A forthcoming article by our guests today – appropriately titled “Rethinking Stardom" - argues that:

Star performers are increasingly capturing the attention of both researchers and practitioners alike. However, studies on these uber-performers often employ disparate definitions, theoretical foundations and assumptions, and methods and analyses, which creates significant tension and confusion in the comparison of findings and the formation of a clear understanding of what star performance truly entails and its impact on individuals, teams, and organizations.

To better explore the concept of star performers in organisations I am delighted to be joined by the two authors of this paper: Professor Ernest O’Boyle, Dale Coleman Chair of Management and Professor at Indiana University - Kelley School of Business, and Martin Gotz, Senior Teaching and Research Assistant in the Department of Psychology at the University of Zurich in Switzerland.

The article discussed in the interview is available here:

• O'Boyle, E. H., & Götz, M. (2025). Rethinking stardom: A relativistic approach to studying the absolute best performers. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 13.
• Rethinking Stardom: A Relativistic Approach to Studying the Absolute Best Performers | Annual Reviews

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According to Forbes magazine, in 2020 alone global spend on corporate training programmes, often focused on leadership development, exceeded $350 billion. Yet how effective, if at all, are these programmes? And are they perhaps just a massive waste of time and money? To dig deep into the question of why leadership development might be failing us I am delighted to be joined on the podcast by Professor Moran Anisman-Razin.

About our guest…

Dr. Moran Anisman-Razin, is an Associate Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology in the Department of Work and Employment Studies at the Kemmy Business School, University of Limerick. She is also a Visiting Research Scholar at the Behavioral Science and Policy Center, Social Science Research Institute at Duke University, USA and Faculty Affiliate at the Center for Innovative Leadership, Carey Business School, Johns Hopkins university.

Through her work, Moran explores questions of leadership in organizations and is particularly interested in examining leaders' perspectives and identities as shaping behavior, leader development, and exploring ways to make leadership development programs more evidence-based and rigorous.

The MIT Sloan Management Review article discussed in the interview - Leadership Development Is Failing Us. Here’s How to Fix It - is available here: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/leadership-development-is-failing-us-heres-how-to-fix-it/

A key article also referenced in the interview - Uncomfortable but Developmental: How Mindfulness Moderates the Impact of Negative Emotions on Learning - https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/amle.2023.0434

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In a forthcoming article now available, our guest today, Professor Stephen Courtright, along with co-authors tackle the question of the “beauty bias and leader emergence”. Or to put that into plain English: how important is physical attractiveness to leadership? While pop psychology might tell us one thing, what does the evidence actually tell us and why should we care?

About our guest…

Stephen Courtright is Professor of Management & Flip and Susan Flippen Endowed Chair and Founding Director of the Flippen Leadership Institute at Texas A&M University.

Stephen’s research focuses on organizational leadership, teamwork, and work-family dynamics, and has been published in a range of academic journals and has earned many international awards and been featured by outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, NPR, Forbes, Fox News, and Harvard Business Review.

The article discussed is available here:

• Courtright, S. H., Thurgood, G. R., Liao, H., Morgan, T. J., & Wang, J. (2025). The Beauty Bias and Leader Emergence: A Theoretical Integration, Extension, and Meta-Analysis. Journal of management, 01492063251330199.
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/01492063251330199

• You can follow Stephen’s work and that of the Flippen Leadership Institute on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-courtright-54776325/
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/flippen-leadership-institute/posts/?feedView=all

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