High-Performance Leadership
In today's business world, the strongest performers are those who focus less on control and more on culture, people, and connections. In this program, you'll gain techniques for building an authentic, agile culture that embraces innovation, addresses ethical challenges posed by new technologies, and adapts to change—and ultimately drives a superior level of performance.
Unveil What Stifles High-Performance Teams
In today’s fast-paced corporate environment, achieving and maintaining high performance is more challenging than ever. Our whitepaper, Tackling the Quiet Crisis: Unveiling and Addressing Subtle Issues in Team Dynamics, delves into the hidden obstacles hindering your team’s success and provides strategic solutions to overcome them. Get the whitepaper»
"When individuals feel empowered to utilize their
intellect at work, when their contributions are valued by their superiors, and
when they are directed on objectives rather than methods—essentially, when
smart people are acknowledged and treated as such—they find greater
satisfaction in their roles, think more innovatively and creatively, and
generate more ideas."
—Susan Lucia Annunzio, High-Performance Leadership Faculty
The champions of today’s business world are those who tap into their belief systems and operate in ways that are authentic and genuine. When leaders are true to their values, they are able to confront challenges, embrace conflict, and tackle tough conversations. Regardless of whether their teams are located in one office or distributed around the globe, they attract a community of followers and give rise to a superior level of performance and an environment that’s consistently engaged and innovative.
By attending this program, you will:
- Understand the attributes that build—and destroy—a high-performance culture.
- Tap into the collective brainpower of top performers, learn how to deliver bad news, and build a trusted, authentic community.
- Explore how to attract and retain top talent.
- Gain access to quantifiable global research designed to help executives master high-performance leadership.
An interactive, collaborative learning experience
In this program, you'll develop your skills in real-time by participating in group exercises with faculty and peer feedback. Through classroom learning, interactive practice, and networking opportunities, you'll come away a higher-performing leader.
Guest Speakers
This program incorporates an executive leader guest speaker who will share their personal leadership journey to further illustrate program concepts. Past speakers include Alan Whitman, former CEO of Baker Tilly.
- November 2024 cohort guest speaker: Stephen Smith, CEO, Amsted
Location
Chicago Booth, Gleacher Center, Chicago IL
This program will benefit mid- to senior-level managers and executives who create value for their organizations. It is designed to help professionals in many industries and sectors—especially those in leadership functions undergoing dynamic change.
Titles include: innovation leader, change manager, senior project manager, operations manager, mid- to senior-level manager, director, vice president, and C-suite.
Susan Lucia Annunzio
Susan Lucia Annunzio (Lucia) is the President and CEO of the Center for High Performance and Associate Adjunct Professor of Management, Executive Education, Chicago Booth.
Acclaimed leadership coach, author, and president and CEO of the Center for High Performance (cfHP), Lucia Annunzio is known by her clients as the “CEO-Whisperer.” She has spent more than 25 years observing, analyzing, and influencing C-Suite and board dynamics, experience that she applies in coaching CEOs and C-suite executives. She is the mastermind of “Elite High-Performance Coaching” – CfHP’s proprietary approach to propel leaders to greatness. She works exclusively with CEO’s, senior executives and rising stars.
Lucia’s work is based on CfHP’s proprietary global research on the factors that accelerate or inhibit profitable growth. It achieved critical acclaim and was presented at such prestigious venues as the World Economic Forum, The International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change at the University of Greenwich, and Avature’s “Talent Economy” launch event in Belgium.
Lucia is the author of Contagious Success (Portfolio, 2004), a dynamic, award-winning management book that revealed the global standard for high performance. Contagious Success was voted Fast Company's Readers' Choice. Lucia also authored two additional prominent business books: Communicoding (Fine, 1990; Penguin USA, 1991) and Evolutionary Leadership (Simon & Schuster, 2001; Fireside, 2002). She is frequently quoted in the business press such as the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and CNBC. She is currently a Wall Street Journal Contributor.
Lucia is an Associate Adjunct Professor of Management at the University of Chicago Booth Graduate School of Business, where she teaches the most popular program, High Performance Leadership. She has been a guest lecturer at INSEAD business school in Fontainebleau, France, Kellogg Graduate School of Management, and Instituto De Empresa in Madrid. She also taught at General Electric’s Crotonville Corporate Training Center.
She is a long-standing member of the Economic Club of Chicago as well as the Chicago Club. She has sat on various not-for-profit boards including the Joffrey Ballet and the Museum of Contemporary Art. She also sits on the Advisory Board of KindWorks AI and Harvard Business Review. Lucia is currently focusing her philanthropy on the National MS Society.
Charles Hooper
Lieutenant General Charles Hooper, US Army, retired in 2020 following a distinguished 41-year military career. A highly successful leader of diverse, high performing organizations, he is considered one of the Nation’s foremost strategists, and solider-diplomats.
He most recently served as the Director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), with worldwide oversight of the 20,000 people responsible for the annual $50 billion sale of all US weapons to foreign governments. Prior to DSCA, Lieutenant General Hooper served as the Chief of the Office of Military Cooperation Cairo, Egypt, Director of Strategy, Plans, and Programs at US Africa Command and Deputy Director for Strategic Planning and Policy at US Indo-Pacific Command. He also taught graduate-level courses at the US Naval Postgraduate School and was responsible for US Army recruiting in the Southwest US. A fluent Chinese linguist, he completed two diplomatic assignments for a total of seven years in Beijing, including as US Defense Attaché-the senior US military officer in China.
Lieutenant General Hooper is a graduate of the US Military Academy, West Point, and earned a master’s degree, with honors, from the Harvard University. He also holds a certificate in Chinese Language and Literature from the British (UK) Ministry of Defense Chinese Language School, Hong Kong, and is a graduate of the US Army War College.
Lieutenant General Hooper is now a Senior Counselor with The Cohen Group, a Washington DC consulting firm. He serves on the boards of UL Solutions, the Apache Corporation and Two Six Technologies, as well as the National Defense University. In addition, Lieutenant General Hooper is also a Senior Fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center, a senior non-resident scholar at the Atlantic Council, and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Daniel Lozano
Daniel earned his MS in software engineering at Oxford, his MS and BA in economics at Uniandes, and his MBA at Chicago Booth.
During his time at Oxford, he served as President of the AI Society at the University of Oxford (OxAI) where he grew the organization from a 150 members to over 2500. He continues to serve on the board.
Introduction to High-Performance Leadership
- Learn what drives (and destroys) high performance
- Identify drivers and corresponding attributes of high-performing work environments
Encourage a High-Performance Environment
- What are the correlations between leadership styles and resultant behaviors?
- How do you identify and enable top performers?
- Explore how to attract and retain top talent
- How do you identify quick wins that can may be implemented immediately?
The Tenets of a High-Performance Environment
- How do great leaders manage change?
- The critical role of emotion
- The power of the 20/60/20 rule, unspeakable subjects, and making loud statements of change
- Recognizing and celebrating heroes within a company
Impactful Communication Strategies
- How to manage up, down, and sideways
- Tell the bad news: Straight Talk in Tough Times
- How to lead under pressure: crisis communications
Mindfulness and Self-Care Plans
- How employees grieve and manage stress
- Creating your own self-care plan
The Critical Necessities of Courage
- What values do you hold most dear?
- How do you “think like a leader”?
- What are leadership moments of truth?
Artificial Intelligence and the High-Performing Leader
- Develop a framework for exploring new challenges and opportunities brought by AI
- Incorporate ethical considerations and responsible implementation
This program was life-changing, both professionally and personally. I have taken many leadership courses, but this is hands down the best and it has elevated me to a new level. HPL's Faculty Director, Susan Lucia Annunzio, was absolutely amazing—she’s a gift. She set the stage for a collaborative and engaging conversation every day, and the energy in the room was so upbeat and contagious that I looked forward to attending each day. Read more about Gretchen's HPL experience »
—Gretchen Holloway, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, ITC Holdings Corp.
The program was insightful, challenging, and fun. The experience challenged my previous assumptions about leadership and helped me grow into a transparent and authentic leader. Many of my fellow classmates are now trusted friends who I can reach out to with questions and advice as I continue my leadership journey.
—Daniel A. Neidig, Vice President, ITAMCO
Chicago has created a wonderful program to aid in the education of business leaders across all lines of business. I received practical tools that I can use immediately to make my associates feel more valued. I will be a better leader as a result of participating in this program.
—Peter Carey, National Asset Recovery Manager, Toyota Motor Credit Corp.
Great program! I will recommend it to others in my organizations at all levels, followers, management, and leadership. My regret is that this program was not available earlier in my career.
—Paul Ekstrom, VP, Customer Service and Information Systems, California Water Service Company
I am very pleased with the seminar and honestly believe that it will have a positive impact on how I position myself towards seeking greater responsibilities or aspire to higher ranks within my institution.
—Eduardo M. Borges, Managing Director Corporate Banking, Banco Santander Brasil S/A
It was a phenomenal, life-changing experience for me. I would absolutely recommend [this program] to others.
—Sanjay Radhakrishan, Senior Manager, Cognizant Technology Solutions
The course does an excellent job of pulling together and making more concrete practical lessons that, while they seem obvious, are too often not applied. Just as we're challenged to create a better environment in our companies, the environment that's been created at Chicago is very conducive to necessary reflection and experimentation to learn and be ready to apply the lessons learned when we get back to our own companies.
—Brian Keefer, EVP/COO, Bankers Insurance Group
This course was well designed and the presenters and instructors were very authentic; responsive and knowledgeable. The setting coupled with the energy of the participants provided for a powerful opportunity to reflect fresher and strengthen skills.
—Suzanne Sinclair, Vice President Marketing Strategic Initiatives, Zurich North America
This is the single best leadership training I have ever participated in. The quality of teachers and students was exceptional. Energy was high; focus and effort by all was outstanding.
—Andy Keimach, Executive Vice President, Munchkin, Inc
Tremendous program. The most valuable thing I've ever done for my career.
—Rick Strachan, Group President, Hanley Wood, LLC
Has to be one of the best programs I have taken. This program far outranks courses I took during my MBA, and I will be able to utilize skills/objectives learned.
—Joshua Kabisch, Sr. ACO, Office of Naval Research
Excellent learning environment with vibrant teaching and support staff.
- Usman Musa, Head Compliance Unit, National Pension
The class provides insight, hard data, and tools to transform the often unmet challenges of good leadership in the workplace into bridges for personal, team and organizational success.
—Joseph Grames, Deputy Group Leader, Jefferson Lab
I am thrilled that I took the time to take this week-long course and I know that I will make great use of the skills in wherever my journey takes me in my next academic (or other) leadership position!
—Amy Wolfson, Professor of Psychology, Loyola University Maryland, Inc
World class experience relevant and necessary post-MBA to compete and take your teams/companies to new heights of success.
—Dan Munivez, Senior Manager, Portfolio, Acquisitions & Divestitures, Delphi Corporation
The course was excellent and I believe it’s due to the significant attention to every detail above. The entire program was well organized but felt spontaneous and not canned.
—Janet Cunningham, Director US Regulatory Affairs, Dechra Veterinary Products, LLC
Upcoming Courses
| Date | Fee | |
|---|---|---|
| April 28-May 2, 2025 | $12,500 | Register now |
| July 14-18, 2025 | $12,500 | Register now |
| November 17-21, 2025 | $12,500 | Register now |
This program typically runs three times a year, Spring, Summer, and Fall.