HBS and IESE deans on shaping business leaders for turbulent times

The cascading crises of the past two decades have caused a significant degree of anger and despair. These attitudes pose problems for all, including business leaders. Confronting them requires respect and empathy on the individual level and reinforcing a sense of collective purpose within organizations. Collaboration and the free exchange of often-competing ideas is also necessary to overcoming these problems.

Collaboration was at the heart of an event yesterday celebrating the 60^th anniversary of the Harvard-IESE Committee formed between Harvard Business School and IESE. In honor of the occasion, HBS Dean Srikant M. Datar joined IESE Dean Franz Heukamp on IESE´s Barcelona campus for a session moderated by IESE Professor Julia Prats focused on the changing skills demanded of business leaders and how business schools can best instill them in a time of seemingly incessant turbulence.

“Business leaders won’t be perfect, since no one is,” said Heukamp. “But they must be honest.”

Human-Centered Innovation

The startling pace of technological advancement in recent years, and its effects both good and bad on society, was a major topic of discussion. “Even as we think about all the advances technology will make, we must never lose sight of the human aspects, including privacy, ethics and bias,” said Datar.

Datar shared his optimism that technological gains won´t come at the expense of human-centeredness, and that the potential for technology to help educate people around the world, especially where they previously lacked access, and create new opportunities are key to a humane approach going forward.

Heukamp agreed, saying that because of the high stakes involved with embracing technology while also helping people, “it’s important that business leaders look at the use of that technology in a holistic way. And that they also look far enough into the future so that its uses will be the right ones.”

Institutions like HBS and IESE are critical to teaching leaders not to lose sight of the impact their decisions will have on individuals and communities. While that responsibility has received more attention over the past few years, Datar stressed that it is indeed a “foundational and timeless” one for business schools.

Leadership in Difficult Times

Datar and Heukamp emphasized that in a still-young century that has already witnessed a number of profound economic, geopolitical and public health crises, leaders and organizations must be quick to adapt and to act ethically. And that doing the right thing will prove a valuable thing. Human creativity and innovation can and should lead to both productivity gains and solutions to vexing problems.

Diversity of all kinds, including diversity of thought, is key to present and future leadership, and business schools play a huge role in encouraging it.

“If you don’t manage to lead across differences, you’re likely to work with people just like you,” said Datar. “And that will be a problem. You have to be humble, listen carefully and have empathy. And we need to develop those skills in greater measure.”

“The underlying thought is respect toward the other individual,” said Heukamp. “And that is clearly a shared human value. When it comes to diversity, that’s the starting point. It starts with dignity and ends with belonging.”

An Enduring Alliance

The Harvard-IESE Committee was formed to guide IESE’s growth and the design of its programs, including the launch in 1964 of the first two-year MBA program in Europe. Reflecting on its past 60 years, both deans spoke of insights and inspiration gained. The coming decades will no doubt see more significant changes and collaborations like the one celebrated yesterday will be vital to confronting them.

“We’ve in so many ways learned from the conversations of this Committee,” Heukamp said. “And of friendship.”