276 REFLECTIONS ON CHARACTER AND LEADERSHIP
whether or not these factors are present. The individual needs fi rst to
examine what makes him or her an effective leader. One of the fi rst
challenges for a European leader is ‘ Know thyself, ’ that is, understand
his or her own personal developmental paths. This awareness is impor-
tant for a leader in any context, but particularly so for someone aspiring
to lead in such a diverse environment as the new EU.
One popular and effective way for executives to explore their early
developmental history is to participate in one of the leadership devel-
opment programs that are becoming more common in Europe. For
example, the educational methodology of the programs at the INSEAD
Global Leadership Center allows mixed - culture groups of senior execu-
tives to undertake a personal journey of self - exploration in a highly
diverse executive context (European and beyond) with the help of
faculty members, leadership coaches, and peers participating in the
programs (Kets de Vries et al. , 2007 ). Through personal storytelling,
portraiture, and multi - par t feedback inst r umentat ion, a t ransit iona l space
is created (facilitated by the faculty) during which participants acquire
a deeper understanding of themselves as well as how others perceive
them. This process is an opportunity to obtain a better understanding
of their own developmental journey and the journeys of others. They
also acquire a deeper understanding of organizational and national
cultures.
As this process takes place in a group setting, the other leaders in
the group will make their own contributions to the learning process,
while vicariously experiencing the exploratory journey of each member.
This particular educational methodology not only helps people under-
stand their developmental challenges; they also learn and understand
how to:- become more effective in cross - cultural and virtual teams;
- give feedback in a culture - sensitive way;
- make coaching part of their leadership style;
- make knowledge management a reality.
Although this methodology is benefi cial in a mono - cultural context,
leaders who run European organizations face a special challenge in
taking this journey. In fact, their role goes beyond ensuring the success
of a particular organization: it extends to proving the success of Europe
as a united economy to the world.
In my work with executives, I have also discovered that leadership
perceptions and expectations are very different in various parts of Europe
because perceptions of what leaders are, or should be, are infl uenced by