Paraphrasing Robert Oppenheimer, physics would be really hard if particles could talk. In Organizational Behavior, we study people, and they talk, talk back, and come with different personalities. Yet, it is a leader's job to lead effectively all employees. Good luck doing so without some training in the psychology of business.

What leaders do is often at odds with research, known as the doing-knowing gap. Half-truths de jour are dangerous as they can be partly right but are misleading often enough to cause trouble. We leave off-the-shelf guesswork to motivational speakers, who could be entertaining but should not be taken seriously. Leadership decisions based on fiery proclamations and flimsy data lead to misguided choices.

The crux of these podcasts is to provide actionable answers based on research. We will not serve a flavor of the month fad that lacks incremental empirical support. It represents the “best of” Alex and Kayla’s teaching of Management and Leadership.