Clayton Magleby Christensen (April 6, 1952 – January 23, 2020) was an American academic and business consultant who developed the theory of "disruptive innovation", which has been called the most influential business idea of the early 21st century. Christensen introduced "disruption" in his 1997 book The Innovator's Dilemma, and it led The Economist to term him "the most influential management thinker of his time." He was the Kim B. Clark Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School (HBS), and was also a leader and writer in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He was one of the founders of the Jobs to Be Done development methodology.

Christensen was also a co-founder of Rose Park Advisors, a venture capital firm, and Innosight, a management consulting and investment firm specializing in innovation.

Clayton Christensen was born on April 6, 1952, in Salt Lake City, Utah, the second of eight children born to Robert M. Christensen (1926–1976) and his wife, Verda Mae Christensen (née Fuller; 1922–2004). He grew up in the Rose Park neighborhood of Salt Lake City and attended West High School, where he was student body president. At 6 feet 8 inches (2.03 m) tall, he was also an avid basketball player. Christensen and his siblings were raised as members of the LDS Church.

After graduating from high school in 1970, Christensen was accepted to Harvard University, Yale University, and Brigham Young University (BYU). He "decided to make the decision a matter of prayer" and felt a "clear impression" to attend BYU, which had awarded him a full scholarship. Christensen majored in economics, and was classmates in his first-year economics course with future U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney and future HBS dean Kim B. Clark. While at BYU, he took a two-year leave of absence from 1971 to 1973 to serve as a full-time missionary for the LDS Church. He was assigned to serve in South Korea and became a fluent speaker of Korean. Christensen returned to BYU after completing his missionary service, and in 1975 graduated summa cum laude with honors with a bachelor's degree in economics.

Following graduation from BYU, Christensen was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and spent two years studying applied econometrics at Queen's College, Oxford, receiving a master's degree in 1977. While at Oxford, Christensen was the starting center on the men's basketball team, winning back-to-back British University Sports Federation championships in 1975 and 1976 and the English Basketball Association's national championship for non-league teams in 1977.

Once Christensen completed his degree program at Oxford, he returned to the United States to attend HBS where he received an MBA with high distinction in 1979. He later returned to Harvard for his doctoral study in business, receiving a Doctor of Business Administration degree in 1992.

After receiving his MBA in 1979, Christensen began working for Boston Consulting Group (BCG) as a consultant and project manager. In 1982, he was named a White House Fellow and took a one-year leave of absence from BCG to work in Washington, D.C. as an assistant to the United States Secretary of Transportation, serving under both Drew Lewis and Elizabeth Dole. In 1984, he and several professors from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology founded an advanced ceramics company named Ceramics Process Systems Corporation (now known as CPS Technologies). Christensen served as its president and CEO through the late 1980s until he decided to leave the company to pursue a Doctor of Business Administration degree.

After completing his doctoral study, Christensen joined the HBS faculty and set a record by achieving the rank of full professor in only six years.