Peak performance for the political leader

In the corporate world, leadership development programs are standard fare. Such programs often include well‐defined competencies and performance metrics, as well as regularly scheduled feedback and mentoring sessions, especially for those employees designated “high potential” performers. Not so in the public sphere. There are no defined career paths or standardized training curricula for heads of state. There are, however, requisite competencies for effective public sector leadership. As Gardner (1990) observed, “Leadership is not a mysterious activity. It is possible to describe the tasks that leaders perform....[But] we have barely scratched the surface in our efforts toward leadership development” (p. xix). The learning curve is steep for a newly elected leader, and fraught with potential landmines. Speaking with the candor of someone no longer seeking public office, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said recently, “When I came to office, prime minister was the only job I'd ever held; I'd never been a government minister before....The business of running a government is like anything else: You get better the longer you do it. And there are lessons out there that, had they come to me in an identifiable form, would have been useful to know” (talk given on December 16, 2010b). Both Gardner and Blair are emphatic that leadership is not something one is born with but something learned over time. And as Blair (2010a) put it, “Government is a race between expectations and capability.” In the essays that follow, several leadership coaches discuss the unique challenges and effective approaches they are using to help government leaders build the competencies that will enable them to govern effectively—and win that race between their constituents's expectations and their own capabilities.     

Political leadership and relationship systems intelligence

In the corporate world, leadership development programs are standard fare. Such programs often include well‐defined competencies and performance metrics, as well as regularly scheduled feedback and mentoring sessions, especially for those employees designated “high potential” performers. Not so in the public sphere. There are no defined career paths or standardized training curricula for heads of state. There are, however, requisite competencies for effective public sector leadership. As Gardner (1990) observed, “Leadership is not a mysterious activity. It is possible to describe the tasks that leaders perform....[But] we have barely scratched the surface in our efforts toward leadership development” (p. xix). The learning curve is steep for a newly elected leader, and fraught with potential landmines. Speaking with the candor of someone no longer seeking public office, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said recently, “When I came to office, prime minister was the only job I'd ever held; I'd never been a government minister before....The business of running a government is like anything else: You get better the longer you do it. And there are lessons out there that, had they come to me in an identifiable form, would have been useful to know” (talk given on December 16, 2010b). Both Gardner and Blair are emphatic that leadership is not something one is born with but something learned over time. And as Blair (2010a) put it, “Government is a race between expectations and capability.” In the essays that follow, several leadership coaches discuss the unique challenges and effective approaches they are using to help government leaders build the competencies that will enable them to govern effectively—and win that race between their constituents's expectations and their own capabilities.     

Coaching as thinking partnership

In the corporate world, leadership development programs are standard fare. Such programs often include well‐defined competencies and performance metrics, as well as regularly scheduled feedback and mentoring sessions, especially for those employees designated “high potential” performers. Not so in the public sphere. There are no defined career paths or standardized training curricula for heads of state. There are, however, requisite competencies for effective public sector leadership. As Gardner (1990) observed, “Leadership is not a mysterious activity. It is possible to describe the tasks that leaders perform....[But] we have barely scratched the surface in our efforts toward leadership development” (p. xix). The learning curve is steep for a newly elected leader, and fraught with potential landmines. Speaking with the candor of someone no longer seeking public office, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said recently, “When I came to office, prime minister was the only job I'd ever held; I'd never been a government minister before....The business of running a government is like anything else: You get better the longer you do it. And there are lessons out there that, had they come to me in an identifiable form, would have been useful to know” (talk given on December 16, 2010b). Both Gardner and Blair are emphatic that leadership is not something one is born with but something learned over time. And as Blair (2010a) put it, “Government is a race between expectations and capability.” In the essays that follow, several leadership coaches discuss the unique challenges and effective approaches they are using to help government leaders build the competencies that will enable them to govern effectively—and win that race between their constituents's expectations and their own capabilities.     

Coaching government and political leaders in complex environments

In the corporate world, leadership development programs are standard fare. Such programs often include well‐defined competencies and performance metrics, as well as regularly scheduled feedback and mentoring sessions, especially for those employees designated “high potential” performers. Not so in the public sphere. There are no defined career paths or standardized training curricula for heads of state. There are, however, requisite competencies for effective public sector leadership. As Gardner (1990) observed, “Leadership is not a mysterious activity. It is possible to describe the tasks that leaders perform....[But] we have barely scratched the surface in our efforts toward leadership development” (p. xix). The learning curve is steep for a newly elected leader, and fraught with potential landmines. Speaking with the candor of someone no longer seeking public office, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said recently, “When I came to office, prime minister was the only job I'd ever held; I'd never been a government minister before....The business of running a government is like anything else: You get better the longer you do it. And there are lessons out there that, had they come to me in an identifiable form, would have been useful to know” (talk given on December 16, 2010b). Both Gardner and Blair are emphatic that leadership is not something one is born with but something learned over time. And as Blair (2010a) put it, “Government is a race between expectations and capability.” In the essays that follow, several leadership coaches discuss the unique challenges and effective approaches they are using to help government leaders build the competencies that will enable them to govern effectively—and win that race between their constituents's expectations and their own capabilities.     

The Common Language of Leadership

As our complex society continues to call for leadership across all career fields, preparing leaders at the college level can be challenging. This article outlines the results of a comprehensive examination of learning outcomes of 475 academic programs within 72 academic accrediting organizations in regard to student leadership development. The purpose of the current study was twofold: (a) to understand better what competencies college students need to develop in order to engage in leadership in their respective career fields and (b) to use research findings to develop a list of leadership competencies across academic disciplines, serving as a “common language” for use in program planning, course development, as well as individual student advising and mentoring. The Student Leadership Competencies have been translated to contemporary leadership models such as the Relational Leadership Model, the Social Change Model of Leadership Development, the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, Emotionally Intelligent Leadership, and the CAS Standards. Implications for the use of the Student Leadership Competencies in program development, program assessment, and the development of strategic partnerships are also discussed.     

Asking the right questions,involving the right people

Understanding to what or whom corporate communications leaders feel responsible is important in this age of rapid technological and economic change. A fast‐changing world demands self‐awareness among its leaders, particularly those who manage communications in an increasingly transparent environment. This study takes an in‐depth look at how senior practitioners in one of the most traditional leadership roles in public relations—the corporate communications leader—define responsibility and do work that is excellent in quality, socially responsible, and personally meaningful. This study is modeled after the GoodWork® protocol, initiated in 1996 by psychologist Howard Gardner and colleagues, employing Q‐sorts, personal diaries, and semistructured interviews with a purposive sample. “Asking the right questions and involving the right people” emerged as a working definition of personal responsibility, and themes of honesty/integrity, life balance, and relationships also surfaced as influential in defining what personal responsibility means in communications leadership.     

Pervasive myths in leadership development: Unpacking constraints on leadership learning

Forty years ago, the questions most discussed among those who cared about leadership were “is leadership possible among those who don't have titles and positions?”; “what are the characteristics possessed by effective leaders?”; and “how do we find the people who are the best leaders and help them prepare for positions that will allow them to have an impact?” After many conversations, conferences, research studies, and books, the terrain has shifted among scholars. Now the conversations focus on questions such as “If leadership is a shared responsibility among members of groups, how can the full leadership potential of all be cultivated?”; “What role do collaborators play in empowering positive leadership and defending against those who misuse it?”; and “How can organizations cultivate cultures that support and encourage visionary leadership dedicated to benefitting all?” The shift in the questions that leadership educators now explore, coupled with the breadth and variety of the initiatives dedicated to nurturing it, demonstrate that leadership can be taught. More importantly, the practice of leadership demonstrates that many can pursue leadership and that they must if the opportunities of the 21st century are to be fulfilled. The conversations and the needs for leadership have both shifted and it is now incumbent on those who value leadership most to agree to unifying perspectives that can draw us together in common purpose. From your vantage point, what are the crucial conversations, next steps, and/or thoughts for consideration as we enter the second decade of the 21st century?     

Leadership learning: Crucial conversations,next steps,and thoughts for consideration

Forty years ago, the questions most discussed among those who cared about leadership were “is leadership possible among those who don't have titles and positions?”; “what are the characteristics possessed by effective leaders?”; and “how do we find the people who are the best leaders and help them prepare for positions that will allow them to have an impact?” After many conversations, conferences, research studies, and books, the terrain has shifted among scholars. Now the conversations focus on questions such as “If leadership is a shared responsibility among members of groups, how can the full leadership potential of all be cultivated?”; “What role do collaborators play in empowering positive leadership and defending against those who misuse it?”; and “How can organizations cultivate cultures that support and encourage visionary leadership dedicated to benefitting all?” The shift in the questions that leadership educators now explore, coupled with the breadth and variety of the initiatives dedicated to nurturing it, demonstrate that leadership can be taught. More importantly, the practice of leadership demonstrates that many can pursue leadership and that they must if the opportunities of the 21st century are to be fulfilled. The conversations and the needs for leadership have both shifted and it is now incumbent on those who value leadership most to agree to unifying perspectives that can draw us together in common purpose. From your vantage point, what are the crucial conversations, next steps, and/or thoughts for consideration as we enter the second decade of the 21st century?     

Leadership: A journey of sustained performance

Forty years ago, the questions most discussed among those who cared about leadership were “is leadership possible among those who don't have titles and positions?”; “what are the characteristics possessed by effective leaders?”; and “how do we find the people who are the best leaders and help them prepare for positions that will allow them to have an impact?” After many conversations, conferences, research studies, and books, the terrain has shifted among scholars. Now the conversations focus on questions such as “If leadership is a shared responsibility among members of groups, how can the full leadership potential of all be cultivated?”; “What role do collaborators play in empowering positive leadership and defending against those who misuse it?”; and “How can organizations cultivate cultures that support and encourage visionary leadership dedicated to benefitting all?” The shift in the questions that leadership educators now explore, coupled with the breadth and variety of the initiatives dedicated to nurturing it, demonstrate that leadership can be taught. More importantly, the practice of leadership demonstrates that many can pursue leadership and that they must if the opportunities of the 21st century are to be fulfilled. The conversations and the needs for leadership have both shifted and it is now incumbent on those who value leadership most to agree to unifying perspectives that can draw us together in common purpose. From your vantage point, what are the crucial conversations, next steps, and/or thoughts for consideration as we enter the second decade of the 21st century?     

Entrepreneurship education as a new model for leadership education

Forty years ago, the questions most discussed among those who cared about leadership were “is leadership possible among those who don't have titles and positions?”; “what are the characteristics possessed by effective leaders?”; and “how do we find the people who are the best leaders and help them prepare for positions that will allow them to have an impact?” After many conversations, conferences, research studies, and books, the terrain has shifted among scholars. Now the conversations focus on questions such as “If leadership is a shared responsibility among members of groups, how can the full leadership potential of all be cultivated?”; “What role do collaborators play in empowering positive leadership and defending against those who misuse it?”; and “How can organizations cultivate cultures that support and encourage visionary leadership dedicated to benefitting all?” The shift in the questions that leadership educators now explore, coupled with the breadth and variety of the initiatives dedicated to nurturing it, demonstrate that leadership can be taught. More importantly, the practice of leadership demonstrates that many can pursue leadership and that they must if the opportunities of the 21st century are to be fulfilled. The conversations and the needs for leadership have both shifted and it is now incumbent on those who value leadership most to agree to unifying perspectives that can draw us together in common purpose. From your vantage point, what are the crucial conversations, next steps, and/or thoughts for consideration as we enter the second decade of the 21st century?     

The leadership labyrinth

Forty years ago, the questions most discussed among those who cared about leadership were “is leadership possible among those who don't have titles and positions?”; “what are the characteristics possessed by effective leaders?”; and “how do we find the people who are the best leaders and help them prepare for positions that will allow them to have an impact?” After many conversations, conferences, research studies, and books, the terrain has shifted among scholars. Now the conversations focus on questions such as “If leadership is a shared responsibility among members of groups, how can the full leadership potential of all be cultivated?”; “What role do collaborators play in empowering positive leadership and defending against those who misuse it?”; and “How can organizations cultivate cultures that support and encourage visionary leadership dedicated to benefitting all?” The shift in the questions that leadership educators now explore, coupled with the breadth and variety of the initiatives dedicated to nurturing it, demonstrate that leadership can be taught. More importantly, the practice of leadership demonstrates that many can pursue leadership and that they must if the opportunities of the 21st century are to be fulfilled. The conversations and the needs for leadership have both shifted and it is now incumbent on those who value leadership most to agree to unifying perspectives that can draw us together in common purpose. From your vantage point, what are the crucial conversations, next steps, and/or thoughts for consideration as we enter the second decade of the 21st century?     

Constructive Leader Behaviors,Likelihood of Derailment,and the Cuboid Personality Framework: A Replication and Extension of Gough (1990)

Gough (1990b) applied the California Psychological Inventory's (CPI) “cuboid” framework to various leadership contexts, noting the potential for continued, future application of this model within the leadership domain. However, subsequent to this initial investigation (and one similarly oriented but differently executed project), no cuboid follow‐up has taken place. Applying the framework to a large sample of international managers, cuboid classifications were recorded across cultural regions, gender, race, age, organizational level, and industry. Associations with indices of leadership effectiveness and derailment were documented via averaged 360° ratings. Results generally support norm‐favoring individuals as exhibiting leadership advantage, although this effect differed slightly across the leadership dimension being assessed (although remaining relatively stable across hierarchical leadership position). Potential future applications of the cuboid model to the management and leadership domains are suggested primarily in the topical areas of cross‐cultural leadership (different occupancy rates were documented across regions of origin), leadership emergence (interpersonally oriented, norm‐favoring individuals predominantly occupied leadership positions), and leader development (low “satisfaction” and rule‐questioning leaders were generally rated as having lower effectiveness ratings and an increased likelihood of derailment).     

“But we can't go back”

In 2004, a provincial cancer agency in Canada developed and implemented a provincewide Leadership Development Initiative (LDI) to enhance organizational leadership and relationships. Research using a quasi‐experimental survey design determined whether LDI implementation influenced the emotional health and leadership practices of LDI participants. An ethnographic approach (18 focus groups and 13 individual interviews) explored participants' perceptions of the LDI. This article presents qualitative findings that contribute to understanding the statistically significant findings of increasing levels of cynicism, emotional exhaustion, and burnout for most LDI participants. The LDI was regarded as a critical strategy for helping leaders grow and cope with change and help in changing organizational leadership culture to be more collaborative and inclusive. However, an organizational history of short‐lived, flavor‐of‐the‐month development initiatives and growing skepticism and disengagement by leaders represented in the themes of Catch‐22 and “there is no going back” contributes to understanding why these quantitative measures increased. Few studies have explored the hypothesis that real organizational development happens through a series of planned stages. In this study, leaders experienced escalating frustration because change was not seen to occur fast enough in “others” and reported that this was necessary before they would alter their own behavior. Leadership development programs in general need to reflect the reality that it takes considerable time, patience, and effort to effect fundamental change in leadership culture.     

Global critical leadership: Educating global leaders with critical leadership competencies

Global critical leadership competency means espousing critical thinking skills in all aspects of leadership decision making in the global context. This paper reviews the actions of critical thinking, argues that global leaders too must lead critically, and draws attention to the deficiency of critical thinking curricula in higher education and subsequent lack of recent graduates with critical thinking competencies. Leading critically is defined as applying critical thinking skills to decisions about leadership actions in different situations and is a challenge for leaders, followers, and educators. Nevertheless, global leaders, stakeholders, and educators in global leadership programs must embrace this challenge in order to make informed decisions in global contexts.     

Four Lessons Learned in How to Use Human Resource Analytics to Improve the Effectiveness of Leadership Development

The tools and methodologies being developed in the emerging field of human resource analytics can be used both to measure the impact of your organization's investment in leadership development and, perhaps more importantly, to improve the return on that investment. In particular, analytics can be used to move your organization beyond one‐size‐fits‐all competencies by identifying the unique leadership competencies that drive your organization's business results (sales, profits, and employee turnover). Your employee “engagement survey” is a powerful, but typically underutilized, tool for doing so. By linking it with other, disparate pieces of data (180/360 assessments, Learning Management System (LMS) records, turnover, and financial data), you create the foundation for understanding where leadership competencies explain variation (positive and negative) in your organization's business results. This, in turn, creates a strong evidence base for optimizing your leadership development strategy—and is done so using metrics and analysis, which is the language of CEOs and CFOs.     

Introduction

This symposium addresses the challenge of educating global leaders through a collection of scholarly perspectives and practices that focus the development of global leadership and intercultural competency, specifically through immersive international contexts. Through this symposium, we addressed the cognitive, behavioral, and affective competencies that aspiring leaders need to be successful in global contexts. It focuses on the importance, issues, and methods of developing global competence as part of leadership education. Although this symposium is timely, global and intercultural competence is not new. Scholars of 19th‐century Europe shaped the original thoughts of global competence. Their focus was internationalization through colonial conquering, and the ultimate goal was to “learn from the West” (Baumgratz, 1995). This globalization piece did not gain much attention on an international scale. In fact, many managers in the 1960s and 1970s did not consider the international piece of business to be of much importance, often with very small specialized operational departments as the sole contributor to globalization within organizations (Morrison, 2000). However, a rapid shift of perspective occurred in the 1980s when the rise of Japanese businesses began to bring to focus the importance of global leadership. The climate of this theoretical foundation has shifted again recently as leadership educators are faced with preparing students to meet the needs of a dynamic and complicated organizational landscape. Expanding these challenges globally comprises a new level of preparedness for aspiring leaders. Globalization, and the technology that increasingly bridges countries and cultures, requires fresh paradigms and new leadership competencies (Bueno & Tubbs, 2004). Global managers will be expected to master an ever‐expanding range of knowledge and skills that will allow them to be successful in international contexts (DiStefano & Maznevski, 2003). Cultural competency development and a globalized curriculum are perhaps paramount to this charge as educators embark upon the challenging journey of providing the next generation of global leaders. The following questions provide educators with opportunities for reflection and discussion as we attempt to develop global competencies in the students we serve.     

Leadership development in selected leading Thai companies

This research examined leadership development (LD) and leadership development programs (LDPs) in three selected Thai businesses. The research purpose was to identify and explore the features, leaders' competencies, activities and programs, key elements, and critical issues of LDP in these organizations. A case‐study approach was employed as the research method. The data were collected through company documents, questionnaires, and interviews of managers who were directly responsible for leadership development in their organization. Three levels of LDPs were commonly found among the studied companies: those organized for supervisors, managers, and executives. Leaders' competencies were derived from the companies' vision, mission, and values, business drivers, and top management judgment. Development activities included formal training, development activities, and self‐initiative undertakings. Common key elements of LDPs were support from top management, adherence to human resource development (HRD) and business strategic plans, and emphasis on coaching and mentoring. The critical issues included top management trust in employees' abilities; competence and independence of local internal staff; evaluation of LDP effectiveness; level of engagement by potential company leaders; and costs of building, executing, and evaluating LDP.     

Implicit leadership in an intercultural context: theory extension and empirical investigation

Prior literature highlights that subordinates' identification with their leader is important for leader success. This study explores new mechanisms of implicit leadership and their effects on identification by subordinates. Using data from two sources – subordinates from five regional clusters and expatriate leaders – this study reveals that a leader's underfulfilment of subordinates' expectations of leadership harms their leader identification. Moreover, simple fulfilment of subordinates' expectations toward leadership does not affect their identification; to do so requires overfulfilment. Furthermore, the effects of underfulfilment strengthen with greater collectivism and low power distance, whereas overfulfilment effects are mitigated by these cultural dimensions.     

Leadership styles and gender: An extension

Leadership remains an elusive concept despite decades of research. In this paper, we attempt to deconstruct the concept by exploring the possibility of developing new measures of leadership, focusing on the attributes of “good” and “bad” leaders. Using a sample of 312 managers, we conducted factor analyses to reduce 13 “good” leadership attributes to two factors, the “visionary” and the “good,” and 13 “bad” attributes to two factors, the “inept” and the “evil.” Second, we assessed how male and female followers perceive the leadership styles of their best and worst bosses. We found that women viewed their best bosses differently from their male counterparts on several dimensions; however, there is little contrast in how bad bosses are perceived by men and women.     

Introduction

Leadership is under review and open for criticism in ways not seen for some time. Where is leadership when we need it, we ask? Where are the leaders who can solve our problems? Moreover, change is the new constant, and we need leaders who are prepared to embrace change and ambiguity and help followers deal with change. Sometimes it feels like we are in permanent whitewater. Where are the leaders who can deal with the ever‐changing landscape and help us move to a positive future? Many of them are among us. They are the up‐and‐coming emerging leaders of Generations X and Y. This symposium focuses on these leaders of the future—the emerging leaders among us. What challenges do they face? What kind of leaders do they want to be? How do we best prepare them? The five articles that follow present a variety of views for our consideration, and the authors hope to start a boarder conversation about the next generation of leaders and their leadership challenges. Mhatre and Conger stress that authentic leadership principles are needed in workplaces now and in the future. They remind us that organizations are often composed of individuals born during different times, circumstances,and situations, thereby creating challenges for leaders in those organizations. Current research related to Gens X and Y, cited by the authors, highlights some of the generational differences and preferences. The authors see that the differences could create a “fertile ground for intraorganizational conflict, especially differences in how to manage and work within changing organizational climates.” One potential solution, according to Mhatre and Conger, can be found in the four components of authentic leadership principles: self‐awareness, internalized moral perspective, balanced processing, and relational transparency. If authentic leadership is in place, Gens X and Y can lead authentically, thereby facilitating sustainable and positive work environments. The authors predict positive results for organizations when authentic leadership is in place. Carucci and Epperson also focus on cross‐generational relationships and voice their concern with the negative consequences of labeling various age groups as Millennials, Boomers, Xers, Yers—labels that emphasize the divide. What we need, they argue, is less polarization and more connections. The article explores what it means for leaders of multigenerations to thrive together in partnership. They discuss the “elusive contest between the legacy of incumbent leaders and the potential of emerging leaders and ask us to consider mutual vulnerability as common ground.” They also summarize research on mentoring that looks at the gap between the numbers of emerging leaders who are mentored compared with the large numbers who desire mentors and ongoing relationships. The research follows up on earlier work on this topic explored in their books Leadership Divided and Bridging the Leadership Divide. Their article provides a personal case study demonstrating how generations can come together in partnership, thereby strengthening their organizations as well as the individuals involved. Perucci follows up on some of the themes highlighted by Carucci and Epperson as well as Mhatre and Conger and focuses on the way Millennials (Gen Y) are shaping organizations in the 21st century. Perucci reminds us that as we consider the implications of multiple generations working within the same organization, we must emphasize the crosscultural dimensions of intragenerational leadership. Globalization is reshaping leadership not only at the vertical level (multiple generations working side by side), but also horizontally (communication and technology reshaping the way Millennials interact across national boundaries). He suggests that just as leadership involves leaders, followers, and shared goals, successful leadership also requires an awareness of leading across cultures. He argues that effective leaders will be those who learn to work together “across boundaries in order to solve complex global problems.” Penney's article, “Voices of the Future: Leadership for the 21st Century,” focuses on both Generations X and Y (primarily X) and explores how those emerging leaders see leadership in the future and what kind of leaders they want to be. What leadership qualities/behaviors do they see as important? Themes of collaboration and inclusiveness are important to these emerging leaders, and they place high values on trust and integrity. Because they value inclusiveness, they work more easily across racial, ethnic, and gender differences and lines than did previous generations. The article also discusses what organizations need to do to attract and retain Generations X and Y. More flexible work arrangements are important as is having business organizations committed to corporate social responsibility and green initiatives. The findings come from the recent book Next Generation Leadership: Insights from Emerging Leaders (Penney & Neilson 2010). Tulgan and his colleagues at RainmakerThinking, Inc., have been conducting interviews with young people in the workplace for two decades. His article has a theme similar to Penney's in that he discusses ways to develop new leaders, primarily Generation Y. He addresses issues such as, how do we help them step into leadership roles successfully? He also addresses the question of why some of them are reluctant to take on supervisory roles. The article offers specific suggestions about ways to guide young professionals to prepare them for assuming leadership roles. He suggests that senior leaders should give frequent feedback to the top performers in Gen Y rather than leaving them on their own. He argues that too often we ignore high performers as we focus time and effort on the not‐so‐successful ones. According to Tulgan, more generous reward systems and hospitable work conditions are needed to retain high performers. In addition, he wants senior leaders to do more to help Gen Yers establish their credibility when they are given roles of increased responsibility. Conclusions There is a sense of optimism in play as you read these articles. Although there are differences found between Generations X and Y, overall the next generation of leaders also share some commonalities. They are more collaborative and inclusive than previous generations. And these emerging leaders are bringing a fresh approach to leadership and moving us away from the leader as “hero” or all‐knowing source of power and influence. Their desire for collaboration can help bridge the generation gap between Boomers and young professionals. Each brings particular strengths to their organizations, so as they work together, stronger institutions can be the result. Integrity is also important to emerging leaders, and authentic leadership behaviors hold much promise for strengthening our organizations. These emerging leaders can work well across cultures and are more comfortable with inclusion and diversity than those of previous generations. The authors provide several suggestions for working with and retaining young professionals so that their leadership skills are strengthened. Emerging leaders need support and honest feedback; they want reward systems that differentiate; they request flexible work arrangements. They also want to see corporate social responsibility in place in the business world. Emerging leaders of Generations X and Y are ready to assume leadership roles, but many do not want to lead as they have been led. We must do all we can as senior leaders, as academics, and as colleagues to prepare them for these responsibilities. As we pass the torch to a new generation of leaders, let's be certain they are well equipped for the task and ready to lead.