Neuroleadership – New Hype or Effective Approach to Face Present and Future Leadership Challenges

Organizations still have problems motivating employees effectively. Neuroleadership focuses on developing leadership concepts based on processes in the brain. The as-sumption of this paper is, that Neuroleadership raises the awareness that the key to face current leadership challenges and an increased motivation, engagement and adaptability is a human-centered approach. This paper seeks to address the question, how insights of neuroscience might contribute to an applicable and human-centered leadership approach to overcome leadership challenges. To answer this, a theoretical foundation is built in the first chapters. Afterwards, a qualitative research approach is taken to get detailed insights. Semi-structured interviews with open questions are applied and a purposive sampling approach is taken. Participants were leaders and employees with knowledge in Neuroleadership. The results confirm that individual needs are the core element of Neuroleadership. The awareness of the employee´s needs and emotions enable bringing people into the right position and unfolding their potential. The data suggests, that neuroscientific findings strengthen awareness and eventually might lead to a change of behavior. It contributes to a better understanding of the human nature, motivation, engagement, and adaptability. As for the application, this paper cannot provide a clear answer. (192 words)