004 Len Schlesinger| learning threads experience

LEN'S BIO

Leonard (Len) Schlesinger is one of the few people in the world that has been at the top of the game in two worlds, academia and business. He is one of the most prolific business thinkers and doers at Harvard where he is in equal parts beloved and respected and has had a decades long career at the top echelons of where leadership and influence are taught and exerted.

Len is Baker Foundation Professor at the Harvard Business School where he serves as Chair of the School’s Practice based faculty and faculty Chair of the MBA Field Global Immersion program. He served as a member of the HBS faculty from 1978 to 1985, 1988 to 1998 and from 2013 to the present. During his career at the School he has taught MBA and Executive Education courses in Organizational Behavior, Organization Design, Human Resources Management, General Management, Neighborhood Business, Entrepreneurial Management, Global Intelligence, Leadership and Service Management in MBA and Executive Education programs.

Throughout his career Professor Schlesinger has transitioned between academic and managerial roles in education and business settings. He served as President of Babson College from 2008-2013, held a number of key executive and operating positions (ending as Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer) at Limited Brands (later L Brands) from 1999-2007, was a Professor of Sociology and Public Policy and Senior Vice President and Counselor to the President at Brown University from 1998-1999, and was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Au Bon Pain from 1985-1988.

Len currently serves on the board of directors of RH, Inc. (Chair of Compensation Committee) and DP Acquisition Corporation. He also serves as an advisory council member of Goldman Sachs' 10,000 Small Businesses Initiative, and as a member of both the Council on Competitiveness and the Council on Foreign Relations.

“Teaching is my primary learning opportunity.”

EPISODE OUTLINE

(00:00) - Introduction

(00:38) - Bio

(01:40) - Brooklyn tough, holocaust survivor progeny

(02:28) - In and out, seamless transitions; $19

(06:05) - Questions > answers; teaching = learning

(08:54) - Running Babson; an ecosystem of stakeholders

(11:10) - HBS & AI; growth mindsets for the win

(13:47) - Lightning round

(14:28) Outro

LEN RELATED LINKS

Len’s HBS Profile

Interview: Purpose and Happiness

Books and Full CV, Publications

Len’s Last Lecture as Babson President

Restoration Hardware (RH) Board

Len’s Wikipedia

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