted in cryptocurrency. “This could provide a new revenue stream for every book.”

MIT Sloan Senior Lecturer who co-teaches the Executive Education course with Pozen and helped develop the NFT strategy, agrees. “In the last six months, no three letters have been trending more than NFT, a technology that can reinvent how authors engage with their fans. In the case of this book, we are offering a unique package that includes the NFT as well as additional opportunities to interact with Robert Pozen.”

Chantal Restivo-Alessi, Chief Digital Officer, HarperCollins Publishers, commented, “At HarperCollins we are always looking for ways to expand our authors’ reach and provide readers with a variety of products based on their consumption preferences. Robert has compiled a unique package, and we are excited to learn about how book-related NFTs appeal to consumers.”

Originally published in 2012 by HarperCollins, Pozen’s book has been translated into 10 languages and sold 50,000 copies worldwide.

Pozen says, “Since the Great Recession, many professionals have been facing more challenging schedules and more daunting to-do lists. This makes it all the more important for professionals to be able to get their work done quickly and effectively. The book and the Executive Education course highlight practical ways to increase productivity and feel less overwhelmed by personal and professional obligations.”

He adds that 10 percent of the net proceeds from the auction will be donated to the MIT Sloan Annual Fund for Fellowships for Inclusion, which provides support based on the merit and financial need of outstanding students and assists MIT Sloan in remaining competitive with peer schools when attracting talented students.

In addition to Extreme Productivity, Pozen is the author of Remote Inc.: How to Thrive at Work…Wherever You Are; Too Big to Save? How to Fix the US Financial System; and a guide for investors entitled The Fund Industry: How Your Money is Managed. Previously, he served as executive chairman of MFS Investment Management, vice chairman of Fidelity Investments, and president of Fidelity Management & Research Company.

Pozen is currently a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and an independent director of AMC, a division of the International Finance Corporation. He previously was an independent director of Nielsen, Medtronic PLC, and BCE (the parent of Bell Canada). He also serves as chairman of the Leadership Council of the Tax Policy Center, chairman of the Advisory Board of Agility, trustee of the IFRS Foundation, and member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

To learn more about the auction, please visit: https://opensea.io/collection/pozenproductivity

About the MIT Sloan School of Management

The MIT Sloan School of Management is where smart, independent leaders come together to solve problems, create new organizations, and improve the world. Learn more at mitsloan.mit.edu.

For more info Patricia Favreau Associate Director (617) 895-6025