Humble Leadership: The Power of Relationships, Openness, and Trust

Discover a more agile, democratic, and effective model of leadership, from legendary business scholar Edgar Schein and Silicon Valley executive Peter Schein.

Legendary organizational scholar Edgar Schein and former Silicon Valley executive Peter Schein say leadership today requires that people transcend their hierarchical roles and relate to each other as human beings--what they call humble leadership. In such relationships new ideas can flow freely, mistakes can come to light immediately, and course corrections can be made in real time rather than ＂by committee＂ or by order of the lone heroic CEO.

This second edition includes three new chapters. Chapter 1 zeros-in on the Schein’s actionable definition of leadership--relative to management and administration--focused on leading people toward ＂new and better.＂ Chapter 2 introduces the concept of ＂situational humility＂--leaders now need to shift between several types of relationships to deal with the accelerating complexity of a supply-constrained, ＂quiet-quitting,＂ and ＂two-days-in-the-office＂ world. And Chapter 5 explains how to create a culture of humble leadership.

Illustrated with examples from healthcare, government, the military, tech, and more, this is a compact, accessible guide to a leadership paradigm far better suited to a world that demands fast, nimble response to change, and a workplace hungry for mutual respect and trust.

Edgar H. Schein is chairman and cofounder of the Organizational Culture and Leadership Institute. He recently retired from the position of the Society of Sloan Fellows Professor of Management Emeritus at the MIT Sloan School of Management. Schein has received multiple lifetime achievement awards from associations such as the American Society of Training Directors, the Academy of Management, and the International Leadership Association and is the author of numerous books.

Peter Schein is the cofounder and COO of the Organizational Culture and Leadership Institute. Schein’s expertise draws on over twenty years of industry experience in marketing and corporate development at technology pioneers, with a focus on the underlying organizational culture challenges that growth engenders in innovation-driven enterprises.