“ Being a leader is an exciting responsibility, not a gift”

A expert in leadership, psychological security and organizational culture is one of the speakers of the QSP Summit, which takes place in Porto and Matosinhos between June 30 and July 2, one of the main European events of management, leadership and innovation.

“ We have observed this trend (...) for a more autocratic style, but also for a greater distance, perhaps even too much”, says the academic, when questioned about the increasingly autocratic leadership of some current leaders.

“The expectation of many leaders is that being a leader means being served instead of serving,” that is, “means being special instead of making it possible to create value for others,” continues Amy Edmonson, who will speak on July 1.

It turns out that “being a leader is actually a responsibility. I mean, I think it is potentially an exciting responsibility, but it is not a gift” and “part of the problem is a selection problem”, he points out.

“ When we select leaders who are fundamentally more interested in their own comfort and success than in the needs of others and in the possibilities that society expects, then this is a challenge”, admits the teacher, considered the world's greatest reference in psychological security and organizational learning.

“It’s a challenge” but “imagining that we can find the right people, we can put people in charge who really want to make a difference,” he defends.

In his opinion, “the work of leadership is to make a difference and the way to do it, by definition, is through others.”.

Therefore, “it’s really about taking advantage of others’ efforts and their ability to solve problems and collaboration to accomplish things, things that matter,” he argues.

Asked about what leaders can do to create these positive results, says: “I think it all starts with the vision of seeing possibilities that still do not exist, the ability to transmit these possibilities to other people in inspiring and practical ways and then be able to recognize the contributions of others and shape these contributions to keep moving towards better results.”.

Above all, “it’s an important job, a great job,” he says, admitting that there are “many discouraging examples out there today” in leadership.

“I don’t know if we are facing a new leadership paradigm,” she says when asked about the issue, recalling that leadership has always had to do with helping organizations, societies and countries to overcome the challenges they face.

Now, “I think it is indisputable that the most relevant or easily remembered examples of leadership in recent years can be seen as a paradigm shift compared to 15 years ago” and technological industry leaders have a different profile than they had a few years ago. The same applies to many types of government leaders.

In this sense, “there has been a change, but I do not know if it is a change that many people – I believe that most, certainly serious scholars of leadership like myself – would consider a positive development.”.

On the positive side, “I am not just referring to a purely evaluative sense, but to a practical sense”, because “in terms of achieving the results we want for society, it is not a positive development”, he concludes.

In its 19th edition, the event brings together more than 3,500 participants, about 100 speakers and seven thematic stages dedicated to economy, artificial intelligence, strategy, human behavior and creativity.

Under the theme “Leading the Future Economy”, the 2026 edition proposes a reflection on the challenges that are redefining companies, leaders and markets.