Thomas Kolditz: Brigadier General (Ret.) Yale Professor, Extreme Leadership Expert, Keynote Speaker

www.bigspeak.com/thomas-koldit...
Brigadier General (Ret.) Tom Kolditz is a Professor in the Practice of Leadership and Management and Director of the Leadership Development Program at the Yale School of Management. His experience as a leader development expert spans four decades in the public, private, and social sectors.
A retired Brigadier General, Tom Kolditz led the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership at the US Military Academy, West Point for 12 years, where he was responsible for teaching, research, and outreach activities in Management, Leader Development Science, Psychology, and Sociology. A highly experienced global leader, General Kolditz has over 25 years in leadership roles on four continents. His career has focused on either leading organizations himself, or studying leadership and leadership policy across sectors. He served for two years as a leadership and human resources policy analyst in the Pentagon, and a year as a concept developer in the Center for Army Leadership, and was the founding director of the West Point Leadership Center. General Kolditz was also instrumental in the design and formation of the Thayer Leader Development Group, and is the managing member of a leader development consultancy.
General Kolditz is an internationally recognized expert on crisis leadership and leadership in extreme contexts, and in the development of programs to inculcate leadership and leader development in everything from project teams to large organizations. He has published extensively across a diverse array of academic and and leadership trade journals, and serves on the editorial and advisory boards of several academic journals. He is a Fellow in the American Psychological Association and is a member of the Academy of Management. In 2007 while still on active duty, Tom Kolditz was appointed a Visiting Professor at the Yale School of Management and designed and taught a crisis leadership course in their MBA curriculum for three years.
A skydiving instructor since 1980, General Kolditz served as the senior instructor for the West Point Sport Parachute Team. He weaves his personal experiences and abilities as a soldier, skydiver, and scholar into the first-hand study, analysis, and practice of leadership in dangerous circumstances-in extremis leadership-and how such leadership can inform the practice of leading in more ordinary settings. His most recent book, titled In Extremis Leadership: Leading as if Your Life Depended on It, was based on more than 100 interviews taken on the ground in Iraq during combat operations. He has been named as a leadership Thought Leader by the Leader to Leader Institute and as a Top Leader Development Professional by Leadership Excellence. In 2009, he was named to the Council of Senior Advisors, Future of Executive Development Forum.
General Kolditz holds numerous degrees, including a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and Sociology from Vanderbilt University, as well as Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Social Psychology, a Master of Military Arts and Science, and a Masters in Strategic Studies.
To hire Thomas Kolditz to speak to your organization, contact BigSpeak Speakers Bureau [phone] www.bigspeak.com/thomas-koldit...
For information about BigSpeak,
www.bigspeak.com/

[@thomaskolditz4293]

Thanks Ray--but don't be so quick to paint civilians with such a broad brush--average people are involved in leading in most aspects of their lives. And at Yale, our approach is immersive--a two year core leadership requirement in every degree producing program taught at the school, primarily focused on accelerating development through experiences (rather than classroom). Be optimistic--more people out there who "get it" than one might think. Thanks for your comment!

[@sparty2761]

Great comments General. Problem is that 100% of what you are telling folks is all true but 99% of it will be misunderstood or not understood at all. The Army teaches by immersion and after years and years it rolls out capable leaders. Civilians don't have enough of those experiences to grasp your concept and it's application. I'm sure Yale doesn't get it either but good on you for trying.