Leadership Initiative
Leadership Initiative
Helping individuals effectively understand and manage these forces is a key responsibility of our Leadership Initiative.
We undertake cutting-edge research and course development projects about leadership and leadership development, both within Harvard Business School and through collaborations with other organizations.
We foster a global conversation that addresses the challenges of leadership in context—across time and location.
We encourage interdisciplinary exchange in order to bridge the gap between scholarship and practice.
Faculty Chair
Linda A. Hill
Linda A. Hill is the Wallace Brett Donham Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and Faculty Chair of the Leadership Initiative. Hill is regarded as one of the top experts on leadership and innovation. Hill is the co-author of Collective Genius: The Art and Practice of Leading Innovation (Harvard Business Review Press 2014), co-founder of Paradox Strategies, and co-creator of the Innovation Quotient, re:Route, and re:Mind. Hill co-founded InnovationForce, a SaaS company using AI and machine learning to accelerate the process of innovation. Fast Company named it as a 2023 and 2024 “Innovative Company to Watch.” She was named by Thinkers50 as one of the top ten management thinkers in the world in 2013 and 2021 and received the Thinkers50 Innovation Award in 2015. Hill’s Collective Genius has also been named to the inaugural Thinkers50 Booklist: 10 Management Classics for 2022. Hill is coauthoring a book, Genius at Scale: How Great Leaders Drive Innovation, that will be published in early 2026, which introduces the 3 roles of leading innovation at scale across organizations and ecosystems: architect, bridger, and catalyst.
Hill’s research focuses on leadership development, building agile, innovative organizations, and implementing global strategies. Her current research focuses on scaling innovation and digital leadership. She is the author of highly regarded books and articles on leadership. She is the author of highly regarded books and articles on leadership. Collective Genius was named by Business Insider as one of “The 20 Best Business Books” and received the Gold Medal for the Leadership Axiom Business Book Award. Hill’s TED talk on how to manage for collective creativity has more than 2.9 million views. In 2015, Hill, along with her co-authors, received the first Warren Bennis Prize for the Harvard Business Review article “Collective Genius,” based on the book. Hill is also the co-author of Being the Boss: The 3 Imperatives of Becoming a Great Leader and author of Becoming a Manager: How New Managers Master the Challenges of Leadership. In 2022, the article “Becoming the Boss,” which is based on the book Becoming a Manager, was selected as one of the most influential and innovative articles from HBR’s first century. Her books and articles have been translated into multiple languages. Hill has authored or co-authored numerous articles: including “Winning the Race for Talent in Emerging Markets;” “Are You a High Potential?” “The Board’s New Innovation Imperative;” “Drive Innovation with Better Decision-Making;” “What Makes a Great Leader?” “Being the Agile Boss;” “Incorporating the Arts to Create Technical Leaders in the Future;” and “Where Can Digital Transformation Take You?”
Hill has chaired numerous HBS Executive Education programs, including the Young Presidents' Organization Presidents' Seminar, the High Potentials Leadership Program, Leading in the Digital Era, Advancing Women of Color in Leadership, and Leading and Building a Culture of Innovation. She was course-head during the development of the Leadership and Organizational Behavior MBA required course.
Linda A. Hill is the Wallace Brett Donham Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and Faculty Chair of the Leadership Initiative. Hill is regarded as one of the top experts on leadership and innovation. Hill is the co-author of Collective Genius: The Art and Practice of Leading Innovation (Harvard Business Review Press 2014), co-founder of Paradox Strategies, and co-creator of the Innovation Quotient, re:Route, and re:Mind. Hill co-founded InnovationForce, a SaaS company using AI and machine learning to accelerate the process of innovation. Fast Company named it as a 2023 and 2024 “Innovative Company to Watch.” She was named by Thinkers50 as one of the top ten management thinkers in the world in 2013 and 2021 and received the Thinkers50 Innovation Award in 2015. Hill’s Collective Genius has also been named to the inaugural Thinkers50 Booklist: 10 Management Classics for 2022. Hill is coauthoring a book, Genius at Scale: How Great Leaders Drive Innovation, that will be published in early 2026, which introduces the 3 roles of leading innovation at scale across organizations and ecosystems: architect, bridger, and catalyst.
Hill’s research focuses on leadership development, building agile, innovative organizations, and implementing global strategies. Her current research focuses on scaling innovation and digital leadership. She is the author of highly regarded books and articles on leadership. She is the author of highly regarded books and articles on leadership. Collective Genius was named by Business Insider as one of “The 20 Best Business Books” and received the Gold Medal for the Leadership Axiom Business Book Award. Hill’s TED talk on how to manage for collective creativity has more than 2.9 million views. In 2015, Hill, along with her co-authors, received the first Warren Bennis Prize for the Harvard Business Review article “Collective Genius,” based on the book. Hill is also the co-author of Being the Boss: The 3 Imperatives of Becoming a Great Leader and author of Becoming a Manager: How New Managers Master the Challenges of Leadership. In 2022, the article “Becoming the Boss,” which is based on the book Becoming a Manager, was selected as one of the most influential and innovative articles from HBR’s first century. Her books and articles have been translated into multiple languages. Hill has authored or co-authored numerous articles: including “Winning the Race for Talent in Emerging Markets;” “Are You a High Potential?” “The Board’s New Innovation Imperative;” “Drive Innovation with Better Decision-Making;” “What Makes a Great Leader?” “Being the Agile Boss;” “Incorporating the Arts to Create Technical Leaders in the Future;” and “Where Can Digital Transformation Take You?”
Hill has chaired numerous HBS Executive Education programs, including the Young Presidents' Organization Presidents' Seminar, the High Potentials Leadership Program, Leading in the Digital Era, Advancing Women of Color in Leadership, and Leading and Building a Culture of Innovation. She was course-head during the development of the Leadership and Organizational Behavior MBA required course.
Staff
Letty Garcia
Letty Garcia is the Director of the Harvard Business School Leadership Initiative (LI), which she joined in 2007. Since its founding in 2000, the LI has served as an incubator for new approaches to educate leaders to reduce the gap between leadership scholarship and practice application. In collaboration with the fantastic LI team, including faculty Director Professor Linda Hill, Letty spearheads the development and execution of the LI's strategic priorities, including applied research, new executive course development, and key convenings with stakeholders in the leadership development space. Her insights from the LI inform her service on non-profit boards, allowing her to keep a pulse on the challenges facing organizations in real time and, in turn, inform the LI’s work.
During her tenure at the LI, Letty has contributed to numerous publications and leadership research, including supporting a longitudinal study of the High Potentials Leadership Program, authoring HBS teaching notes, and a literature review on Ignatian-inspired Leadership and Coaching. Her current doctoral research examines the intersection of leadership development, adult development, and executive coaching in innovative learning organizations in the private and NGO sectors. Among the LI’s current priorities is the development of the LI's 25th Anniversary initiative, which explores the evolution of leadership development since HBS's founding and examines the broader teachings and research that have shaped HBS's leadership legacy.
Letty brings a multidisciplinary professional preparation to her work. She holds a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School, a Leadership Coaching Certification from Georgetown University, a Diploma in Ignatian Spirituality from The Gregorian University in Rome, and is completing her doctoral work in Adult Learning and Leadership at Columbia University's Teachers College. Before joining HBS, she worked with the MIT Sloan Fellows Program in Innovation and Global Leadership at MIT's Sloan School of Management.
Letty Garcia is the Director of the Harvard Business School Leadership Initiative (LI), which she joined in 2007. Since its founding in 2000, the LI has served as an incubator for new approaches to educate leaders to reduce the gap between leadership scholarship and practice application. In collaboration with the fantastic LI team, including faculty Director Professor Linda Hill, Letty spearheads the development and execution of the LI's strategic priorities, including applied research, new executive course development, and key convenings with stakeholders in the leadership development space. Her insights from the LI inform her service on non-profit boards, allowing her to keep a pulse on the challenges facing organizations in real time and, in turn, inform the LI’s work.
During her tenure at the LI, Letty has contributed to numerous publications and leadership research, including supporting a longitudinal study of the High Potentials Leadership Program, authoring HBS teaching notes, and a literature review on Ignatian-inspired Leadership and Coaching. Her current doctoral research examines the intersection of leadership development, adult development, and executive coaching in innovative learning organizations in the private and NGO sectors. Among the LI’s current priorities is the development of the LI's 25th Anniversary initiative, which explores the evolution of leadership development since HBS's founding and examines the broader teachings and research that have shaped HBS's leadership legacy.
Letty brings a multidisciplinary professional preparation to her work. She holds a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School, a Leadership Coaching Certification from Georgetown University, a Diploma in Ignatian Spirituality from The Gregorian University in Rome, and is completing her doctoral work in Adult Learning and Leadership at Columbia University's Teachers College. Before joining HBS, she worked with the MIT Sloan Fellows Program in Innovation and Global Leadership at MIT's Sloan School of Management.
Karina Grazina
As the Program Manager of the Leadership Initiative (LI), Karina collaborates with the development of instructional materials, and the design and implementation of executive programs. She also conducts research in the field of leadership, leveraging the expertise enhanced in her previous role as a Harvard Administrative Fellow in the Harvard Libraries.
Prior to joining Harvard University, Karina served as a senior correspondent for Thomson Reuters in Buenos Aires, and she was also a lecturer of “Theory and Practice of Communication” at Buenos Aires University. Karina is currently an Ed. M. Candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, in the Learning, Design, Innovation & Technology program. She also holds a Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) in Management at the Harvard Extension School and a leadership coaching certification from Columbia University.
As the Program Manager of the Leadership Initiative (LI), Karina collaborates with the development of instructional materials, and the design and implementation of executive programs. She also conducts research in the field of leadership, leveraging the expertise enhanced in her previous role as a Harvard Administrative Fellow in the Harvard Libraries.
Prior to joining Harvard University, Karina served as a senior correspondent for Thomson Reuters in Buenos Aires, and she was also a lecturer of “Theory and Practice of Communication” at Buenos Aires University. Karina is currently an Ed. M. Candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, in the Learning, Design, Innovation & Technology program. She also holds a Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) in Management at the Harvard Extension School and a leadership coaching certification from Columbia University.
Ann Le Cam
As an Executive Fellow at Harvard Business School (HBS), Ann combines her extensive career as a senior leader in creative environments with new academic research about the mindsets and behaviors required of leaders to thrive in the current business world.
Ann brings to this role, three decades of senior leadership experience focused on creative talent and designing the most effective, innovative environments for them. As a business and talent leader in multinational environments she has built a reputation for innovative strategic thinking and transformational leadership.
Most recently, Ann served as Wētā FX’s Global Head of Talent and Animation Production. In this role, she oversaw all talent related aspects of the visual effects studio in Wellington (New Zealand) and supported the global expansion of the company into new territories, namely Vancouver (Canada) and Melbourne (Australia).
Prior to this assignment, Ann gained significant leadership experience at the Walt Disney Company, where she last served as the SVP of Production, Talent and Studio Planning at Walt Disney Animation Studios. In this highly creative environment, she supported the studio through a fundamental digital transformation process while supporting continued business growth and innovation.
In 2018, Ann became a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and she served for several years on the Advisory Board of Women in Animation, a non-profit organization striving to improve the representation and career opportunities for women in the animation industry. Currently she serves as a corporate advisor for Stability AI, a company focused on developing and leveraging AI solutions in highly creative environments.
Ann holds a Masters Degree in Law from the University of Antwerp in Belgium. Originally a Belgian native, Ann is versatile in both European and American cultures and fluently masters Dutch, French and English. Today, she resides with her family in Los Angeles.
As an Executive Fellow at Harvard Business School (HBS), Ann combines her extensive career as a senior leader in creative environments with new academic research about the mindsets and behaviors required of leaders to thrive in the current business world.
Ann brings to this role, three decades of senior leadership experience focused on creative talent and designing the most effective, innovative environments for them. As a business and talent leader in multinational environments she has built a reputation for innovative strategic thinking and transformational leadership.
Most recently, Ann served as Wētā FX’s Global Head of Talent and Animation Production. In this role, she oversaw all talent related aspects of the visual effects studio in Wellington (New Zealand) and supported the global expansion of the company into new territories, namely Vancouver (Canada) and Melbourne (Australia).
Prior to this assignment, Ann gained significant leadership experience at the Walt Disney Company, where she last served as the SVP of Production, Talent and Studio Planning at Walt Disney Animation Studios. In this highly creative environment, she supported the studio through a fundamental digital transformation process while supporting continued business growth and innovation.
In 2018, Ann became a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and she served for several years on the Advisory Board of Women in Animation, a non-profit organization striving to improve the representation and career opportunities for women in the animation industry. Currently she serves as a corporate advisor for Stability AI, a company focused on developing and leveraging AI solutions in highly creative environments.
Ann holds a Masters Degree in Law from the University of Antwerp in Belgium. Originally a Belgian native, Ann is versatile in both European and American cultures and fluently masters Dutch, French and English. Today, she resides with her family in Los Angeles.
Sunand Menon
As an Executive Fellow at the Harvard Business School, Sunand focuses on designing and running interactive learning programs to better prepare leaders for the complexity and speed of the digital era and to instill the right mindsets and behaviors to thrive in the current business world. For more than a decade, Sunand has created and given courses on digital strategy and execution, innovation and new venture development.
Sunand is a digital strategy thought leader with expertise in transforming traditional businesses and creating and leading new digital and analytics-enabled businesses. He is the founder of digital transformation advisory New Media Insight, and also serves as the Chief Product Officer of RANE, overseeing a suite of digitally delivered risk intelligence platforms which help monitor and address cyber, geopolitical and other security threats. Previously, he served as Corporate Vice President and Head of Strategy for PTC, where he spearheaded its digital transformation to a Software-as-as Service business. Sunand was also Global Head of New Ventures at Thomson Reuters, where he incubated and scaled several digital businesses such as Thomson Reuters Indices, Classifications and Expert Polling.
Sunand holds an M.Sc and B.Sc in Chemical Engineering from Delft University in the Netherlands, and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School.
As an Executive Fellow at the Harvard Business School, Sunand focuses on designing and running interactive learning programs to better prepare leaders for the complexity and speed of the digital era and to instill the right mindsets and behaviors to thrive in the current business world. For more than a decade, Sunand has created and given courses on digital strategy and execution, innovation and new venture development.
Sunand is a digital strategy thought leader with expertise in transforming traditional businesses and creating and leading new digital and analytics-enabled businesses. He is the founder of digital transformation advisory New Media Insight, and also serves as the Chief Product Officer of RANE, overseeing a suite of digitally delivered risk intelligence platforms which help monitor and address cyber, geopolitical and other security threats. Previously, he served as Corporate Vice President and Head of Strategy for PTC, where he spearheaded its digital transformation to a Software-as-as Service business. Sunand was also Global Head of New Ventures at Thomson Reuters, where he incubated and scaled several digital businesses such as Thomson Reuters Indices, Classifications and Expert Polling.
Sunand holds an M.Sc and B.Sc in Chemical Engineering from Delft University in the Netherlands, and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School.