On September 17, as part of the Management and Business Lecture Series, a conferencetitled “Neuroleadership: Leading People with the Brain in Mind” was held, presented by Dr. Lucas Canga, who holds a medical degree from the University of Salvador (Argentina) and an MBA from Adolfo Ibáñez University (Chile), as well as a PhD candidate in Applied Cognitive Neuroscience at Maimónides University (Argentina). Canga has dedicated his career to studying the brain processes that influence leadership abilities: his work specializes in the use of advanced techniques such as electroencephalography (EEG), neurofeedback, and biofeedback for the diagnosis and training of executive skills.
“We see faces and bodies, but we don’t see brains. Neuromanagement is the branch of neuroscience that studies the brain in organizational contexts, ”the expert said. It has to do with decision-making, motivating people, and empathy.
For more than 20 years, Canga has advised public and private organizations on transformation processes, helping teams and leaders navigate the challenges of organizational change through a deep understanding of neurocognitive mechanisms.
In addition, Canga led a neuroleadership workshop as part of the Master’s in Human Resources Management program at the School of Graduate Business, which had several objectives:
- Understanding the importance of self-assessing one's leadership style.
- Develop a personalized leadership plan based on tools provided by neuroscience.
- Understand the impact of leadership on the minds and brains of your employees.
As a leader, what impact do I have from a neurocognitive perspective and within the organizational context? How do leaders cope with uncertainty? Under what conditions do they make decisions, and how do they manage stress?
“Effective leadership isn’t about someone who just attends meetings. As leaders, we need to consider the cognitive load of meetings and structure them accordingly—for example, as collaborative sessions, negotiations, complex reviews, or client presentations,” he explained.
Neuromanagement can also help us understand the impact of feedback and the nature of empathy, and shift the focus from men and women to brains. Diversity is often visible on the surface, but not at a deeper level: we need to stop talking about race, nationality, and sexual orientation, and instead focus on another form of diversity—cognitive diversity.
Neuroleadership is part of a trend that combines management with advances in neuroscience, offering new tools for talent management. In this interview, Dr. Lucas Canga discussed the cognitive functions related to the development of effective leadership, as well as the contribution of neuroscience to the study of organizations and the development of leadership skills.
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