Biography

Henrik Bresman is an Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour at INSEAD. He studied economics at the Stockholm School of Economics, philosophy and Japanese at Lund University, Sweden, and financial management at Keio University, Japan. He received his PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Professor Bresman is an expert on distributed leadership and high-performance teams. He is the co-author of the top-selling book X-Teams: How to Build Teams that Lead, Innovate, and Succeed (published by Harvard Business School Press), which examines how teams at all levels can take on strategic leadership roles and change the direction of their firms. It also documents how top management can unlock the talent of the organisation to create an infrastructure for innovation across their company.

His research on leadership and teams in contexts of technological innovation, international post-acquisition integration, and strategic change draws on data from industries such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, software development, and investment banking. His articles have appeared in peer-reviewed academic journals such as Academy of Management Journal, Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Management Studies, MIT Sloan Management Review, and Organization Science. He has served on the editorial boards of Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, and Organization Science. His work has been profiled in many media outlets including Time Magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Forbes, and The Economist.

Professor Bresman’s work has been recognised with honours such as the Journal of International Business Studies Decade Award (winner), the George R. Terry Book Award (finalist), the Academy of Management’s William H. Newman Award (winner), the Academy of Management’s Best Paper Award (Organizational Development and Change Division), and the Richard Beckhard Prize for best article on organisational change published in the MIT Sloan Management Review.

Professor Bresman's current teaching at INSEAD focuses on developing principled and effective leaders. He is directing the Management Acceleration Programme and Leading for Results. His teaching at INSEAD has been awarded the Dean’s Commendation for Excellence in Executive Development Programmes (EDP) Teaching, Excellence in EDP Direction, and Excellence in MBA Teaching. He has also been nominated for the Best MBA Core Course Teacher award.

Prior to entering academia, Professor Bresman worked in several roles as a manager, consultant, and entrepreneur. He co-founded a venture capital firm focused on early-stage technology businesses.

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