Faculty

Robin Johnson, MBA

Lieutenant Colonel (Retired, U.S. Army)
Areas of Expertise

Problem Solving, Performance Optimization, Resiliency, Team Building, Change and Grief Management

Experience

Robin served over twenty years as an Army logistics officer with career highlights that include five deployments to Afghanistan & Iraq, commanding at the company and battalion levels, serving as the Special Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and in the Strategic Initiatives Group for the Secretary of the Army.

Upon retiring from the military, Robin went from frontlines to punchlines and pursued her lifelong dream of becoming a stand-up comedian.  She is a TEDx speaker and tours world-wide with Armed Forces Entertainment.  As a Certified Humor Professional through the Association for Applied & Therapeutic Humor, Robin educates leaders on how to leverage the power of humor beyond mere entertainment.  Her talks and workshops are full of levity and keep the audience laughing while learning practical tools to apply to their own leadership strategy.  She has brought laughs to hundreds of audiences including her regular lectures for the Institute for Defense & Business at Duke University.  She is the founder of HEAL*ARIOUS, a non-profit offering humor-infused mental health programming for veterans and first responders and CEO of Best Medicine Brigade, an all military-affiliated comedy troupe and production company.

Education
  • MBA, Webster University, Fort Leavenworth, KS
  • B.A, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
Publications/Awards
  • Current Hoover Institution Veteran Fellow at Stanford University
  • Co-Author of "Confluence: Merging Reintegration Streams for Veterans and Military Families”
  • Recipient of the Wilde About Humor Award
  • Honored as a Women of Influence 2023 in the Charleston Regional Business Journal
  • Defense Meritorious Service Medal
  • Bronze Star Medal (3)
Personal

Robin volunteers at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center and continues to perform stand-up comedy for great causes.  She resides in Charleston, South Carolina with her husband (USMA class of 99’) and two children.  When not making people laugh, she is driving kids to soccer, chasing the dog, or trying to find missing socks in the laundry.

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