Authentic Leadership

Recent lack of corporate integrity and increases in business crimes has had a destructive effect on the management profession. Many leaders have sacrificed the future of their organizations and their people in an effort to chase immediate opportunities for personal gain. Lasting values in all organizations are built upon authentic, reliable, and passionate leadership. Authentic leaders can also be stellar role models for the managers of tomorrow and make a difference in the lives of the people they serve. Authenticity is defined as genuine and worthy of trust. The authentic leader is some one whose character drives the success of an organization. These leaders are more interested in empowering their teams than they are in power, prestige, and money. In Authentic Leadership, author Bill George demonstrates how leadership can shape future corporations, and restore confidence in the 21st-century corporate business climate, while improving the foundations and integrity of its leaders. This book demonstrates how George's fundamental values shape authentic leadership. George's leadership experiences have helped him determine five qualities that authentic leaders demonstrate: 1) purpose 2) values 3) heart 4) relationships 5) self-discipline. George scrutinizes today's leadership practices and encourages future leaders to be true to themselves while leading with purpose, meaning, and values. Not only does the text provide a framework for mission-driven companies to develop responsible leadership, it offers a concise guide of ideas to build an environment that fosters trust in corporate leaders. George provides perspectives on how the current leadership crisis developed and why employee empowerment, team-building, open organizational interaction, and life balance need to be in place.