Organizational Leadership and Change

Calendar

SES #	TOPICS	SESSION OVERVIEWS	KEY DATES
1	Introduction to the two-year LGO journey	This session will provide an overview of LGO leadership activities and an introduction to various leadership frameworks. We will use these various frameworks to analyze the leadership style of Dr. Wangari Maathai, 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate, and how the Green Belt Movement was created.
2	Traits vs. situational leadership; Leading and following	The class will begin with a debate on whether two diverse leaders (Bono, a singer/activist, and Dr. Rene Favaloro, founder of the Favaloro Foundation in Argentina) were successful based on particular characteristics they brought to the role or based on the situation they faced. Following the debates, we will examine the role of leaders and followers in a chamber orchestra to see distributed leadership in action.
3	Distributed leadership	This session will focus on the concept of distributed leadership. We will start by discussing the MacGregor article which describes a manager who was extremely successful in taking the concept of delegation to an extreme. We will explore how and why he was successful. We will then look at leading dispersed groups and discuss the Photovoltaic case study.
4	Team processes	This session is focused on team processes. While watching a videotape of a team meeting (actually a classic film), the class will explore the roles and functions of effective teams.	Mid-summer peer team feedback and cross-team sharing
5	Transformational leadership	Many evaluate leaders based on their ability to transform their organizations. We will use the transformation at IBM as a platform for exploring the various leadership tasks associated with transforming organizations. We will then use a case study to apply the principles of transformational leadership at the plant level.
6	Don Davis/Bill Hanson	Don Davis, retired CEO of Stanley Works, has been a cornerstone of the LGO leadership experience since 1988. In this afternoon seminar, Don will present his leadership mantras. He will also be joined by Bill Hanson, retired VP of Manufacturing for Digital Equipment Corporation (and also LGO industry co-director from 1993-2004). Don and Bill will preview their Fall leadership and ethics seminar.
7	Leadership development planning and alum panel	This session will look at moving forward. The session will begin with an alumni panel who will reflect on their two years in LGO. Then using your 360° Sloan leadership assessment feedback, we will ask each of you to create a plan to strengthen your leadership competencies during your time in LGO. This will be documented in a leadership paper due next week.	Individual leadership paper
8	Leadership, ethics, and authority (Leigh Hafrey)	In this first session on leadership and ethics, we look at two cases involving a single institution—the British monarchy—across a span of centuries and very different ruling styles and circumstances. Stephen Frears’ film The Queen portrays the tensions among Elizabeth II, the British people, and Prime Minister Tony Blair, in the wake of the death of Lady Diana, Princess of Wales. Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons explores the confrontation between Henry VIII and his chancellor, Sir Thomas More, over the King’s defiance of religious law and papal authority. In both cases, figures in the hierarchy embody multiple forms of leadership, and illustrate the interplay of values and strategy for those who must govern.
9	Leadership: Innovation and social control (Leigh Hafrey)	Our second session on ethics and leadership introduces us to innovation, and the ethics that makes it possible. Stacy Peralta’s early, drop-out surfers wanted only to live free, but generated a sub-culture that directly affected the mainstream. Hagel and Brown’s article suggests that the big-wave surf phenomenon has much to tell us about how best to foster and manage innovation. Against this backdrop, we consider scientific and technical innovation, and the role of business in encouraging or controlling these forces. Bill Joy, former Chief Scientist at Sun Microsystems, argues that “relinquishment” is the only sane response to threats we face in a confluence of bio-engineering, nanotechnology, and robotics; Hawken, Lovins, and Lovins’ Natural Capitalism offers a more positive take on the future.
10	Leadership reaction course	The Leadership Reaction Course (LRC) event is a team leadership exercise held at Fort Devens (U.S. Army Base near Boston) that will provide you with an opportunity to exercise leadership outside of the classroom. Teams of six to seven individuals face a variety of challenges while navigating LRC obstacles. These challenges force the leader to guide their team to work together to assess the problems at hand, use creative problem-solving skills, and implement a solution.
11	Reflections on summer teams and leadership	This session will reflect on lessons learned during the summer team – we will explore those experiences you want to carry forward into the Fall semester and those that you want to leave behind. We provide a forum for you to share your leadership experiences and plans for the next two years.	Group assessment of leadership and team performance