Case Study: Redefining Leadership for the Challenges of Our Times
FALL 2021
CHALLENGE
One of the world’s most innovative and progressive governments posed a critical question:
What do today’s leaders need to navigate the ever-growing complexities of our world while leaving a meaningful, lasting impact?
From climate change to inequality, corruption to digital infrastructure, global health crises to societal polarization, the challenges facing national leaders grow more complex by the day. How might leaders not only address these issues but evolve into the transformative figures capable of shaping a brighter future?
The task:
To design a leadership school within the government that equips leaders with the skills, resilience, and humanity required to meet the demands of our times and become the leaders the world desperately needs.
APPROACH
Our method blended deep research, contextual inquiry, and innovative thinking to design an unprecedented leadership development experience:
1. Global Benchmarking:
• Studied best-in-class leadership schools and educational systems worldwide, from traditional to cutting-edge, analyzing what works, what’s missing, and where innovation is needed.
• Examined user journeys, post-program success rates, and innovative hybrid approaches, from ancient traditions to adaptive technologies.
2. User Research:
• Conducted extensive research within the government, engaging leaders across different genders, nationalities, seniority levels, and roles to identify unmet needs and core skills.
• Explored the unique challenges and motivations of public service leadership in today’s world.
3. Cultural & Contextual Analysis:
• Investigated the essence of leadership in a government context, identifying gaps where education fails to prepare leaders for the demands of our age.
• Explored the intersection of personal growth, societal needs, and professional responsibility.
KEY INSIGHT
True leadership is not just technical expertise or political acumen—it is rooted in self-awareness and humanity.
The most difficult decisions leaders face often require looking inward to find clarity. To meet the challenges of our age, leaders must harness not only their skills but also their inner potential.
Our insight: Leadership is about balancing humanity with governance, individuality with collective responsibility. Yet, no existing program bridges this gap—until now.
OUTCOME
We designed a leadership school guided by bold new principles that reimagine learning, growth, and connection:
1. New Ways of Being, Leading to New Ways of Doing
• No “teachers and students,” but reciprocal journeys of growth guided by diverse mentors from institutions, nations, and philosophies.
• No static “curriculum,” but sensorial and contemplative experiences that embrace discomfort, joy, and creative ambiguity.
2. Immersive, Intentional Community
• No “anonymous classmates,” but deeply intentional bonds among diverse cohorts of peers.
• No “one-time experience,” but a lifelong membership in a community of influence and support.
3. Contextual and Transformative Learning
• No “imported thinking,” but immersion in the region’s wisdom, philosophy, and culture.
• No “timeless lessons,” but active reflection and action rooted in the urgent challenges of today.
These principles shaped three distinct learning journeys, tailored for specific audiences and needs:
• Each journey incorporated defined timeframes, cohort sizes, learning styles, financial models, and partnerships for credibility, ensuring alignment with the program’s ethos.
This reimagined leadership school provides leaders with the tools to create generational impact, grounded in authenticity and guided by the challenges of our times. By redefining how leaders grow, we laid the foundation for a future where governance is driven by humanity, resilience, and purpose.