Welcome to Gautam Mukunda

Gautam Mukunda is an assistant professor at Harvard Business School and the author of Indispensable: When Leaders Really Matter.

Multimedia

EU Synbiosafe Project
What is synthetic biology? Will it change the future? which applications are in the pipeline? watch video
Synthetic Life at UMBC
A debate on the ethics of synthetic life at the University of Maryland Baltimore Campus watch video
Talk at SB 3.0
Watch talk, with Professor Scott Mohr, on the security implications of Synthetic Biology at SB 3.0 listen talk

"Indispensable is indispensable—an eye-opening analysis of how we should evaluate leaders in our politics and our organizations, and a set of gripping narratives about some of the most fascinating people who have ever lived." - Steven Pinker, Harvard College Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and author of The Better Angels of Our Nature and How the Mind Works
"Indispensable provides a masterly, absorbing and exceptionally original approach to the age-old study of leadership." - Doris Kearns Goodwin, Pulitzer-Prize winning author of Team of Rivals and Presidential Historian
"I have studied innovation and change from many dimensions. Somehow, however, I had simply assumed that the right leader can be selected to effect the changes required. Indispensable has taught me that I was woefully naive. This is a great book." - Clayton M. Christensen, bestselling author, The Innovator's Dilemma, Named #1 Management Thinker in the World by Thinkers 50
"Indispensable provides fascinating insights into how leaders are shaped by their unique personal and professional journeys and by the context of their times. Whether they were focused on saving countries, saving companies, or saving lives, the individuals profiled here are memorably illuminated through Mukunda's sharp and engaging analysis." - Kenneth C. Frazier, Chairman, President, and CEO, Merck & Co—Kenneth C. Frazier, Chairman, President, and CEO, Merck & Co
"When a team or firm wins or loses, we praise or fire the coach or CEO. But how much do leaders really matter? Gautam Mukunda says 'it depends,' and then provides important new evidence of what it depends upon. Great reading for those interested in understanding leadership." - Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor; author, The Powers to Lead
"Why do some leaders change the course of human events, while others find themselves not quite up to the task when history knocks? In a study that applies to business as well as to civil society and politics, Mukunda explores the 'filtration' systems through which we choose our leaders, providing fresh and fascinating insights." - David Gergen, Professor of Public Service, Harvard Kennedy School; senior political analyst, CNN