There is no such thing as a perfect leader.
Our Institute:
We showcase the remarkable career journeys of imperfect leaders — modern day legends in business, sports, science, and the arts — who are brave enough to admit they aren’t perfect.
Imperfect leaders inspire a future generation of talent to be more self aware, resilient, and mentally prepared for future challenges. We are proud partners of the Harvard Breakfast Club.
How we bring our mission to life:
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Showcase Imperfect Leaders. We find and interview the country's most inspirational leaders — bold, intelligent, resilient, and by their own admission, imperfect. Recent guests include World Series and NBA champions, university presidents, chief executives, the innovative founders of companies incuding Pixar, IDEO, Sequoia Capital, and thought leaders from Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Oxford, Cambridge, Milken Institute, and the World Economic Forum.
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The Leadership Challenge. We offer a small handful of emerging leaders, who work for our partner companies, unparalleled access to a team of advisors – executive coaches, educators, assessors, brand strategists, and psychologists — a personal board of advisors — to these rising stars mentally prepare for increasing leadership responsibility in their organization.
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Harvard Breakfast Club. We partner with the country's top leadership development club – at Harvard University. Founded by basketball coach, Tommy Amaker – The Breakfast Club invites the most iconic leaders in the nation to Harvard's campus in Cambridge, to educate and inspire young, up-and-coming leaders.
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Imperfect Leader Lab. We help our partner companies create fresh content – and moderate case discussions – on actual leadership challenges faced by their own talent – prepared by our team of former Harvard Business School case writers. Unlike outdated business school case studies, our content inspires truly meaningful group discussions that feel real and relevant... because they are.
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Jason Karp – An Imperfect Leader
Featured Podcast Guest
Co-founder of Hu and HumanCo
Jason is a former elite college athlete, Wharton grad (summa cum laude), and hedge fund star who has helped launch several food and health companies, including Hu, True Foods, and Oura. Less well known about Jason, he has suffered from panic attacks, ADHD, insomnia, depression, and hair loss. Jason reflected on his imperfections, and was completely vulnerable with our community.
A few more invited guests .
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Guest: Dr. Rakesh Suri
Dr. Rakesh Suri knows about chronic stress. He is one of the top heart transplant surgeons in the world – having held high level positions at both the Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic, and showcased by Harvard Business School – spoke to our community about how to manage stress during high-pressure, high-stakes moments.
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Guest: Professor Amy Edmondson
Harvard Business School Professor Amy Edmonsdson is ranked the #1 Thought Leader in the world and coined the term, "psychological safety." She shared with our community the importance of reducing anxiety and learning from intelligent failure.
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Guest: John Tyson
John Tyson is the billionaire Chairman of the Board of Tyson Foods, but he's made some bad choices in his life. Some, like denying his alcohol addiction, almost ruined his career. But John eventually realized the ramifications of his choices – poor health, poor decision making, inauthentic relationships, and low self-esteem. John talked openly about his journey and offered practical advice to those considering alcohol or drugs.
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Guest: Dansby Swanson
Dansby is a World Series champion baseball player, who now starts for the Chicago Cubs. Less known, he also suffers from severe anxiety, which can be debilitating as a professional athlete who works in the public spotlight under extreme pressure. Dansby explained how it feels when he is in a slump or overcome with self-doubt – and how keeping a journal helps relieve stress.
Our Mission:
Our Institute's mission is to inspire exceptional talent to become more reflective, resilient, self-aware leaders, and to prepare them mentally for increasing leadership responsibility within their organization.
This is what organizations crave – according to global talent advisors McKinsey, Russell Reynolds, and Spencer Stuart.
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“If some of the worlds best CEOs have discovered the importance of the human side of leadership and have taken the time to go deep within themselves to build that capability, then surely this approach will be valuable to many others in all types of organizations.” McKinsey, 2024
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“When CEOs can admit their flaws and mistakes, they create a sense of trust and authenticity with all stakeholders." Russell Reynolds, 2024
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"Imperfect leaders are more innovative and open to new ideas than leaders who focus on maintaining a perfect image." Spencer Stuart, 2024
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“Adding vulnerability to personal growth journeys heightens leadership potential.” McKinsey, 2024
The Imperfect Leaders Institute regularly invites experts from top organizations.
Why Embrace an Imperfect Leader Mindset?
Because that’s what top companies crave:
“If some of the worlds best CEOs have discovered the importance of the human side of leadership and have taken the time to go deep within themselves to build that capability, then surely this approach will be valuable to many others in all types of organizations.” McKinsey, 2024
“When CEOs can admit their flaws and mistakes, they create a sense of trust and authenticity with all stakeholders." Russell Reynolds, 2024
"Imperfect leaders are more innovative and open to new ideas than leaders who focus on maintaining a perfect image." Spencer Stuart, 2024
“Adding vulnerability to personal growth journeys heightens leadership potential.” McKinsey, 2024
“Millennials, in particular, want their leaders to share their human side, including their vulnerabilities. What they are seeking, in short, is authenticity.“ Russell Reynolds, 2024
