What Wharton MBA Students Are Teaching Me About the Future of Leadership

Tuesday afternoon. Huntsman Hall, University of Pennsylvania.

A group of Wharton MBA students cycles through their initial coaching sessions with me, each carrying a different story but the same undercurrent: the corporate world they’re preparing to enter feels unstable, accelerated, and unforgiving.

They’re academically sharp, analytically advanced, and aware that the environment they’re stepping into is being reshaped faster than their coursework can adapt. This is especially true with AI transforming the baseline of what early-career professionals are expected to deliver.

Working with these bright, ambitious future leaders has revealed three patterns worth mentioning. Each represents signals about the next generation of executives that are entering your organizations.

1. The Leadership Gap No One Talks About

Wharton students are well-equipped intellectually, but many feel unsteady about what it takes to lead in environments where expectations shift weekly and political dynamics shape outcomes as much as analytical rigor.

The capability gap shows up in their questions and their posture. They want clarity about how to operate in high-pressure conditions long before they have the authority or context to shape those conditions.

Our coaching focuses on the practical habits that help a leader stay composed when environments accelerate:

• Decision frameworks that prevent spiraling into analysis instead of action

• Influence skills that help them navigate conversations where trust and timing matter

• Leadership habits that increase steadiness when noise rises

• Communication systems that bring structure to meetings, updates, and expectations

A COO I coached years ago stepped into a high-growth healthcare company where every day felt like an escalation of urgency. His technical capability kept him afloat, but leadership stability came from building habits that made him reliable under pressure. These same habits are the ones students now realize they must develop earlier than expected, and we often discuss the opportunities that business school presents to do just that.

The world that early-career executives are stepping into is changing quickly, and expectations are rising. They are looking for strategies to lead through this increasing velocity of change.

2. The First Question They Ask Me

The first question MBAs ask usually isn’t about industries or compensation. It’s some version of: “How can I be a strong leader when everything around me is moving faster than I can?”

They understand that AI diminishes the advantage of technical mastery, and they’re concerned about whether they’ll be able to lead humans through ambiguity.

So our coaching gets pragmatic:

• Structuring options when information is incomplete

• Communicating directly instead of hedging or softening every point

• Managing upward when expectations aren’t clearly defined

• Staying grounded so they project confidence even when they feel unsettled

A first-time CEO I coached confronted this head-on. He assumed that increased responsibility would automatically bring increased clarity. Instead, clarity came from building disciplined habits around messaging, presence, and structured decision-making. Those habits changed how his team responded to him.

These students sense they’ll face similar pressure early and they want to build these muscles now, not once stakes are high. We brainstorm situations for them to practice building these skills during their time at Wharton.

3. The Misconception They Bring In

Many early career leaders assume leadership maturity will arrive naturally once they earn the title. But leadership maturity doesn’t appear because the title changes. Instead, it is only developed through repeated exposure to the interpersonal complexity of the corporate world.

So we work on the fundamentals:

• Understanding how team dynamics shape trust and performance

• Navigating personalities and politics without escalating tension

• Setting boundaries early with managers, peers, and stakeholders

• Managing conflict in ways that build credibility rather than damage it

One executive I coached stepped into a divisional leadership role where her predecessor had created quiet resentment across the team. Her operational strength was clear, but the real challenge was rebuilding relationships without signaling favoritism or weakness. Through intentional, structured conversations and consistent follow-through, she re-established trust across her team within a quarter.

Leadership maturity is built through these interpersonal situations that no syllabus can prepare you for. Students often underestimate how much of their early success will hinge not on talent, but on their ability to navigate human dynamics.

The Bottom Line

Working with these Wharton MBAs has reinforced something true across every level of leadership: capability develops when people commit to practicing the right habits consistently.

Modern leadership requires steady thinking, clear communication, and the ability to operate with discipline when the environment around you is anything but disciplined. These skills can really only be built through framing decisions, managing relationships, and making choices that align with the outcomes the role requires.

Leaders who invest in these habits early develop the resilience, composure, and judgment needed to drive meaningful results inside their organizations. And those who continue that investment as responsibilities grow create the capacity to lead effectively through the volatility that defines today’s work environment.