MOR 571: Leadership and Executive

Development
Spring 2021

Professor Christopher Bresnahan

Office: Hoffman Hall 417, 4th floor (virtual office via zoom)
Phone: 213-740-0175
Email: cbresnah@marshall.usc.edu
Office Hours: Zoom calls via appointment.

Course Description

Leadership. The word itself provokes vivid images, usually of figures bigger than life. Knights on white horses.
Heroes in battle. Changing the world. Indeed, in earlier times only heads of state, generals, and religious icons were
considered leaders, never managers, bureaucrats, or administrators. The word manager itself derives from the Latin
manus (hand) and meant to handle or direct a horse. Leader, on the other hand (no pun intended), comes from Old
English and originally meant to show the way or guide. It was a distinction worth noting.

Anne Mulcahy, former CEO of Xerox, observed that “Poor leadership can do damage overnight. It’s amazing the
extraordinary damage poor leadership can do. Really good leadership can move mountains over a longer period of
time.” As if building on that idea, former Ford CEO Alan Mulally observed that, “positive leadership—conveying
the idea that there is always a way forward-- is so important, because that is what you are here for—to figure out
how to move the organization forward…. A big part of leadership is being authentic to who you are, thinking about
what you really believe in and behaving accordingly.”

So, what kind of leader do you want to be? Will you move mountains or do damage overnight? Will you consider it
an honor to serve others or will you see leadership as a way to serve yourself? Authentic or Machiavellian? Your
choice… And the purpose of this part of Theme IX is to give you a chance to think deeply about leadership, what it
requires, how it is developed, and what all that means for you.

There are many different paths that lead to leadership success or failure. The good news is that effective leaders do
not have the same personalities, or the same styles, or even the same skills and abilities. But leaders-- whether in
corporations or non-profits, whether CEOs or project leaders-- do face similar demands. We know a lot about those
demands, various ways leaders meet them, and how the ability to meet those demands can be developed. That’s
what this part of the theme is about. Most of all, it’s about what you can do to develop your own leadership ability
if you choose that kind of career.

Among the issues we will discuss are: differences in the leadership challenges in turning an organization around vs
changing the direction of an organization doing well, leadership strategies for insiders vs. outsiders, values as
printed on posters versus lived by leaders, aligning one’s own team versus influencing people over whom you have
no authority, leading in certainty versus ambiguity, and leaders who derail and those who haven’t yet. In conclusion
you will be asked to reflect on how you learned your leadership skills and where you may need to go from here.

The course is organized around the fundamental challenge of leadership: creating a context so that other people will
be successful in achieving the organization’s mission. Context is created by how leaders handle the five demands in
any leadership role:
 setting and communicating direction,
 aligning key constituencies with that direction,
 developing an executive temperament,
 setting and living values, and
 growing themselves and others.

How you effectively you handle those demands will determine how successful you will be as a leader. My primary
purpose in teaching this course is to help you understand the demands of a leadership role and, in that context, help
you to craft a leadership development plan for the first or next step in your career as a leader. After examining how
different leaders have handled the leadership demands, the last part of this course focuses on you. You will learn
how leadership talent can be developed, reflect on where you stand in your life and career, and write the final
paper-- a personal leadership development plan.

In short, by the end of this course you should 1) see the many ways effective leaders create a context for the success
of others, 2) understand each of the five leadership demands, 3) reflect on your own experience and level of
leadership ability in light of these demands, and 4) identify the next step in your own path to mastery.

Before you commit to taking the course, please consider the following conditions:
-First, because the outside speakers are well known and very busy, we may have unexpected schedule or
topic changes. You will need to adjust accordingly.
-Second, because the course is highly interactive, your level of engagement with the material, each other,
and the guest speakers will determine a hefty portion of your grade.
-Third, you will be asked to share with your classmates aspects of your background, career experiences,
and strengths and weaknesses, and to be a receptive and trustworthy listener when your classmates share
theirs.
-Finally, I have designed this course as I would an executive development program, emphasizing practical
application and exposing you to current leaders who will talk about their challenges and experiences. It is
extremely difficult to make up a missed session, especially the life map session on April 27th, so I put a
premium on your showing up, being prepared, and fully engaging with the class, the guests, the issues, and
me. If you plan on showing up late and leaving early, you will not have successful experience in this
course.

If you are unwilling or unable to accept these conditions, I ask that you not take the course.

Course Learning Objectives

Active participation in the learning process will enable students to:
1. Understand yourself and your leadership style through assessment and readings.
2. Proactively address different leadership challenges, and how to address the challenges in your current
setting.
3. Gain an awareness of how to create a vision statement, behave authentically, give and receive effective
feedback, and take initiative as a leader.
4. Find a way to tell your own story as a leader using your values and experiences.
 EXPECTATIONS AND EVALUATION

During class please put cell phones on stun, and turn off laptops, things that beep, iPads, and any other gadgets
that might distract you or those around you!

Grading will be based on three components: how actively you engage the course, a team project at the mid-term,
and a final paper.

1. ENGAGEMENT (1/3):
There are several pieces to the engagement portion of your grade:
 Showing up
Have you attended class regularly, arrived on time ready to work, stayed to the bitter end, and
appeared to be with us in both body and spirit? Because the class meets twice a week, attendance
will be taken very seriously. As is done in the EMBA program, a sign-in sheet will be passed
around in every class (please note, it is an honor violation to sign in for another student!). Missing
more than two sessions will have a drastic effect on your final grade.

 Contribution to the class

Have you been a part of creating a constructive and lively classroom atmosphere? Have you added
to the conversation by contributing your ideas, building on the ideas of others, and constructively
challenging assumptions? Is it clear from your comments that you have read and understood the
material? Did you encourage participation by your classmates and respect their ideas? Did you
ask thoughtful questions of our guests and take advantage of your time with them? Were you a
good listener and respectful colleague in the small group discussions?
The opposite behaviors, or distracting the class by grandstanding, repetition, talking for its own
sake, etc., will count against you.

 Posting on the discussion board

There will be two discussion board prompts during the semester. Your expected to contribute to
these conversations.

 Contribution to the team

Have you contributed fully to the team assignment (as reflected in a peer rating)?
-Have you done the assignments along the way and turned them in on time and in
acceptable form?

*One of the most important factors in learning from experience is taking time for reflection. After
four of our guest speakers, we ask you to reflect on what was said, identify one thing you learned
that was important to you personally, explain why it was important to you, and draw some
implications for your future actions. The reflections must be typed, cannot exceed one page
double-spaced, and will be uploaded to bbd before the next class session.

**This classroom portion of the life map experience cannot be made up, therefore it is weighted
heavily: failure to complete the life map and attend the class will have serious impact on the
engagement portion of your grade. Life Maps will be shared April 27th. Please arrange your
schedule accordingly.

 I reserve the right to give unannounced quizzes on assigned material if I feel that people are not
coming to class prepared. If given, these will count as part of the engagement grade.

 Self-Assessment project: There is an option to get feedback from at least ten different people as a part
of your final paper. This data will be collected by the professor, and then the student and professor of
record will discuss the outcome. Student will also be expected to write up a two page, single spaced
report regarding next steps.
2. MID-TERM TEAM PROJECT (1/3):

Your mid-term is a team project in which each member of your team will select and interview at least one leader
about leadership development. After the interviews are completed, the team will integrate the interviews and
relevant course material into a six page essay on leadership development.

The Team

A team should consist of 5 or 6 members. Each member of each team must identify and interview at least one
leader. Teams of more than six or less than five members must get my approval in advance (if approved, a team
smaller than five still must conduct at least five interviews with different leaders). You should send me a list of your
team members no later than August 31st.

The Interview

The focus of the interview is “growth of self and others”—the leadership demand that explicitly focuses on
leadership development. Your interview should include the following questions to ask of the leaders you have
chosen:

 About their own development:

1) When you think about your career as a manager or executive, certain events or episodes stand out in
your mind—things that changed you in some way and have ultimately shaped you as an executive.
Please choose three of these experiences that have had a lasting impact on you: For each event, what
happened? What did you learn from it (how did it change you)?
 About how they develop others:
2) What is your approach to developing leadership talent in others?
3) Please think of a specific person for whom you played a significant role in his/her development as a
leader. Tell us the story—how you decided to invest in this person, what you did, what the person did,
why you think things turned out so well.

Your team may add additional questions related to “growth of self and others” but the assigned questions should be
fully addressed in the interviews and in your paper. If you do choose to add questions, limit the number—it is much
better to have a conversation with some depth than to take a superficial cut at a long list of questions!

I recommend that you give your interviewees the three central questions in advance so they can think about their
answers prior to the interview.

While it is okay to conduct the interviews singly, I recommend that you interview in pairs when you can. Not only
does it make the interview more interesting, it usually results in better integration in the final paper (not to mention
that you get to meet additional successful leaders!).

Interviewees

The people you interview should be successful senior managers or executives you believe to be very effective in
developing themselves and others. One purpose of the project is to give you an opportunity to learn from veteran
managers you admire, so be intentional in your selections. This can be an opportunity for you to get to know
someone you haven’t worked with before, to understand someone better with whom you have worked, to meet
someone in an area of expertise other than your own, or to make a connection in a different function or even
organization. Do not interview anyone in the Marshall School administration.

Do not wait until the last minute to do this assignment. It takes time to set up and conduct interviews, and only after
those are completed can you integrate what you have learned and write the paper.

The Paper
This is a team project because much of the value in the exercise comes from sharing with each other what you have
learned from the interviews and figuring out the implications for your own growth and development. As stated
above, the paper should address “growth of self and others,” using relevant course material to clarify, support, or
build on the interview results, and concluding with some specific implications for what this might mean for your
own development as leaders.

The paper should accomplish the following:

1) An introduction should begin with a brief discussion of
 your interpretation of the topic “growth of self and others”
 a brief statement of why the people you chose to interview were appropriate for the topic (note that the
details are supposed to be in the appendices, so this is your general rationale only)
 succinctly cover what you were looking for if you asked additional questions
2) The body of the paper should synthesize what your interviewees revealed about how they developed and
about how they develop others, drawing on materials from the class as appropriate to show your depth of
learning.
3) In the final section of the paper draw conclusions about the implications of what you learned from the
interviews for your own development as leaders. 

NOTE: You may want to read ahead so that you can use future course material to clarify, support, build on, or put
perspective around your interview results. Of particular relevance to the topic are the following readings that are
assigned in the last part of the course and listed later in the syllabus:
Nagrath, “Foreword: A Senior HR Executive Perspective”
McCall & McHenry, “Catalytic Converters: How Exceptional Bosses Develop Leaders”
Colvin, “How to Build Great Leaders”
McCall, “The Experience Conundrum”

Formatting is Important

1) Papers can be no more than six double-spaced pages (1 inch margins all around, Times New Roman, 12
point font).
2) There should be three appendices to the paper:
 Appendix 1: the interview questions asked, including both the assigned questions and any that you
may have added
 Appendix 2: a list of the people interviewed, their organizations and titles, the reason each was
chosen, and who conducted the interview
 Appendix 3: a summary of each interview (no more than two double-spaced pages for each person
interviewed). This is to be a synopsis, not a verbatim recitation of interview questions and
responses

Failure to follow formatting guidelines will be taken into account in the grading.  The six page limit for the paper
does not include the required appendices and any tables or charts you choose to add. 

You will upload the assignment to turnitin at some point on March 16th before 11:59PM. Only one upload
per team is needed.

The Team Grade is Your Grade

Each paper will be read and scored by me and by a qualified independent second reader, using the same criteria.
Agreement between the readers will determine your grade. The four criteria are:

1) Depth of your understanding of the topic “growth of self and others” as stated in the introduction and
demonstrated throughout the paper. How appropriate were the people interviewed around this topic? If
you asked additional questions, were they thought-provoking and on topic?
2) How effectively the interview results are presented in the context of the leadership demand “Growth of self
 and others” and how well are they integrated with course material? (Note: selected quotations from the
interviews can be very effective ways to summarize and clarify your central themes.) How well done are
the synopses of the individual interviews in the appendix?
3) How effectively does the paper develop meaningful implications for yourselves—either for developing
your own leadership capacity or for helping others develop. Are the implications specific? How logically
do they follow from the results presented?
4) Do the appendices include everything required? Are there any additional tables or charts used to support or
enhance the paper?

This is a lot to do in 6 double-spaced pages. Do not short-change the team part of the process where ideas are
brought together and the themes/conclusions identified. In the past I have had papers that contained fantastic
interviews, both in terms of the people interviewed and what they said (as I could tell from the synopses), but they
received mediocre grades because they did a poor job of integrating the results and drawing out the implications.

3. FINAL PAPER (1/3):

The final paper requires you to craft a personal plan for the next stage of your growth as a leader. This
paper should draw on material from the entire course, and you may want to include in appendices self-
assessments, your life map, etc.-- so hang on to them. You also may want to include materials from outside
of the course that you consider relevant, such as past performance evaluations. Detailed instructions for
this paper will be distributed in class.

If you would like written feedback, please let me know. All students are required to submit a copy of
the assignment to turnitin before 11:59PM on the day of the final.

Cruel experience has taught me that I need to set guidelines for both papers. They must be done in 12-point font,
Times Roman or equivalent, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins all around. In other words, please don’t try to
defeat the page limits through chicanery.

Additional Information

Academic Integrity & Conduct

USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic honesty include t e concept
of respect for the intellectual property of others, the expectation that individual work will be submitted unless
otherwise allowed by an instructor, and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by
others as well as to avoid using another’s work as one’s own. All students are expected to understand and abide by
these principles. SCampus, the Student Guidebook, (www.usc.edu/scampus or http://scampus.usc.edu) contains the
University Student Conduct Code (see University Governance, Section 11.00), while the recommended sanctions are
located in Appendix A.

Students will be referred to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs and Community Standards for further review,
should there be any suspicion of academic dishonesty. The Review process can be found at:
http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/SJACS/. Failure to adhere to the academic conduct standards set forth by these
guidelines and our programs will not be tolerated by the USC Marshall community and can lead to dismissal.

No personal audio or video recording is permitted without consent of the faculty and class.

STATEMENT OF ACADEMIC CONDUCT AND SUPPORT SYSTEMS

Academic Conduct:
Plagiarism – presenting someone else’s ideas as your own, either verbatim or recast in your own words – is a serious
academic offense with serious consequences. Please familiarize yourself with the discussion of plagiarism in
SCampus in Part B, Section 11, “Behavior Violating University Standards”
https://policy.usc.edu/scampus-part-b/. Other forms of academic dishonesty are equally unacceptable. See additional
information in SCampus and university policies on scientific misconduct, http://policy.usc.edu/scientific-
misconduct.

Support Systems:
Student Counseling Services (SCS) - (213) 740-7711 – 24/7 on call
Free and confidential mental health treatment for students, including short-term psychotherapy, group counseling,
stress fitness workshops, and crisis intervention. https://engemannshc.usc.edu/counseling/

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline - 1-800-273-8255

Provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7
days a week. http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Relationship & Sexual Violence Prevention Services (RSVP) - (213) 740-4900 - 24/7 on call
Free and confidential therapy services, workshops, and training for situations related to gender-based harm.
https://engemannshc.usc.edu/rsvp/

Sexual Assault Resource Center

For more information about how to get help or help a survivor, rights, reporting options, and additional resources,
visit the website: http://sarc.usc.edu/

Office of Equity and Diversity (OED)/Title IX compliance – (213) 740-5086

Works with faculty, staff, visitors, applicants, and students around issues of protected class. https://equity.usc.edu/

Bias Assessment Response and Support

Incidents of bias, hate crimes and microaggressions need to be reported allowing for appropriate investigation and
response. https://studentaffairs.usc.edu/bias-assessment-response-support/

Student Support & Advocacy – (213) 821-4710

Assists students and families in resolving complex issues adversely affecting their success as a student EX: personal,
financial, and academic. https://studentaffairs.usc.edu/ssa/

Diversity at USC – https://diversity.usc.edu/

Tabs for Events, Programs and Training, Task Force (including representatives for each school), Chronology,
Participate, Resources for Students
 Course Materials
DAILY ASSIGNMENTS

Note: Unless otherwise indicated, all readings, the life map and instructions, and other materials
assigned in the course should be in the course packet, which is available at the USC bookstore
and remotely; instructions on bbd on how to download. Selections of slides used in class and
other relevant materials will be posted in the “content” section of Blackboard as the course
progresses.

1) Tuesday, January 19th Leaders Create Context

Readings Due: Syllabus (well done!)

McCall, “The Five Demands of Leadership” (one page)

2) Tuesday, January 26th Setting and Communicating Direction: The Vision Thing, and The
Perils of Bureaucracy

Readings Due: Fallows, “Two Weapons: The M-16”

Bennis, “Learning Some Basic Truisms about Leadership (1976,
1996)”
McCord, “How Netflix Reinvented HR”
Review the “Five Demands of Leadership.” How is a demand
different from a personality trait? Different from a “style” of
leadership?
Read David Oldfield’s letter to you and the material in his
“Drawing the Map of your Life,” look over the life map, and come
with any questions about the assignment (which is due April
27thth). DO NOT COMPLETE YOUR LIFE MAP AT THIS
TIME!!

Assignments Due: Prepare to discuss the following issues raised by the M-16 case:
1) What are the bureaucratic pathologies revealed in the story of
the M-16?
2) In your opinion, what causes the pathologies you have listed?
3) In what ways and at what points might leadership have made a
difference in the outcome?
 4) Do any of the pathologies you have identified in the case exist
in your organization? If so, how do you contribute to the
dysfunctional patterns?
5) How can you acquire the skills and abilities required to
overcome these common organizational pathologies?

Prepare to discuss the following issues raised in the Netflix

article:
1) Should you be able to expect your company to support you
during difficult developmental challenges?
2) What are the limits you are willing to go to for a great
employee?
3) What happens when you change, but the company doesn’t?

Complete the “MOR571 Background Sheet” (in your course

reader) and upload it to bbd. Note that the sheet is two-sided, so if
you use your own copy please submit it two-sided as well. Also
keep in mind that our guest speakers review the background sheets,
so you may want to think about how you present yourself. You
may include one of your own pictures if you prefer it to the one on
file on the Marshall website.

3) Tuesday, February 2nd Setting and Communicating Direction: Leading a Turnaround

Readings Due: Taylor, “Fixing Up Ford”

Implementing the Nissan Renewal Plan

Assignments Due: Recently retired Ford CEO Alan Mulally was not a “car guy” and
had no experience with mass marketing or with dealers. He took
charge of Ford at a time when other automobile makers were
declaring bankruptcy. Come prepared to talk about…
1) How did he “get on the balcony” to learn what was needed
to change Ford? What was his vision?
2) What actions did he take to change the direction
(“context”) at Ford?
3) How did Mulally get commitment to the necessary
changes?
4) How would you describe Mulally as a leader? What would
it be like to work for him? What could you learn from
him?
Come prepared to discuss the following questions about Ghosn
and the Nissan case:
1) Ghosn, a non-Japanese, was hardly an expert in repairing
Japanese automobile companies. How did he get
perspective on what was needed to successfully turn Nissan
 around?
2) Why did people at Nissan resist change when the problems
were so evident? How did Ghosn get their commitment to
the radical changes that were necessary?
3) Ghosn’s use of cross-functional teams was crucial to the
success of the turnaround. What made them so effective?
What did they accomplish in addition to solving some
significant business problems?
4) How would you describe Ghosn as a leader? What would
it be like to work for him? What could you learn from
him?
Names of mid-term team members must be submitted by
today.

4) Tuesday, February 9th Setting and Communicating Direction: Leading Change

Readings Due:  Siklos, “Bob Iger Rocks Disney”

“Technology, Tradition & the Mouse” (interview with Bob Iger)

Assignments Due: The two articles about Disney are quite revealing in terms of
Iger’s strategic perspective, values, and expectations.
1) How has Iger changed the culture of the Walt Disney
Company?
2) What are his priorities moving forward and what does that
imply about his expectations for leaders at Disney?
Download and play with the free “Disney Princess Palace Pets”
app in advance of meeting.

5) Tuesday, February 16th Wellness Day: No Class Today

Assignments Due: You MUST find a way to do something
restorative (i.e., something you would be proud to tell your
mentor about). Find a way to recharge.

5) Tuesday, February 23rd Aligning Critical Constituencies: Leading Teams and Individuals

Readings due: Coutu, “Why Teams don’t Work” (an interview with Richard
Hackman)
McCall, “Leading a Turnaround: An Alignment Challenge”
Gabarro & Kotter, “Managing Your Boss”
Lombardo & McCall, “Coping with an Intolerable Boss”

Assignments Due: Read the caselet “Leading a Turnaround: An Alignment

Challenge” and come to class prepared to discuss your strategy
 for realigning the critical constituencies
What brings out the best in you? Come to class prepared to
give an example of a time when you did your best and what it
was that motivated you.
Given that Gabarro and Kotter’s advice on how to manage your
boss is so obvious, why don’t people do a better job of managing
their bosses?

6) Tuesday, March 2nd Aligning Critical Constituencies: Leading Multiple Constituencies

Readings Due: Morris, “The Accidental CEO”

Bercovici, “Inside the Mind of Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg”
(uploaded to bbd)

Assignments Due: After reading about Anne Mulcahy’s turnaround of Xerox come
prepared to discuss the following questions:
1) What constituencies did Anne Mulcahy have to align?
2) How did she manage to gain the respect and trust of so
many different constituencies?
3) How could people judge whether she was serious about the
changes she was trying to make?

After reading about Sheryl Sandberg’s experiences come

prepared to discuss the following questions:
1) Think about your own organization or industry. What does
diversity look like to you?
2) Have you ever had a woman boss? What was this experience
like?
3) Imagine a workplace where the gender ratio you are used to is
flipped. What would this experience be like?
A portion of today’s class will be dedicated towards meeting with
your team to work on the mid-term project. A brief project update
(no more than one double-spaced page) is due Tuesday, March 9th.
You should lay out what has been done to date and your plans for
completing the project on time.

7) Tuesday, March 9th Aligning Critical Constituencies: Through Others’ Eyes

Readings Due: The Jenner Situation

 Bilton, “How Elizabeth Holmes’s House of Cards Came
Tumbling Down”
 Assignment Due: Read the Jenner case, and put yourself first in Dr. Lemont’s
shoes.
1) What is he feeling about the situation he finds himself in
regarding Dr. Jenner?
2) What are his options for handling the “Jenner Situation”
and what are the potential outcomes for each?
Now put yourself in Dr. Jenner’s shoes.
1) How does he see himself and why does he act the way he
does with other people?
2) How does he feel about administrators like Dr. Jenner?
3) What approach is most likely to reach him? What approach
likely would turn him off?
Come prepared to assume the role of Dr. Lamont and to meet
with Dr. Jenner to discuss what you intend to do
Go to the website and read the article by Victor Wooten
http://www.themusiclesson.com/FirstMeasure/Page1.html (if the
hyperlink doesn’t open, copy it and paste it into your browser)
After reading about Elizabeth Holmes’s experience, please
answer the following questions:
1) What made her fall so stunning?
2) How did she manage to gain the respect and trust of so
many different constituencies?
3) What would you have done in her situation? In the
technical department’s situation?
4) How would you describe Holmes as a leader? What would
it be like to work for her?

8) Tuesday, March 16th Developing an Executive Temperament and Setting and Living
Values: Leaders and Culture

Readings Due: Gerstner, “On Corporate Culture” and “Leading by Principles”

”On a Scale of 1 to 10, How Weird Are You” (an interview with
Tony Hsieh)
Catmull, “How Pixar Fosters Collective Creativity”
Swisher, “Uber CEO Search: Sandberg? No. Wojcicki? No.
Mulally? No. Staggs? No. Arianna? No. (And Mayer? No way.)


Assignments Due Read the Gerstner excerpts:

1) Why does Gerstner put so much emphasis on the culture?
 2) Why did the original values that Tom Watson embedded in
IBM get distorted over time?
Tony Hsieh, like Gerstner, focuses on the customer but has
created a very different organizational culture to achieve it.
Contrast Zappos culture with IBM’s. Which would bring out the
best in you? Why?
Creating and sustaining a creative organization requires
leadership. Is leading a creative enterprise different than leading
other kinds of organizations? How have Catmull and his
associates created and sustained a culture of creativity at Pixar?
Come prepared to discuss the following:
1) How do you respond in ambiguous situations? To
situations you can’t control?
2) What does it bring out in you when you are tired?
Pressured? Frustrated?

YOUR MID-TERM REPORT IS DUE TODAY BEFORE

11:59PM. YOU MUST UPLOAD A COPY TO TURNITIN.

9) Tuesday, March 23rd Setting and Living Values: Leaders and Personal Values

Readings Due: “We Had to Own the Mistakes” (an interview with Howard
Schultz)
Drucker, “What the Nonprofits are Teaching Business”
 Please review the Leadership Principles on Amazon’s website:
https://www.amazon.jobs/principles
 Kantor and Streitfeld, “Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a
Bruising Workplace”

Assignments Due: How did Howard Schultz fare when his values were put to the
test? What did he do to restore the values that had eroded?
Have your values ever been tested? What happened and what did
you learn from it?
Please consider the following questions before class:
1) What values do you think Amazon holds dear?
2) What values do you think Amazon emphasizes when
discussing their culture and values?
3) Would you want to work at Amazon?

10) Tuesday, March 30th Setting and Living Values: Leaders and Values
 Readings Due: Goldsmith, “Leaders Make Values Visible”
Larry Spears, “Understanding the Growing Impact of Servant
Leadership”

Assignments Due: After reading about the principles of servant leadership, come
prepared to discuss the following questions:
1) Do you see examples of servant leadership in your
workplace? If so, in what way?
2) Does your company, or any of its leaders, exemplify
servant leadership principles? Be prepared to cite
examples. Are there other leaders you know that are
servant-leaders?
What is your leadership philosophy? What core values determine
your leadership choices?
What happens when your personal values and your organization’s
values are not consistent?

12) Tuesday, April 6th Setting and Living Values: How Values Influence Leadership

Readings Due: Manimala, Wasdani, Wasdani, “Distributed Leadership at

Google: Lessons from the Billion-Dollar Brand.”
Honan, “Searching for Sundar Pichai”
Charan et al., “Six Leadership Passages”
Collins, “Level 5 Leadership: The Triumph of Humility and
Fierce Resolve”
Thomas & Gabarro (Breaking Through), Chapter 10, “Lessons
for the Next Generation of Minority Executives”
Go to YouTube and watch Steve Jobs 2005 Stanford
commencement address, “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.”

Assignments Due: Please consider the following questions for class:

1) Who created Google’s core values? How are these values
maintained within the company?
2) How has the face of leadership changed at Google?
3) Does Google have a strong leadership pipeline?
4) How do leaders function at Google? What is the primary
purpose of leadership within the firm?

13) Tuesday, April 13th Growth of Self and Others: When Things Go Wrong

Readings Due: Gibson, "Personal 'Chemistry' Abruptly Ended the Rise of

Kellogg President"
 McCall & Hollenbeck, “When Things Go Wrong”
Sorcher & Brant, “Are you Picking the Right Leaders?”

Assignments Due: Read the story of Horst Schroeder’s rise and fall at Kellogg and
come prepared to discuss the following issues:
1) What attributes or strengths led Kellogg to choose Horst
Schroeder as president?
2) What were the flaws that "did him in”? Were some of his
flaws more important than others? Why?
3) Do you believe he developed those flaws after he became
president? If not, why did they become so significant at
this particular time?
4) Whose fault was this derailment—was it due to mistakes
made by LaMothe and Kellogg, or do you think Mr.
Schroeder was responsible for his own demise?
5) If Sorcher & Brant’s advice on how to pick leaders had
been followed, would Schroeder still have been selected as
president? Why or why not?
Fill out the “Self-Assessment of Strengths and Weaknesses.” It
will be collected at the end of class.
Why are things so much more complicated and derailments more
likely in international assignments? What could you do to prepare
yourself for working in a culture other than your own?

15) Tuesday, April 20th Growth of Self and Others: Finding Your Path to Mastery

Readings Due: Interview with Linda Hill, “What You Must Learn to Become a
Manager”
Charan et al., “Six Leadership Passages”
Collins, “Level 5 Leadership: The Triumph of Humility and
Fierce Resolve”
Thomas & Gabarro (Breaking Through), Chapter 10, “Lessons
for the Next Generation of Minority Executives”
Go to YouTube and watch Steve Jobs 2005 Stanford
commencement address, “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.”

Assignments Due: After reading the articles, where do you stand…

1) In Hill’s transition?
2) On the “Leadership Pipeline”?
3) On Collins’ Levels?
While the Thomas & Gabarro article is based on their study of
minority executives, their conclusions may apply to everyone. In
what way are you a minority? How does their advice affect how
you look at your career?
As you consider the next stage for you as a leader, a) what skills
do you need to build on, b) what new skills do you need to acquire,
 and c) what do you need to let go of?

15) Tuesday, April 27th Discovery of the Self and Others: Live Maps

Readings Due: Colvin, “How to Build Great Leaders”

McCall, “The Experience Conundrum”
Lafley, “The Art and Science of Finding the Right CEO”
McCall & McHenry, “Catalytic Converters: How Exceptional
Bosses Develop Leaders”
Nagrath, “Foreword: A Senior HR Executive Perspective”
“Work/life Balance: Two Conversation Starters”

Assignment Due: How do your organization’s practices for identifying and

developing leadership talent compare to the organizations
described generally by Colvin and McCall, and in particular to
P&G’s processes as described by Lafley?
Considering your own development as a leader…
1) What experiences changed you in a significant way?
2) What did you learn from those experiences?
Have you had a boss who developed you? What did he or she do
that was effective?
What do you do to develop leadership in the people who report to
you/ work with you?
Consider Bennis’s argument.
1) What does it mean to know yourself?
2) Do you agree that to be effective a leader must know
him/herself? Why do you think so?
Looking at the conversation starters, where does work fit in your
life? What does it mean to you to “balance life and work”? How
do you manage the tension in your own life?

COME TO CLASS WITH YOUR COMPLETED LIFE

MAP. Class will include a “gallery of lives” during which all the
life maps will be on display for a short period of time. After that,
you will have an opportunity to tell your story in a small group.
Review the materials about life maps in David Oldfield’s
“Drawing the Map of your Life” (in your reading packet under
January 26th)
Bennis, “Knowing Yourself”