Contact: 

CPR for Frances Hesselbein Institute

Ihor Andruch 

201.641.1911 x50

iandruch@cpronline.com 

Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management Formally Transitions to 

NEW YORK, JANUARY 18, 2012 - --  The Frances Hesselbein Leadership Institute, a 501(c)3 nonprofit institution, formally launched today to advance its mission of strengthening and inspiring the leadership of the social sector and their partners in business and government. Established in 1990 as the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management, the organization continued its work and mission as the Leader to Leader Institute from 2003–2011 by providing social sector leaders with essential leadership wisdom, inspiration and resources to lead for innovation and to build vibrant social sector organizations.

Tirelessly dedicated to the mission, Hesselbein notes the renaming as, “…one of the greatest honors of my life. I am discovering that the leadership our country, our society, our people deserve lives in our young generations. I challenge myself and all of us to take today’s crisis in communication, crisis in leadership, crisis in collaboration into perspective. The Millennial generation is preparing to lead and we are their partners.” 

The Hesselbein Institute connects the public, private and social sectors with curated resources and relationships to serve, evolve and lead together, pursuing its mission in three primary goal areas: developing leaders of character and competence; providing dynamic global mentorship, training and service opportunities; and engaging, informing and enhancing the leadership journey of incoming generations of leaders.

“Today, to serve is to live is not a foreign language,” continues Hesselbein, emphasizing the importance of fostering leadership grounded in the passion to serve, the discipline to listen, the courage to question, and the spirit to include.  

“Underneath all the negative forces at work in the society is the reality of the shared and powerful future. The clamor may be distracting, but the dream, the vision is there. In the days to come, the voices of leaders will be heard—leaders of the future, across the generations, will take the lead.”

Hesselbein points to Joan Snyder Kuhl, associate director for training and development at Forest Laboratories, as the youngest member in the history of the Board of Governors for the Institute, and one who exemplifies the vision. Kuhl explains, "As the Chair of the task force to launch the Hesselbein Institute, it is important to find innovative ways to connect our resources to young emerging leaders. My role has been to translate Frances’ message to the next generation of leaders, inspiring Hesselbein Ambassadors to achieve their leadership potential through the importance of mission and values based leadership in all three sectors. "

Heralding the commemoration of the Institute, Board of Governors Chairman Chris Fralic says, “When we began as the Drucker Foundation twenty-two years ago, our intent was to advise and inform the social sector in leadership, management and innovation. Many of our goals have been furthered under Frances Hesselbein’s exemplary leadership, and it is only fitting to recognize her extraordinary legacy and ongoing contributions by renaming the Institute in her honor.”

One of the most highly respected experts in the field of contemporary leadership development, Hesselbein was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States of America’s highest civilian honor, in 1998. The award recognized her leadership as CEO of Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. from 1976–1990 as well as her role as the founding president of the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management. 

In 2009, she became the first woman, and the first non-graduate appointed to the Class of 1951 Chair for the Study of Leadership at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Also in 2009, the University of Pittsburgh introduced The Hesselbein Global Academy for Student Leadership and Civic Engagement, aimed to produce experienced and ethical leaders who will address the most critical national and international issue.

Hesselbein is editor-in-chief of the award-winning quarterly journal Leader to Leader. She is the co-editor of 27 books in 30 languages and authored Hesselbein on Leadership and, in 2011, My Life in Leadership.

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