UNL Authentic Leadership Inaugural Summit June 10-12 in Omaha

CEOs and scholars will gather June 10-12 in Omaha to summit on the development and renewal of "authentic leadership," an emerging area of business study. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Gallup Leadership Institute and The Gallup Organization are hosts of this inaugural leadership summit on authentic leadership, "Stretching Across the Academic-Practice Divide: Crossing Borders on Authentic Leadership Perspectives."

Today's challenges -- globalization, rapid technological advances, social and political unrest, and widespread public dismay over dramatic cases of gross corporate misconduct -- have fueled resurgence in the scholarship in authentic leadership. According to authentic leadership scholars and researchers at the UNL College of Business Administration, authentic leaders: • Know who they are and what they believe in. • Are transparent and show consistency between their espoused values, ethical reasoning and actions. • Focus on developing positive psychological states such as confidence, optimism, hope, and resilience within themselves and their associates. • Are widely known and respected for their integrity.

The conference features internationally known keynote speakers, a Nebraska Leadership Panel of Nebraska leaders, and distinguished scholars from around the world.

"The principle objective of the summit is to produce original views on what constitutes authentic leadership and its development, including insights for future theory, research and practice," said Bruce Avolio, Clifton chair in leadership at UNL and co-organizer of the conference.

Invited speakers include Jeffrey Birnbaum, Washington editor of Fortune Magazine; Daniel Kahneman, 2002 Nobel Prize laureate in economics at Princeton University; Barbara Krumsiek, CEO of The Calvert Funds; Grant Gregory, chairman of Gregory & Hoenemeyer and former chairman of Touche Ross & Co.; and the leadership panel. Hundreds of researchers, CEOs and other business people, students and others interested have prepared papers or planned to attend to learn more about authentic leadership.

Schedule of Events (more information and a full schedule at the conference Web site):

Thursday, June 10, Embassy Suites Hotel, 555 S. 10th St., Omaha -- 6 p.m., keynote address by Birnbaum;

Friday, June 11, Gallup Riverfront Campus, 1001 Gallup Dr., Omaha, -- 8 a.m., keynote address by Krumsiek; noon, keynote address by Gregory; 6 p.m., keynote address by Kahneman, 2002;

Saturday, June 12, Gallup Riverfront Campus -- 9 a.m., All Nebraska Leadership Briefing with U.S. Rep. Tom Osborne, Howard Hawks, chairman and CEO of Tenaska, Ken Stinson, CEO of Peter Kiewit Sons and Jane Miller, COO/executive vice president, The Gallup Organization; 1 p.m., keynote address by Jane E. Smith, CEO for Business and Professional Women/USA.

The conference registration fee is $125; $95 for University of Nebraska faculty, staff, practice leaders and $75 for students. Corporate partnerships are also available. Public admission to the special events can be arranged by visiting the conference Web site.

Conference organizers include Avolio, William L. Gardner, Howard L. Hawks chair in ethics and leadership; Douglas R. May, director of the program in business, ethics and society; and Fred Luthans, George Holmes professor of management, all at the UNL College of Business Administration. Other collaborators are James G. Hunt, senior editor of Leadership Quarterly and director of the Institute for Leadership Research at Texas Tech University, John Slocum, professor and chair of management and organization at Southern Methodist University, and Jim Clifton, CEO of the Gallup Organization and Connie Rath, Dean of Gallup University.

Additional sponsors for event include Howard and Rhonda Hawks, Connectivity Solutions, Peter Kiewit Sons Inc., the UNL College of Business Administration and the UNL Department of Academic Conferences.

CONTACTS: Bruce Avolio, Professor, Management, (402) 472-2331; William L. Gardner, Professor, Management, (402) 472-2314; or gli@unl.edu or www.gli.unl.edu