Mission
To present an educational experience with intellectual depth and substance that focuses on the individual as leader and the person as a whole to encourage participants to connect interpersonally and emotionally to better lead themselves and others.
Values
Education
Leaders must be prepared to deal with unknown, ambiguous challenges, therefore, the Institute is focused on intellectual curiosity and growth and strives for clarity on the difference between education and training. Education teaches you to deal with the unknown. Training teaches you to deal with the known. So understanding is important for education—formulas and recipes won’t work. The learner requires the courage to suspend old expectations so he or she is not enslaved by patterns learned in past experiences.
Scientific Objectivity
The information and process of the educational experience is based upon scientific, objective information. This is true for the educational process as well as the content. We are not faith-based, nor grounded in a political ideology. The information about people and their relationships at work is based upon objective, scientific work.
Developmental Growth
The education we value is that which contributes to the growth and development of leaders. This includes their ability to connect interpersonally and emotionally as leaders. Thus, participation in the Institute should be a life-changing experience, promoting healthy growth.
Health
Health means vitality, being realistic, good judgment, social maturity, integrity, and many other positive attributes. We value the health of people, leaders, organizations, communities, and society.
Discipline
Successful leadership depends upon the intellectual and personal discipline of the individual. Adherence to the other values is contingent on that kind of discipline.
Ethical Behavior
Ethical behavior is foundational to the other values and depends upon an ethical mind-set. Leaders should seriously examine both the means and all of the consequences—ends—of their actions. Relentless consistency in the application of the leader’s values is a manifestation of the leader’s integrity. While we are pragmatic and realistic, we are not amoral. We are concerned about the right way to educate leaders to use scientific information to grow and develop in a healthy way.
