BEST ARTICLE AWARD 2021

Transformational Leader or Narcissist: How Grandiose Narcissists Can Create and Destroy Organizations and Institutions

We are pleased to announce that "Transformational Leader or Narcissist: How Grandiose Narcissists Can Create and Destroy Organizations and Institutions" by Charles O'Reilly and Jennifer Chatman is the winner of the 2021 Best Article Award.

Each year, California Management Review recognizes the article published during the preceding year that has made the most important contribution to management practice. This article was selected as a finalist based on its performance and distribution, and the final selection was made by members of the California Management Review Editorial Board and International Advisory Board in April 2021.

This article addresses a critical problem in today's business landscape: how to recognize the signs of narcissism among leaders. By the DSM-5 criteria, people with narcissistic personality disorder have an inflated sense of their own importance, a feeling of superiority and entitlement, a need for admiration, an extreme level of self-confidence, and a willingness to exploit others for their own ends. If left unchecked, a narcissist's unbridled pursuit of their own self interest can harm organizations over the long run. To find out more, please read the full article or watch a short video summary below.

Narcissistic Leadership
The same features that can make a strong leader - like confidence, charisma, and the willingness to take on risk - are also traits that strongly correlate with the DSM-5 definition of narcissism.