What can the latest neuroscience research tell us about how leaders learn, adapt and perform?
To explore this question The New Leadership has partnered with the Brain Plasticity Unit at ESPCI Paris – PSL University and CNRS to review the latest neuroscience research up to 2026 and examine how it relates to the concepts and leadership competencies at the heart of our coaching programme.
The research brings together four key areas that are highly relevant to leadership development: how our brain and body states affect interactions, how beliefs shape learning and responses to change, how attention and mental capacity influence our ability to think and perform, and how stress and recovery affect resilience over time.
This work builds on The New Leadership’s 15-year foundation in research-based leadership development and our 2021 validation of the programme in collaboration with Karolinska Institute.
Four research themes shaping leadership development:
- Embodied and Shared Brain-Body States
“Before you enter a room, consider the state of the system: What state do you bring, what is the state you encounter, and what state do your words, presence, and pace help to create?” - Predictive Brains, Beliefs and Learning
“People do not respond to change itself; they respond to what they believe the change means. Are the purpose, goals, and rules of the game clear?” - Attention, Capacity and Cognitive Limits
“Focus on what is important for development and learning. What work can be made routine, simplified, or automated so that it consumes less cognitive effort? And where do people need time and space to think without interruption?” - Stress, Resilience and Burnout
“With what pace are you leading? How do you calibrate challenge without creating chronic overload? Do you create pit-stops and reflection for recovery to ensure sustainability and regain perspective?”
Strengthens the scientific foundation
The new research strengthens the scientific foundation of The New Leadership’s coaching programme and gives us an updated framework for supporting experienced leaders in their development.
It also adds to what we have learned from working with thousands of participants in 30 countries over the past 15 years — and gives us new perspectives on how sustainable leadership development can be supported.
This is part of our continued ambition to be pioneers in personal leadership.
Fredrik Kristoffers, The New Leadership
Want to explore the research further?
Join one of our upcoming free webinars to discover more about the four research themes, what neuroscience can tell us about leadership development, and how these insights connect to The New Leadership approach.
Or, if you would like to discuss what this could mean for your organisation, get in touch with us directly.
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