Michael Palanski - Featured Faculty 2014

Dr. Palanski’s research has focused on the importance of behavioral integrity for individual leaders and for teams. Leaders are effective when they behave in certain ways: conveying a compelling vision of the future, motivating employees, challenging the status quo, facilitating effective teamwork, and thinking strategically. However, Dr. Palanski’s research shows that when leaders fail to do these things in an ethical manner, almost all of these good actions end up actually doing more harm than good. For instance, one of the surest ways for a leader to fail is for the leader to convey a mismatch between his/her words and actions. Conversely, when the leader conveys behavioral integrity (that is, consistency between words and actions), the leader is able to build trust with employees and, as a result, good things usually happen.

Dr. Palanski’s more recent work is focusing on a new approach to leadership development called multi-domain leadership. Most existing models of leadership development focus on the actions of the leader in the workplace. However, many leaders experience growth by leading in areas outside of the workplace – perhaps as a volunteer in a not-for-profit organization or even in the home as a parent. Dr. Palanski and his colleagues in the U.S. and Ireland are exploring how leaders who intentionally seek developmental opportunities outside of work can become more effective leaders. They have developed an innovative 360 degree survey that provides developmental feedback across the domains of work, community life, and the personal life of family and friends. This survey is currently being used in Executive MBA programs at the University of Limerick (Ireland), Purdue University Calumet, and RIT.