The Gettysburg Leadership Experience brings executives to the Civil War battlefield to learn timeless lessons on leadership. Now you can experience what CEO's and their top teams have found so compelling and gain new insights and new ideas on...

• How leaders can make the right calls amid murky, ill-defined conditions, incomplete information and high pressure
  
  
• The intricacies of decision-making in very large organizations, and how culture affects what's possible
  
  
• How successful leaders share their vision for success and reduce the possibility of misinterpretation
  
  
• How leaders develop imagination and courage in themselves and others
  
  
• Why character is a central element of leadership

Through on-the-ground study of the leadership challenges facing commanders in the largest battle ever fought in North America, participants learn practical, usable lessons-about team building, morale and courage, dealing with ambiguity, effective communication, and the execution of strategic intent-that will benefit their organizations today.

Modeled on the U.S. Army Staff Ride, a technique used to train officers in leadership and decision-making, the experience lets participants see and feel, as no history book or mere lecture can, the challenges that faced commanders during three pivotal days in our history. Our experienced team of leader-facilitators uses stories of key leadership moments to bring to life in vivid detail lessons of leadership in action. Executives leave excited about their opportunities to be better leaders and armed with battle-tested tools they can use immediately.

OVERVIEW

The Gettysburg Leadership Experience is not a study of military strategy, but an excellent opportunity to stimulate new thinking and a new understanding of leadership, teamwork and communication.

We begin with dinner at the Antrim House, an ante bellum farm mansion (now a corporate retreat) used as a temporary headquarters by the Union's General Meade on July 1, 1863. After dinner, our historian will put the battle in context with a quick overview of the major participants and what they were trying to accomplish.

We will tour the battlefield by foot and in a small bus, stopping at vantage points that overlook the fields and at various locations-such as McPherson's Ridge, Seminary Ridge and Culp's Hill-where important events in the story actually occurred. We eat lunch in a notable Gettysburg restaurant that was a private home in 1863, and then return to the battlefield to visit the Wheat Field, Little Round Top, the Virginia Memorial, the route of Pickett's Charge and the High Water Mark. On the second evening, we reconvene in the Antrim House for a discussion of lessons learned and how we might apply these principles today.

Because we have designed a highly interactive experience, participants learn from each other. To ensure quality learning, capacity is limited.

WHAT PARTICIPANTS SAY

"What a great team learning experience this was. Ed is a creative teacher and storyteller who linked the lessons of a one hundred and fifty year old battle to our job as leaders of bringing the organization's goals into sharp focus and inspiring our people to achieve them. This was a great team building and leadership development exercise and one of the best investments in learning we have made. Plus it was a fun experience. I highly recommend this program." Michael E. Sproule, Chief Financial Officer New York Life Insurance Company "Thank you for an inspiring and exceptionally worthwhile training experience. Your ability to tailor the leadership tenets and decision logic arising from a nineteenth century battlefield to the unique issues confronting our twenty-first century agency was simply amazing. My entire management team, from the most junior to our most experienced veteran, continues to rave about the quality of the course, and I see on a daily basis a distinct and positive impact on our directorate. I have already recommended your program with enthusiasm to a number of my federal law enforcement colleagues interested in raising the leadership bar within their own agencies." Chuck T. Howard, Chief Executive for Intelligence & Info Sharing Naval Criminal Investigative Service "Reading about great leaders like Colonel Joshua Chamberlain is instructive. But standing in the wind on Little Round Top and listening to Ed weave the story of Chamberlain’s creativity and courage was riveting and intense. My senior leadership team has brought that intensity back to the office where they’re tackling our business and leadership challenges with fresh ideas and energy. Thank you so much for delivering an excellent program that is paying off for our business." Roger Crandall, President and CEO MassMutual "Our team's trip to Gettysburg will be one of the highlights of our year. After the program, everyone could identify the similarities between the decisions that were made leading up to the battle and running a 21st century company. We were completely engaged as a management team. It was a powerful experience and the discussions helped us understand and apply what we had learned. With the facilitation of your organization, we developed great insights into leadership that will help us run a better company. It was without a doubt the best team-building event that Bovis Lend Lease has ever experienced." Greg Myers, Senior Vice President Human Resources Bovis Lend Lease, New York, NY "Thanks for doing such a great job of energizing our senior leadership team. Your story telling humanized the Gettysburg experience and demonstrated the far-reaching consequences, both positive and negative, of varying leadership styles. The follow up session was instrumental in helping us to focus on creating and fine-tuning our own personal leadership philosophy." Dave Johnson, Vice President North American Manufacturing, General Mills "I loved the opportunity to explore the decision making of the leaders in the war, to look at what they were thinking, the mistakes they made and the successes they achieved. This helped me understand where I can fail in the 'heat of battle' within my organization." Joe Brothman Washington Hospital Center A hands on leadership lesson based upon historical events. It was fun, entertaining and powerful. Well organized and presented, it really makes one think about their personal style of leadership. Mark Sitar Structural Group Structural Preservation Systems

CANCELLATION POLICY

Participant substitutions may be made at no additional charge. Participants may cancel at any time up to 31 days prior to the event and receive a refund (less a 10% processing fee). Cancellations between 10 and 30 days prior to the event receive a 50% refund of the fee. No refunds will be given for cancellations submitted within 10 days of the event. Academy Leadership reserves the right to cancel or reschedule any event.

WHO WE ARE

Ed Ruggero has been studying, practicing and teaching leadership for more than twenty-five years, helping organizations develop the kinds of leaders people want to follow. His client list includes the FBI, the New York City Police Department, CEO Conference Europe, the CIA, the Young Presidents Organization, Forbes, the SAS Institute, Hugo Boss USA, CitiFinancial, Bovis Lend Lease, and Time, among others. He has appeared on CNN, The History Channel, the Discovery Channel, CNBC and Fox and has spoken to audiences around the world on leadership, leader development and ethics.

Ed is the author of eleven books, including Duty First: West Point and the Making of American Leaders, a study of leader development at the US Military Academy, and Combat Jump: The Young Men Who Led the Assault Into Fortress Europe, July 1943, which became a one-hour docu-drama on The History Channel. Ed is also the co-author of The Leader's Compass, a fictional story of how one leader developed a personal leadership philosophy. His most recent book is The First Men In: US Paratroopers and the Fight to Save D-Day.

Following graduation from West Point, Ed was commissioned in the United States Army and served as an infantry officer in a variety of leadership positions around the world, including an assignment teaching at West Point. Following his service, Ed pursued a career as an author, public speaker, and trainer. In 2007, Ed delivered a series of talks to business leaders in major cities throughout China. He also leads a Gettysburg and a Normandy Leadership Experience, where participants walk the ground of these great struggles to learn battle-tested leadership lessons that will help them meet their own challenges.

Dennis Haley is the Chief Executive Officer of Academy Leadership with more than 40 years of experience studying and practicing leadership. A 1967 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Dennis served on the U.S.S. Long Beach as a Nuclear Engineer. Following a tour of duty in Vietnam, he returned to Pennsylvania and joined the family business, eventually transforming it from a 5-man operation to multi-million dollar HVAC company with more than 40,000 customers. When the company was sold to a public utility in 1997, he turned to his passion of developing leaders of character and competence.

Dennis founded Academy Leadership based on the methods used by the Naval Academy and West Point leadership development programs. He combined these strategies with today's successful corporate philosophies to create the Lead2Succeed™ process that builds leaders who energize people, effectively communicate organizational goals, and instill smart work strategies throughout the company to achieve tangible results. Over the last ten years, Academy Leadership has helped numerous clients implement successful leader development programs.

He is the co-author of The Leader's Compass, 2nd Edition, A Personal Leadership Philosophy Is Your Key to Success which is being used by many Fortune 500 companies and academic institutions across the country. Dennis is also the co-author of The Corporate Compass: Providing Focus & Alignment to Stay the Course, and is an adjunct professor at Villanova University in the Leadership Studies Program where he developed the Villanova on-line leadership course, Strategic Organizational Leadership.

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In addition to the Gettysburg Leadership Experience, Academy Leadership is proud to bring the Normandy and Concord Leadership Experiences to our alumni and subscribers. These are unique opportunities for executive teams to participate in both leadership and team building activities. Ed Ruggero brings the leadership lessons of the battlefield to life as he tells the stories of character and courage displayed by our leaders, providing an emotional connection which will be remembered for a lifetime.