A Chat with Jim Kouzes

It was an honor and pleasure to recently chat with Jim Kouzes, co-author of “The Leadership Challenge” and multiple other books detailing the seminal, evidence-based work of 40 years into researching the question “What do exemplary leaders do to achieve exceptional results within their organizations?” Jim and his co-author, Barry Posner, espouse The Five Practices® with 30 distinct behaviors associated with the Practices of Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, and Encourage the Heart.  Leaders can intentionally improve their leadership skills and outcomes within their organizations by increasing the frequency with which they are seen demonstrating the 30 behaviors.

Here's what Jim had to say:

1) In your 40 years of research regarding The Leadership Challenge (TLC), what has surprised you the most?

The consistency of The Five Practices and the impact of a leader’s credibility across industries, cultures, languages, ethnicities, and age groups. There are certainly variations in the data across various population subsets, but the patterns and trends remain the same.

2) If you could address one misconception about TLC that persists, what would it be and how would you clarify it?

One concern is, at least initially, that people react that there are a lot of leadership models and approaches in the marketplace and the literature, so they need to know what’s different about TLC. To address this perception, Jim says he and Barry have always stayed true to an evidence-based approach; they make no statements and publish nothing that the data do not support.  Secondly, Jim indicates that often the TLC operating system is perceived as a ‘bit soft’.  He noted one example of a major corporation asking for the practice of Encourage the Heart (ETH) to be renamed, indicating that their organization does not use the term ‘heart.’  Of course, ETH remains one of the foundational Five Practices – by that same name.

3) With TLC now translated into over 20 languages and adapted across cultures, what mechanisms exist to preserve the integrity of The Five Practices while honoring cultural nuance and context?

Jim says one must understand or learn the customs of a specific culture when approaching a facilitation or coaching engagement within that culture.  Some cultures are very cynical about anything coming from within the United States, and care is taken to ensure that the data and trends are consistent with their country, culture, and language as well. 

Jim and Barry are busy on the 8th edition of “The Leadership Challenge” due to be available to the public in early fall 2027, as well as other collaborative publications exploring The Five Practices and the impact of exemplary leadership in innovative ways.

Leaders everywhere, worldwide, are indebted to Jim and Barry, who have devoted their lives to advancing the science of leadership.