Historian Nancy Koehn Speaks on Courageous Leadership

A celebrated Harvard historian and bestselling author, Nancy Koehn will discuss courageous and principled leadership at the 16th annual Westmont President’s Breakfast on Friday, March 5, at 8 am. Tickets to the virtual event, which cost $35, go on sale February 12 at westmont.edu/breakfast.

Koehn, the James E. Robison professor of business administration at the Harvard Business School, focuses her research on crisis leadership and how leaders and their teams rise to the challenges of high-stakes situations. 

Her most recent book, Forged in Crisis: The Power of Courageous Leadership in Turbulent Times, was a 2017 Wall Street Journal bestseller.

This gripping historical narrative spotlights five masters of crisis, including President Abraham Lincoln, environmental crusader Rachel Carson, and abolitionist Fredrick Douglass, and what today’s leaders from a range of organizations and pursuits can learn from these extraordinary stories.

A dynamic presenter, Koehn has spoken at the prestigious World Economic Forum in Davos and the Aspen Ideas Festival, among other venues. Audiences around the world have responded to her vision for courageous, resilient leadership at a moment when organizations must manage change and help employees perform at their best.

Koehn identifies key leadership lessons, behaviors, and tools from history that businesses, government institutions, and nonprofits can apply today. The author of numerous books, articles and Harvard Business School case studies, Koehn also writes for The New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Harvard Business Review Online and contributes to National Public Radio.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Stanford University, Koehn earned a Master of Public Policy at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government before completing her master’s degree and doctorate in history at Harvard. 

The Westmont Foundation, local businesses, and individuals sponsor the President’s Breakfast to promote discussion of significant issues. Bank of the West is the Lead Sponsor. The Westmont Choir Sponsor is David and Anna Grotenhuis. The Speaker Sponsor is In Memory of Jim Haslem. The Virtual Gold Hosts are Davies Public Affairs, HUB International Insurance Services, La Arcada Plaza, MATT Construction, Lindsay and Laurie Parton, and Warren and Mary Lynn Staley. The President’s Breakfast will also host people attending the sixth annual Advancing Women in Leadership national conference recognizing National Women’s History month in March.