The Arts of Leading: Book Launch and Panel Discussion

How can the humanities and the liberal arts help us to reimagine what it means to lead, what leadership looks like, and how leaders are developed? Increasing emphasis on the human dimension of leadership has brought the arts and humanities to the fore as sources of leadership learning.

Join the editors of a newly released book (Georgetown University Press, 2024), Ed Brooks (University of Oxford) and Michael Lamb (Wake Forest University), along with Melissa Jones Briggs (Stanford Graduate School of Business) and Pegram Harrison (Saïd Business School) for a panel discussion on the power of arts and humanities to unsettle common assumptions about leadership and reimagine what it means to lead well.

About the book:

Drawing on insights from eminent scholars in the classics, philosophy, religion, literature, history, art, music, and theatre, The Arts of Leading reveals the power of the arts and humanities to unsettle common assumptions about leadership. Rather than instrumentalizing the arts and humanities or reducing them to mere management resources, this series of thoughtful and refreshing essays presents a rich tapestry of diverse and nuanced perspectives to uncover alternative ways of imagining and embodying leadership across different historical, moral, political, and cultural contexts.

By exploring how a wide range of disciplines can illuminate and humanize complex aspects of leadership that are often obscured in a discourse hooked on reductive paradigms and quick fixes, The Arts of Leading invites leaders, scholars, and citizens to expand their practice of leadership in our ever-evolving world.

About the speakers:

Edward Brooks is the Executive Director of the Oxford Character Project and Director of the Programme for Global Leadership in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Oxford. He is also a Co-Founder of Oxford’s SDG Impact Lab. His research focuses on character, leadership and leadership development in a range of contexts, including politics and public service, higher education, and business.

Michael Lamb is the F. M. Kirby Foundation Chair of Leadership and Character, Executive Director of the Program for Leadership and Character, and Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Humanities at Wake Forest University. He is also an Associate Fellow of the Oxford Character Project. He is the author of A Commonwealth of Hope and co-editor of Cultivating Virtue in the University and Everyday Ethics.

Melissa Jones Briggs serves as an associate fellow of the Oxford Character Project at the University of Oxford. She also teaches executive students in the flagship Stanford Executive Program, among others. She helps people show up more effectively and responsibly in their leadership roles. She elevates leaders’ power and presence by combining research from the fields of social science with the practical application of performing arts techniques.

Pegram Harrison is a Senior Fellow in Entrepreneurship at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. He teaches entrepreneurship (pre-start-up, opportunity recognition and business planning) and leadership (especially in entrepreneurial contexts) to executives and Diploma students, as well as on the MBA and undergraduate programmes. He also conducts research at the intersection of business and social issues and on projects relating to business education, particularly for women entrepreneurs in Muslim communities.

Event Details:

Date: Tuesday 14th January, 2025

Time: 16:30 - 18:00 (followed by drinks reception till 18:45)

Location: Beit Room, Rhodes House, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3RG

Format: In-person event

If you have any questions regarding the event, please write to [email protected].

Host or Publisher The Oxford Character Project