James M. Kouzes

James M. Kouzes is one of the world's foremost authorities on leadership development and the co-creator of one of the most enduring frameworks in organizational leadership. Alongside his long-time collaborator Barry Posner, Kouzes began researching what makes leaders effective in 1983, work that would eventually become The Leadership Challenge—a landmark book first published in 1987 that has since sold over three million copies worldwide and now stands in its seventh edition. The book's central model, the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, has guided countless executives, managers, and emerging leaders across industries and continents.

Kouzes and Posner also developed the Leadership Practices Inventory® (LPI®), a widely used behavioral assessment tool that helps individuals and organizations measure and strengthen leadership effectiveness. Over more than four decades of collaboration, they have co-authored more than a dozen award-winning books on leadership, making their partnership one of the most prolific and influential in the field of leadership education. The Wall Street Journal recognized Kouzes as one of "the twelve best executive educators in the United States," and HR Magazine listed him among its Most Influential International Thinkers for multiple consecutive years.

A Fellow of the Doerr Institute for New Leaders at Rice University, Kouzes previously served as Dean's Executive Fellow of Leadership at Santa Clara University's Leavey School of Business—a role that connected his research-driven approach to leadership with the next generation of business professionals. Trust Across America named him to its "Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior" list for six consecutive years and honored him with a Lifetime Achievement Award. His work at Nightingale-Conant brings his practical, evidence-based insights on leadership to audiences seeking to develop their potential and inspire those around them.