Characteristics of “state of the art” leaders: Productive narcissism versus emotional intelligence and Level 5 capabilities

Articles appearing in the Harvard Business Review over the past few years have suggested contrasting sets of characteristics associated with effective leadership. The purpose of this study was to investigate “state of the art” leaders to determine which of these sets tends to be most prevalent in their leadership style and behaviors—those reflective of emotional intelligence and Level 5 or those indicative of productive narcissism. Results showed that our sample of 15 executives possessed characteristics of each set.