Leadership in a Dynamic Era

Today, in almost every sector of our society, we are facing a self-declared crisis of leadership. This cry is heard in newspapers, magazines, TV debates, and at dinner tables across the land. In the realm of business in particular, we seem to have a crucial need for leadership. When we look at our economic performance and compare ourselves with other countries such as Japan, China, and India, we often conclude that we have been losing ground and that over the last ten years our competitors have been doing better. At this moment we are contending with wave after wave of jobs moving overseas, the markets are whipping up and down and energy prices are rising at an unprecedented rate. As business leaders we are troubled by new announcements of once proud companies being sold, broken up or downsized. Underneath it all there is a nagging sense that something is not quite right as we face still more layoffs and plant closings, while profits go up. Some of this is clearly due to the changing nature of our economy, but we are nonetheless left wondering, who and where are the leaders of this new business world?