It's time to reinvent management. You can help.

Redefine the work of leadership

“There is a need to move beyond the heroic model of leadership—because most leaders aren’t, in fact, very heroic.”

The era of the all-wise, all-powerful leader-as-decisionmaker is over. Leaders must become savvy social architects—individuals who are capable of building environments that engender extraordinary accomplishment. To make this transition from “command and control” to “motivate and mentor,” organizations need to develop leaders who are capable of building commitment and alignment without resorting to the traditional tools of bureaucratic control. The goal: an organization filled with leaders who lift everyone up.

117 Stories
196 Hacks
9 Barriers

Redefine the work of leadership

“There is a need to move beyond the heroic model of leadership—because most leaders aren’t, in fact, very heroic.”

The era of the all-wise, all-powerful leader-as-decisionmaker is over. Leaders must become savvy social architects—individuals who are capable of building environments that engender extraordinary accomplishment. To make this transition from “command and control” to “motivate and mentor,” organizations need to develop leaders who are capable of building commitment and alignment without resorting to the traditional tools of bureaucratic control. The goal: an organization filled with leaders who lift everyone up.

Filter By:
A chance question during a seminar exposed a cultural norm at Menlo Innovations that confounds most corporate thinkers. Menlo has no hierarchy. They are a team in the truest sense of the word.
Story by Richard Sheridan on July 14, 2013
In an era of hyper change and hyper competition, where webbed networks level all points of control, and today's participants abhor centralization, work and life demand a new way, a more natural way.&n
Story by Rick Hansen on July 14, 2013
Hindustan Unilever at last count has given over 500 CEOs to corporates across the world. In any survey of companies that consistently build world class leaders, HUL is sure to feature prominently.
Story by Stephen Remedios on July 14, 2013
A decade apart and a continent away, two stories in dramatically different settings reinforce the idea that “leaders everywhere” is a universally applicable construct.
Our best practice contains two ideas: 1) The transformation of the company culture and values towards a culture of Performance, Empowerment,  Ac
Story by Martens Valerie on July 13, 2013
No money, no power, no establishment but leading more than US $1.5 billion organization to enter a new manufacturing technology and make a global business out of technology developed by me.
This entry tells the extraordinary story of how a small group of trainee clinicians, young leaders and improvement facilitators from within the National Health Service (NHS) of England created a call
Story by Helen Bevan on June 14, 2013
Across my work life, I often find myself in a situation of managing a fairly young team and trying to draw my team out and getting them to step forward to lead.
Story by Wynthia Goh on June 6, 2013
The First Line Manager: You Have Got to Have Passion About Our BusinessA President of a major electric utility summarized his executive team meeting with the following statement.
Story by Jim McGriff, Jr. on May 31, 2013
In an era of federally mandated school turnarounds, Cristo Rey Boston High School is an example of a self-directed improvement plan in which a principal and a core group of teachers were empowered to
Story by Jeffrey D. Thielman on May 28, 2013

Pages