"The ability of organizations to reach their next level of greatness is determined by the atmosphere.  The atmosphere is determined by the quality of the relationships.  The quality of the relationships is determined by the quality of the conversations and behaviors.  As a leader, you have in your grasp the ability to create and shape an environment that inspires greatness at every level.  This is your leadership DNA," explains Judith E. Glaser in her new book, THE DNA OF LEADERSHIP:  Leverage Your Instincts to Communicate, Differentiate, Innovate (Platinum Press, March 2006).  An organizational anthropologist and executive coach who has advised senior executives across industries, Glaser offers a step-by-step guide to help leaders create workplace cultures where people thrive and learn to express their own DNA for greatness.

THE DNA OF LEADERSHIP builds on Glaser's earlier bestseller, Creating WE, which focused on eliminating "I-Centric" thinking and communication in favor of "We-Centric" practices that make for healthy work environments and pave the way for business success.  Now through her work with such clients as Coach, Pfizer, Merrill Lynch, Barclay's, Lowe Enterprises, and Siemens, Glaser has identified seven vital "leadership genes" -- seven dimensions along whichleadership can be expressed.  Like cellular DNA, these leadership practices bond together in pairs -- one half (the I-Centric side) leading to stagnation, and the other (the We-centric side) leading to growth. 

In THE DNA OF LEADERSHIP, Glaser illustrates each of the seven genes with a case study from a company she and her associates have worked with -- such as VeriSign, New Wave Entertainment, Dreyer's and Edy's Grand Ice Cream, and IBM -- that exemplifies what a particular gene looks like when it is effectively expressed.  After presenting this best practice example, Glaser offers an illustration of what can happen when the I-Centric side of a particular gene takes over.  She then reveals the steps leaders must take to move to the We-centric pole of the gene.  Here, she emphasizes the importance of language, describing how powerfully words affect culture, and explaining how to create the kinds of conversations that will open doors, rather than close them.  She completes the discussion of each gene with specific practices leaders can graft onto their own corporate cultures.

The seven leadership genes are:

• C Gene:  Community -- Co-creating cultures work to include, not exclude.  They focus on engagement, involvement, and participation, and they work to reduce territoriality, ego, and fear of rejection.
• H Gene:  Humanizing -- Humanizing cultures are those where leaders believe, "We are all in this together."  Leaders in these environments work to reduce blaming, victimizing, and criticizing, and support open, honest communication and respect for others.
• A Gene:  Aspiring -- Aspiring cultures are characterized by a high level of learning and, when opportunities arise, being aware and seizing them.  Aspiring leaders reduce fear -- of change, of making mistakes, and of being wrong.
• N Gene:  Navigating -- Navigating cultures are marked by mutual support and growth; sharing rather than withholding.  People cross-pollinate to build networks and to exchange insights and wisdom so they can be prepared to move deftly in response to marketplace changes.
• G Gene:  Generating -- Generating cultures are those where leaders, employees, stakeholders, and customers work together to envision and create the future.  They focus on innovation and experimentation, promoting growth rather than groupthink. 
• E Gene:  Expressing -- In expressing cultures, people have a voice, make decisions, challenge authority, and are valued and respected for their contributions.  Rather than being dictated to, people are encouraged to develop themselves in order to develop the organization.
• S Gene:  Spirit of Reinvention -- Cultures with spirit of reinvention experience ongoing transformation.  People work together toward a higher purpose, and a commitment to creating a shared future takes precedence over compliance to outdated beliefs and norms.

With detailed self-assessment tools, THE DNA OF LEADERSHIP makes it possible for businesspeople to judge where they stand on each of the seven leadership genes, as well as where their organization as a whole stands.  And the book concludes with a chapter offering "DNA exercises" to help create the workplace culture that will enable organizational evolution. 

THE DNA OF LEADERSHIP is your user manual for capitalizing on change by creating environments where people can thrive and express their DNA for greatness," writes Glaser.  Her new book will help any organization tap into its most powerful source for innovation and success -- its people. 

JUDITH E. GLASER is an executive coach and the CEO/President of Benchmark Communications, Inc.  Her high-powered client list includes Pfizer, Coach, Inc., MSNBC, Verizon, Clairol, Merrill Lynch, Lowe Enterprises, General Dynamics, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Revlon, PepsiCo, Liz Claiborne, Donna Karan International, and Citibank.  The author of Creating WE -- named "One of the best business books of 2005 by Business Book Review" -- she has been featured in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and has appeared on the Today show.  Having served as an Adjunct Professor at Wharton, she is a sought-after keynote speaker.