Fact or Fiction?

Genetic Leadership

“The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are

born – that there is a genetic factor to leadership.

This myth asserts that people simply either have certain

charismatic qualities or not.

That’s nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are

made rather than born.”

Warren Bennis

Leaders are made, they are not born.

Research Question

• Can the leadership gene

become a valid hypothesis

through anecdoctal evidence

and current scientific research?

• Is there a genetic leadership gene?

• Is there a connection between one’s DNA and leadership?

Transformational Leadership Linked to Genetics

• Chaturvedi and Christoforou (2011) conducted a study that linked transformational leadership to genetics.

• The authors posited there was an overlap of genetic factors linking transformational leadership.

Genes do influence the differences in people

• A study conducted at Case Western Reserve University revealed:

• that genes do influence the differences among people

• the genetic makeup of a person may influence• what jobs are selected

• a work ethic or drive.

40% of the variation among incomes could be attributable to genetics.

“A specific DNA sequence has been significantly

associated with the likelihood that an individual

is linked with a leadership position, according to

a study, published in Leadership Quarterly.”

(University College London (UCL), 2013)

Still a skill, but perhaps a genetic indicator

• "Although leadership should still be

thought of predominantly as a skill

to be developed, genetics - in

particular the rs4950 genotype -

can also play a significant role in

predicting who is more likely to

occupy leadership roles."

Entrepreneurial Leader

“Entrepreneurial leadership is organizing a group of people to achieve a common goal using proactive entrepreneurial behavior by optimisingrisk, innovating to take advantage of opportunities, taking personal responsibility and managing change within a dynamic environment for the benefit of the organisation.”

(Roebuck, 2011)

Richard Branson

Follow your passions

Do some good.

Believe in your business

Have fun

Don't give up.

Listen more and talk less.

Make room for personal time through delegation.

Go out and meet people.

Communicate among all levels of your company.

Be happy.

Contemporary Entreprenurial Leaders

Charismatic LeadershipInspirational Motivation is what charismatic

leaders are noted for:

their ability to inspire and motivate followers to perform at high levels, and to be committed to

the organization or the cause.

John C. Maxwell, in "Charismatic Leadership," leaders are characterized with four traits:

Believe in employees' potential

Embrace life's opportunities

Share their own talents

Provide motivation

Contemporary Charismatic Leaders

Charismatic Leader

Efiong’s Father

Chief, JP. Ibekwe

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt

• Transformational Leader

“Leaders and followers make each

other advance to a higher level of

morality and motivation."

Grinnell was also a 'conductor' on the Underground Railroad and was associated with John

Brown, the Abolionist.

He provided shelter to John Brown in 1859 after Brown's anti-slavery raids in Kansas

and Missouri.

Josiah Bushnell Grinell

Hannah Knight LibbyHannah Knight Libby

joined the Mormon church and moved

with her family from Maine to Illinois.

Following the Mormon persecution, she left her husband and set

on a way to Utah. She was one of the early Utah pioneers.

Finding Your Roots – Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Merely a coincidence?

• Richard Branson –• One of his great grandfathers was

an entrepreneur

• Traded in India for spices

Richard’s paternal great-great-grandmother,

Eliza Cornelia Wilson Wellington Reddy,

was born in India, to a man named Luke Reddy,

and a mother who was not listed on Eliza’s birth certificate.

A DNA test whose results were displayed on the show

Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (2016)

stated that Richard’s genetic ancestry is:

*95.9% European

*3.9% South Asian

Thus, it was speculated on the show that Eliza’s

mother was Indian, leading to Richard’s DNA result,

and him having 1/32 Indian ancestry.

Sir Richard Branson had no idea that he had an entrepreneur in his family tree.

Merely a coincidence?

• Russell Wilson –

• His grandfather, a former president of Norfolk State

University, was a two sport star at Kentucky State, and his

father, Harrison, was a standout football and baseball player

for Dartmouth who was drafted into the NFL, but chose to

pursue a law career.

Nature versus Nurture

• Robert Downey, Jr.• “At the end of the episode

Professor Gates discussed the

question of "nature versus

nurture" with his guests and

asked Robert Downey, Jr. if he

feels that his ancestral past has

shaped who he is today.”

"I don't see how it couldn't...it's informing you whether you're conscious of it or not,

so probably better to be conscious."

Merely a coincidence?

• Josiah Bushnell Grinnell –• In Iowa, Grinnell was elected to the Iowa Senate, where he

served from 1856 to 1860. At the same time, he studied law,

was admitted to the bar in 1858, and set up his legal practice

in Grinnell. He was a delegate to the

1860 Republican National Convention that nominated

Abraham Lincoln for President.

• Grinnell was also a 'conductor' on the

Underground Railroad and was associated with John Brown.

He provided shelter to John Brown in 1859 after Brown's

anti-slavery raids in Kansas and Missouri.

Dr Renee Hill’s is working on her second doctorate.

Josiah is her Great Grandfather.

Merely a coincidence?

• Hannah Knight Libby –

• Her father was in a Captain in the Revolutionary War.

• Her mother was the daughter of a church deacon.

• She moved her family, along with Joseph Smith and others

to Utah.

Dr Andree Swanson is a leader and serves as the Program Chair of the Bachelors of

Arts in Business Leadership.

Hannah Knight Libby is her Great GreatGrandmother.

Merely a coincidence?

Chief, JP. UDO IBEKWE

Dr. Efiong Akwaowo is a core faculty member in the Forbes School of Business and Technology at Ashford University.

The Late Chief Udo Ibekwe, was my father-in-law, a man of a great integrity, whom I loved dearly.

• Chief Udo Ibekwe lost his parents at his tender age. This challenge to his early life set him on a leadership course as he had to fend for himself and his five siblings. The village quickly looked up to him as the only enlightened person with a reputable character. As an elementary school teacher, he was unanimously elected as the leader of the union due to his charismatic qualities and later, at the state level. His socio-political leadership visions led to the creation of pressure groups such as NTO AFE ANNANG, which brought the emancipation of his ANNANG tribe to political relevance and recognition. His leadership strides even in his religious activities in the Methodist faith, earned him the honor of ORDER OF WESTLEY (OOW). Even after his retirement, he was still looked up to by his peers to champion the struggle for their welfare; he was elected to the state chairman of pensioners union and as a trustee at the national level, all due to his charismatic leadership qualities.

Future Research