2023 Warren Bennis Leadership Experience emphasizes interdisciplinary leadership

The Warren Bennis Leadership Experience (WBLE) aims to transform students into leaders through the works and teachings of Warren Bennis, the University of Cincinnati’s 22nd president and the “Father of Leadership.” The WBLE is part of the student leadership development mission fashioned by the Warren Bennis Leadership Institute (WBLI), which will formally launch this coming fall.

The sixth annual WBLE was held in Tangeman University Center’s Great Hall and featured keynote speaker Betsy Myers, a leadership author and consultant who worked for two United States presidents. Myers is also the founding director of the Center for Women and Business at Bentley University.

WBLE President Alex Mason, A&S ’23, opened the event — welcoming all UC students, staff and faculty interested in leadership — by stressing the impact Bennis has had on his life.

“I never met Warren Bennis, but I feel like I know him,” Mason said. “I am inspired by him, motivated by him, captivated by him.”

In 2018, Mason reluctantly volunteered for the WBLE but left the event a changed person.

“I came into that night an unmotivated, uninvolved senior in high school who did not know what he wanted to do with his life,” he recalled. “As I listened to the speakers, heard from Kate Bennis, felt the excitement, enjoyed the team atmosphere and felt the passion, it inspired me and challenged me. It changed the way I view myself, the way I view my experiences and the way I create my goals. It changed the way that I view conversations with strangers, the way I view relationships with people and the way I look to lead people.

“Warren taught me that night to really prioritize knowing myself and who I am, and how that translates into action and leadership.” 

Kate Bennis, daughter of the late Warren Bennis, took to the stage and first gave thanks to her father’s former associates and friends in the crowd, including Tom Humes, Bruce Hopple, Neil Novak, Jay Chatterjee and Joan Lindhardt Plunkett. She also expressed gratitude to Lindner Dean Marianne Lewis, PhD, and Thornburgh Academic Director Donna Chrobot-Mason, PhD, as well as to the WBLE student team.

“I know that he really deeply felt that the thing that he did best was teach,” Kate Bennis said.

She then presented a trio of WBLI-sponsored “Leaders Are Made” scholarships to Austin Castle, BBA ’25, Sarah Hassan, COM ’26, and Rigbe Zemicael, BS, DAAP ’23.

Lewis and Myers followed Kate Bennis with a leadership-focused dialogue that began with Myers’ friendship with Warren Bennis. He helped Myers with her book, “Take the Lead: Motivate, Inspire, and Bring Out the Best in Yourself and Everyone Around You,” during her time at the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School.

Prior to the WBLE, WBLI hosted “Building a Culture of Collaboration — Women Supporting Women” at Lindner Hall. Lewis began the women’s leadership event by recounting her founding of Lindner Women in Business as an associate dean and developing a women’s leadership group during her tenure as dean of Cass (now Bayes) Business School, City, University of London.

“This is a room full of remarkable student leaders, remarkable university leaders and remarkable Cincinnati leaders,” Lewis observed.

Chrobot-Mason explained the intent and outline of the session. The event featured three rounds of group discussion followed by a full-audience discussion centered around three question prompts:

1. Why do you think women undercut other women?
2. When is a time another woman went out of her way to help you? When have you done the same? Why?
3. Why is a culture of abundance and cooperation important, and how do we cultivate it? 

Jane Sojka, PhD, marketing professor-educator and undergraduate marketing program director, noted that “women are unique and equal, and it is very rare that we see leadership from a female perspective.”

“Our differences are our strengths, and that’s exactly why we brought Betsy here today,” Sojka said.

Myers moderated the full-audience discussion, which resulted in various action items or tactics for attendees to consider:

• Promoting advocacy
• Avoiding gossip
• "Sharing the wealth" — bragging on someone else and sharing materials with others
• Teaching women conflict resolution skills
• Challenging assumptions by seeking the truth 

“One thing I can say about my career is that it has had one north star: anything and everything to do with women,” Myers said. “All the jobs that I’ve had through government, politics, academia and now my own business, I’ve always had a fascination with women’s leadership.”

Featured image at top: From left: Lindner Dean Marianne Lewis, PhD; Kate Bennis; 2023 WBLE keynote speaker Betsy Myers; and Thornburgh Academic Director Donna Chrobot-Mason, PhD. Photos by Lauren Meisberger unless otherwise noted.