Leadership
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.

Who Is the Leader to Put Boeing Back on Course?
Yale SOM’s Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a longtime observer of the company, and co-author Steven Tian consider five likely candidates to succeed CEO Dave Calhoun, who will step down at the end of the year.
What Bob Iger’s Critics Get Wrong about His Performance at Disney
Disney is embroiled in a proxy fight with activist investor Nelson Peltz ahead of its annual shareholder meeting next week. Prof. Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Steven Tian write that Peltz and other critics of CEO Bob Iger are relying on a series of myths that don’t hold up to scrutiny.
How Boeing Can Restore Trust
The blowout of a door plug on an Alaska Air 737 MAX 9 earlier this month is just the latest incident casting doubt on the safety culture of the aerospace giant. Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a longtime observer of Boeing, and co-author Steven Tian offer a series of steps to rebuild its internal processes and win back the trust of airlines and the public.
Triumph and Disaster: The Best and Worst CEOs of 2023
Yale SOM leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Steven Tian highlight the three best- and worst-performing CEOs of 2023—and hint at what’s ahead for each of them in the new year.
Raise the Bar: Research-Based Ideas to Improve Your 2024
Harness your own creativity, learn to leverage Chat GPT, and have some fun are three of the suggestions from our faculty to help you make your new year healthier, more rewarding, and more prosperous.
The Breathing Technique that Can Make You a Better Leader
Yale SOM’s Emma Seppälä found that a weeklong training in the SKY Breath technique provides a lasting reduction in anxiety and greater resilience to stress, even for those who don’t continue to practice it.
What Went Wrong at OpenAI?
Days after he was suddenly fired, CEO Sam Altman returned to OpenAI on November 21, and the board that removed him was overhauled. We asked leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld how the company’s structure and the performance of the board contributed to the chaos.
The Budget Deal Is a Tragedy for Ukraine
With hours to go before a government shutdown, Congress passed a short-term spending bill—but the deal came at the cost of aid for Ukraine. Yale SOM’s Jeffrey Sonnenfeld writes that even if a separate funding bill eventually passes, the move weakens the coalition against Russia.
What I Learned Debating Vivek Ramaswamy
Yale SOM’s Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, who has tangled on cable news with the entrepreneur turned GOP candidate, says the key is to avoid following him down diversionary rabbit holes.
Reinventing the Way We Work—Again
The pandemic changed where we work and how we work, how we think about the place of work in our lives and vice versa—all against a backdrop of rapid technological change, economic upheaval, and a reckoning with racism. We talked with Yale SOM's Heidi Brooks about how to have necessary conversations about a new experience of work.