Leadership on the Edge: Developing leaders at 5, 267 feet

“That was the most important thing I have ever done in my career.”

“I learned more about myself on the power pole than in 25 years of education.”

Leadership on the Edge - Video

The knowledge and skills taught in MBA programs bear little resemblance to those needed in the real world (Eberhardt & Moser, 1997; Jennings, 1999, Pfeffer & Fong, 2002) MBA curricula focuses too heavily on the functions of business rather than on the practice of managing (Mintzberg, 2005) The typical MBA program does little to develop management skills and the skills it does create are often antithetical to effective management (Miles, 2005) Effective management requires several diverse skills, yet skill development has been a largely peripheral element of MBA programs (Tyson, 2005) Soft skills were underrepresented in most MBA programs, despite being highly regarded and sought after in the business world (Chronicle of Higher Ed, 2007) The MBA at a Crossroads

Lead in Organizational Situations; Adapt and innovate to solve problems, to cope with unforeseen events, and to manage in unpredictable environments. Develop the Capacity to:

Teach and develop skills that underpin individual and team success. Develop self-awareness and highly effective leaders. Inspire participants to achieve the impossible. Guide reflection over the remainder of the semester. Assessment: Pre/Post mixed subjects research design Purpose

Unfamiliar and challenging environment. Requires rapid decision making and flexibility. True Everest goal Opportunity to understand and develop leadership. LOTE Why climb a mountain?

Outcomes Kouzes and Posner’s Leadership Practices Inventory, 2003 Those in the LOTE section significantly improved on all five leadership practices (Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, and Encourage the Heart). LOTE section demonstrated greater improvements in on leadership practices over the course of the semester as compared to the control group. Students in the LOTE section also increased on 11 of the specific leadership practice items, as compared to five for the classroom section.

Outcomes Significant interactions between course and course section for Inspire a Shared Vision and Challenge the Process. These practices consistently have the lowest scores among the five leadership practices.

Outcomes Featured in BizEd Magazine, 2010 Recognized as a best practice (2010) and as an example of Impact and Innovation by AACSB PRT. Led to develop of Executive Leadership Institute (ING Direct, Capital One) MBA Culture

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