Leadership
Facing an Uproar, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff Showed Why He’s an Effective Leader
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff sparked controversy when he seemed to be inviting President Donald Trump to send National Guard troops to San Francisco during the company’s Dreamforce conference. Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Stephen Henriques write that Benioff demonstrated his usual deftness in defusing the issue and overseeing a successful event.
Elon Musk’s Trillion-Dollar Pay Package Is Just Bad Corporate Governance
Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Stephen Henriques write that the gargantuan package proposed by Tesla—based on a series of implausible performance targets—suggests a board in thrall to its charismatic, erratic CEO.
How Corporate Jargon Obscures the Truth and Fuels Disaster
When executives spew business buzzwords, writes Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, their colleagues are often just as confused as the rest of us.
Tim Cook Is Still the Right Leader for Apple
Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Steven Tian argue that Cook’s unmatched track record makes him uniquely positioned to steer the company into its next phase of innovation and growth.
Can Mark Zuckerberg Spend His Way to AI Success?
Meta has lured a string of top researchers from rivals with nine-figure pay packages in an effort to close the gap with AI leaders like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google. But splashy hires rarely end up rescuing flailing enterprises, write Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Steven Tian.
The Lessons from Pope Francis for the Class of 2025
Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld reflects on what the next generation of leaders can learn from the late pope.
When Crises Hit, Shovel-Ready Ideas Can Get Greenlighted Quickly
Frontline staff and managers often face years of resistance and red tape when they try to improve organizational processes. But a Yale SOM study suggests that crises can create windows of opportunity to get those changes implemented—if advocates move fast and demonstrate the short- and long-term value of their ideas.
- Podcast
Leading Effective Teams with Julia DiBenigno
Leading a successful organization starts with getting teams aligned and working smoothly. But our instincts about teamwork often lead us astray. Prof. Julia DiBenigno, an organizational ethnographer, shares key lessons that Yale MBA students learn in Managing Groups and Teams, a team-dynamics boot camp that kicks off the MBA curriculum.
Does the Rasputin Curse Live Again?
Leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Steven Tian look across history for examples of pitfalls that could lie ahead for Elon Musk and Donald Trump.
What Investors Are Missing about Pfizer and Merck
Investors are undervaluing promising drug candidates on the horizon for the two pharma giants, write Yale SOM’s Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Steven Tian.
The Lessons for CEOs in the Turmoil at the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times
As they ended political endorsements at their respective newspapers, writes Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld , Jeff Bezos and Patrick Soon-Shiong provided a master class in how not to announce and explain a sudden change in direction.
