This, in turn, incubates the genius in individuals. The genius is not confined to the individual it is diffused throughout the campus and infects everyone that comes in touch with it. By this, I mean that Harvard was not made by the brilliance of one great person, but by the very nature of the organization in which the brilliance in leadership has been institutionalized. Therefore, leadership at Harvard is not personal per se, but systemic to that organization. For Harvard to maintain both longevity and excellence over several centuries, it obviously requires more that the genius of one person, since no human being can live that long. Leadership of an organization is not only about individual brilliance it is about institutionalized excellence. And he received a standing ovation when he was presented.Īmidst the applause for Larry Summers, standing bathed in radiant New England sunshine, I realized the truth about the nature of leadership at Harvard. And yet, there he was, waiting with several others to be honored by the entire school on the most festive day of the year. His time at the helm at Harvard was so turbulent and controversial that he is one of the primary case studies in failed leadership taught at the Kennedy School. They included Jocelyn Bell Burnell, an astrophysicist who is credited for having discovered pulsars Bill Russell, the greatest basketball center that ever played the game who stood far taller in fighting for civil rights than he ever did in blocking shots and Bill Gates, who finally got his Harvard degree almost 30 years after dropping out to found Microsoft.īut the person whose presence shocked me the most was Lawrence Summers, the former and much maligned president of Harvard University who served from 2001 to 2006, when he was pushed out after questioning, in a private gathering, women’s innate capacity to excel in science and engineering. The first lesson struck me when I first scanned the row of luminaries waiting to receive their honorary degrees. The first one is central to my professional life, the second to my personal one. More than any class that I took at the Kennedy School about leadership, it is my participation at the commencement ceremonies that really drove home the two most important leadership lessons that will guide me in the future. Such organizational longevity with consistent excellence is almost unparalleled, and speaks to an equally notable tradition of leadership excellence at Harvard. Such organizational longevity is impressive by any standards. Considering that the United States was founded 231 years ago, Harvard is more than 140 years older than America. This was the 371st Commencement at Harvard University. It was filled with festivities, with well-known politicians and luminaries, including the commencement speakers Bill Clinton and Bill Gates mingling with the graduating students, taking pictures, offering sage advice, and inspirational speeches. _ The commencement ceremony at Harvard University was held this past Thursday.
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