The Bush School’s newest institute, the Mosbacher Institute for Trade, Economics, and Public Policy, sponsored Leadership Day at the Bush School on November 3, 2010. The day’s events featured prominent scholars and individuals with proven leadership ability.
The title of the afternoon panel discussion was “Excellence in Leadership: The Critical Role of Character.” The panelists featured Dean Ryan C. Crocker of the Bush School and two visiting experts – Dr. Ron Riggio, professor of leadership and organizational psychology at Claremont McKenna College, and Dr. Dale Thompson, the CEO of a consulting firm that advises Fortune 500 companies on their choice of top managers. It was a lively session in which the dean recounted some of the very tough leadership roles he faced during the Pakistan earthquake disaster while Dale Thompson discussed the character flaws that ultimately lead highly talented CEOs to destruction.
That evening, Dr. Griffin, director of the Mosbacher Institute, presented the 2010 McLane Leadership in Business Award to Karen Katz, the newly appointed president and CEO of the Neiman Marcus Group.
Karen Katz was selected for the award because of her extraordinary achievements in retailing, having led Neiman Marcus through a very difficult reorganization and the recent recession while still maintaining the respect of her employees. Joining Ms. Katz on stage was Drayton McLane, a great friend and benefactor of the Bush School.
Also offering remarks at the presentation were Anita Perry, first lady of Texas, and Mica Mosbacher, honorary consul of Iceland and wife of the late Robert A. Mosbacher, Sr., the Institute’s namesake. The program concluded with a lively onstage conversation about the leadership experiences of Karen Katz with Dale Thompson leading the discussion.
