Center for Leadership and Entrepreneurial Research

Call for 2025 Principal Research Investigators and Co-PI's  for Suggested Projects

The following solicitation for researchers is open for 2025. What this means? CLER is looking for a lead principal investigators and co-investigators to research and publish based on conducted research within the center. The following projects have a brief description but require research studies to advance inquiry and outcomes on these topics.

Projects described below are modifiable and are only initial proposals.

Proposed Research Project # 1 [AI focused]

The Use of AI in Driving Leader Transformation

Objective:

To investigate how AI tools can support and accelerate the transformation of leaders by enhancing their skills, decision-making, and overall effectiveness.

Proposed Methodology:

1. Participants: Select a small group of leaders (e.g., 5-10) from various industries who are open to using AI tools for personal and professional development.
2. Proposed  Use an AI-based leadership development platform that offers personalized coaching, feedback, and analytics on leadership performance.
3. Study Design:
   • Pre-Assessment: Conduct an initial assessment of each leader’s skills, strengths, and areas for improvement using surveys, interviews, and performance metrics.
   • Intervention: Leaders use the AI tool for a period of 8 weeks, receiving personalized coaching, feedback, and actionable insights.
   • Post-Assessment: Conduct a follow-up assessment to measure changes in leadership skills, decision-making quality, and overall effectiveness.
4. Data Collection:
   • Quantitative Data: Measure changes in performance metrics such as team productivity, project success rates, and leader decision-making accuracy.
   • Qualitative Data: Conduct surveys and interviews to gather feedback from leaders and their teams on the perceived impact of the AI tool.

Hypotheses:

1. Leaders using the AI tool will show significant improvement in their leadership skills and decision-making abilities.
2. Teams led by AI-supported leaders will report higher satisfaction and better performance outcomes.

Analysis:

• Compare the pre- and post-assessment data to identify any significant improvements in leadership skills and effectiveness.
• Analyze feedback from leaders and their teams to understand the impact of the AI tool on leader transformation.

Expected Outcomes:

• Insights into how AI can support and accelerate leader transformation.
• Identification of best practices for integrating AI tools into leadership development programs.
• Recommendations for future research and development of AI-driven leadership tools.

This pilot study can provide valuable insights into the potential of AI to transform leadership practices and enhance leader effectiveness. 

Potential journals/conferences- ILA, Journal of Leadership Studies, Emerald publications, IGI Global, APA.

Please contact Dr. Rodney Luster  for details.

Proposed Research Project # 2 [AI focus]

An innovative research experiment combining AI and leadership could explore how AI can enhance leadership decision-making and team dynamics.

AI-Enhanced Leadership Decision-Making 

Objective:

To investigate how AI tools can support leaders in making more informed and effective decisions, and how this impacts team performance and satisfaction.

Proposed  Methodology: [Modifiable design/methodology]

1. Participants: Selection of a diverse group of leaders from various industries and or their respective teams.
2. AI Tool: Develop or use an existing AI tool that provides data analysis, predictive insights, and decision-making support.
3. Experiment Design:
   • Control Group: Leaders make decisions using traditional methods without AI support.
   • Experimental Group: Leaders use the AI tool to assist in their decision-making process.
4. Duration: Conduct the experiment over a period of 6 months to gather sufficient data.
5. Data Collection:
   • Quantitative Data: Measure team performance metrics such as productivity, project completion rates, and error rates.
   • Qualitative Data: Conduct surveys and interviews to assess team satisfaction, leader confidence, and perceived effectiveness of decisions.

Hypotheses:

1. Leaders using AI tools will make more informed and effective decisions compared to those using traditional methods.
2. Teams led by AI-supported leaders will show higher performance and satisfaction levels.

Analysis:

• Compare the performance metrics and satisfaction levels between the control and experimental groups.
• Analyze the feedback from leaders and team members to understand the impact of AI on leadership dynamics.

Expected Outcomes:

• Insights into how AI can enhance leadership decision-making.
• Identification of best practices for integrating AI tools into leadership roles.
• Recommendations for future research and development of AI tools for leadership.

This experiment may provide valuable insight into the value of AI to transform leadership practices and improve organizational outcomes.

Potential journals/conferences- ILA, Journal of Leadership Studies, Emerald publications, IGI Global, APA.

Proposed Research Project # 3 [AI focus]

The Prospects of AI-Assisted Potentials for Leaders in Team Meetings

Objective:

To explore the impact of AI tools with leaders, and their implementation and effectiveness within team meetings and decision-making processes.

Proposed Methodology: [Modifiable design/methodology]

1. Participants: Select a small group of leaders (e.g., 5-10) and their respective teams from a single organization or department.
2. AI Tool: Use an AI meeting assistant tool that can transcribe meetings, provide real-time insights, and suggest action items.
3. Study Design:
   • Control Group: Teams conduct meetings without the AI tool.
   • Experimental Group: Teams use the AI meeting assistant during their meetings.
4. Duration: Conduct the study over a period of 4 weeks.
5. Data Collection:
   • Quantitative Data: Measure the number of action items completed, meeting duration, and frequency of follow-up meetings.
   • Qualitative Data: Conduct surveys and interviews to assess team members’ satisfaction with meetings, perceived efficiency, and the quality of decisions made.

Hypotheses:

1. Teams using the AI meeting assistant will have more efficient and productive meetings compared to those without it.
2. Team members will report higher satisfaction with the meeting process and outcomes when using the AI tool.

Analysis:

• Compare the metrics and feedback between the control and experimental groups.
• Analyze the data to identify any significant differences in meeting efficiency and decision quality.

Expected Outcomes:

• Preliminary insights into the benefits and challenges of using AI tools in team meetings.
• Recommendations for improving the integration of AI in leadership practices.
• Identification of potential areas for further research.

This pilot study can provide valuable initial insights into the role of AI in enhancing leadership and team dynamics. 

Potential journals/conferences- ILA, Journal of Leadership Studies, Emerald publications, IGI Global, APA.

Zombie Leadership --When dead leadership ideas walk among us-Details and PI contact information for this project provided herein [Only designated team members may access the Google worksheet]. Principal Investigator- Research Fellow TaMika Fuller

Managing Fear While Leading: A Narrative Inquiry- Principal Investigator- Alfreda Goods, Co-Investigators-Scott McCalla, Lisa Langford, Mark McCaslin

Generating Healthy Leadership Among Individuals in Leader Roles-Principal Investigator-Mark McCaslin, Co-Investigators-Rodney Luster

ImpactNexus Group, recently established as a professional working group in CLER, will be conducting an AI study on the following: Leadership, AI and Scenario-based Decision brokering

The Use of AI in Increasing Empathic Understanding: Exploratory Study-Principal Investigator-Rodney Luster