Alumni

A 90-minute interactive session for family business leaders led by Michael Christian, Bell Distinguished Scholar Professor of Organizational Behavior and area chair of Organizational Behavior at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. Family business leaders are uniquely committed to their enterprises, their families and their legacies. Yet that long-term orientation often comes with invisible energy drains: blurred boundaries, emotional labor, multigenerational expectations and the pressure to “hold it together” for others. Energy Crafting for Resilient Leaders introduces a science-based approach to high performance that moves beyond grit, endurance and willpower. Rather than asking leaders to push harder, this session reframes effectiveness around how energy is generated, allocated and renewed over time physically, cognitively and emotionally. Grounded in organizational and psychological research, the session is practical and highly interactive. Participants will identify hidden energy leaks common in family enterprises, examine how roles and relationships shape energy demands and experiment with small but powerful shifts in daily work habits. The focus is not self-care as an add-on, but leadership capacity as a system that can be intentionally designed. The core message is simple and countercultural: sustainable leadership is not about enduring more; it is about crafting energy more deliberately. Participants leave with a clear framework for understanding and managing leadership energy over time, practical tools to redesign work patterns without sacrificing performance or commitment and increased resilience to lead through complexity, continuity and change. This session equips family business leaders to sustain their effort, presence and impact not just for the next quarter, but for the long arc of leadership and legacy.

The two-day event will bring together professionals in business, government and academia from across the Southeast and around the world for discussion, workshops, mentoring and networking to foster leadership and growth in the Southeast’s cleantech economy. The Summit convenes more than 1,000 attendees and is the largest event of its kind by a university in the United States. Co-hosted by the UNC Institute for the Environment and the Ackerman Center for Excellence in Sustainability at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Join us for our third annual UNC Kenan-Flagler Spirit Week from March 23 to March 27! Throughout the week, we will be offering several opportunities for you to engage with Business School students, faculty, staff and alumni across programs virtually, on campus, or in your region.