Get Herald RSSA Rhode Island politician, the chief executive officer of a toy company and the chairman of the Rhode Island Foundation defined the role and meaning of modern leadership in a forum discussion Thursday night.
The forum, titled "21st Century Challenges for Leadership," was moderated by President Ruth Simmons in Salomon 101. Panelists were Rhode Island Secretary of State Matt Brown, Hasbro Chief Executive Officer Alan Hassenfeld and Rhode Island Foundation Chairman Pablo Rodriguez.
Brown, who currently serves on the board of numerous Rhode Island and national organizations, defined leadership as the process of "fundamentally changing things" and fighting constant resistance.
"To lead means to fight," he said. "It means to fight because that's what it takes to change things, and it usually means to fight for longer than you thought it would take."
Hassenfeld defined leadership in terms of social and corporate responsibility. Hasbro oversees the donation of millions of toys to needy children, he said.
Hassenfeld stressed the importance of philanthropy and social responsibility. "Not to be socially responsible is just not to be tolerated," he said.
Hassenfeld set forth specific rules for leaders. A leader must never ask someone to do what he would not, and must lead not by words alone but by example, he said. It is essential not to impose American values on societies that don't share them, he added.
"When you talk about corporate responsibility and corporate social responsibility, philanthropy is a wonderful thing, but it is only one leg of a many-legged table," Hassenfeld said.
Rodriguez focused on the importance of principles, describing the assumption of leadership as one of the best and worst moments of his life.
"The leader is the person that when faced with circumstances that don't feel quite right, that are uncomfortable and that just put the hair behind your neck up, steps up to the plate and says, 'I can do that.' As long as you are doing it on principle, as long as what you are trying to accomplish comes from your heart," he said.
During the question-and-answer period, an audience member asked the three panelists whether they think leadership or policies will determine the outcome of the presidential election.
Both Brown and Hassenfeld predicted a combination of both, agreeing that voters should pay as much attention to the people a candidate surrounds himself with as to the candidate himself.
But Rodriguez reinforced the importance of the topic of discussion, saying the race is entirely based on leadership.
"Being a principled leader is what is going to make it for me," he said. "When I see a president that appoints people to a scientific committee that have no scientific credentials, then that is not a principled leader."
Simmons, who moderated the panel, spoke briefly at its opening, telling the audience it is important to talk about leadership in light of contemporary society's flawed examples.
"Leadership is a common challenge for all of us," she said.
The forum was the first event in the Leadership in a Changing World series. It was sponsored by the Brown Entrepreneurship Program, the Undergraduate Council of Students and the Office of the President. Other sponsors included the Dean of the College, the Office of Student Life, the Office of Campus Life and Student Services and the Undergraduate Finance Board.
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