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About CELI

The Chief Executive Leadership Institute (CELI) is the pioneer of CEO learning and hosts CEO Summits which bring together top business leaders and policy makers, as well as leading academics, in a unique learning environment that fosters candid, off-the-record exchanges among participants.  The Yale Mayors College is a best-practices dialogue among municipal leaders in an off-the-record interactive setting, with participants sharing the steps they are taking to make their cities more livable. The Yale CEO Caucus is a semiannual roundtable for business leaders, political leaders, and scholars to discuss the business implications of urgent national and global events that span economics, diplomacy, security, energy, environment, regulation, and politics. The Yale Higher Education Leadership Summit brings together university presidents and board chairs, along with other top leadership, to discuss the higher education environment and key strategies to shape the future of colleges and universities in the U.S. 

Mission

The world’s first school for CEOs, featuring applied research and peer-driven learning through lively exchanges among the world’s top business leaders, influential public policy makers, media opinion leaders, as well as foremost scholarly thought leaders, employing candid, confidential discussions of timely global business leadership challenges and compelling societal concerns.

Jeffrey Sonnenfeld
Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld, Senior Associate Dean for Leadership Studies & Lester Crown Professor in the Practice of Management

Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld

Jeffrey Sonnenfeld is the Senior Associate Dean for Leadership Programs at Yale University’s School of Management and the Lester Crown Professor in the Practice of Management, as well as the founder, president & chief executive officer of the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute. This institute is the world’s first CEO College and is dedicated to the advancement of top leadership education through scholarly research and peer-driven educational forums for prominent CEOs. Previously, he was a professor at the Goizueta Business School of Emory University. There he founded the Center for Leadership & Career Studies, which he ran for eight years. Prior, Sonnenfeld spent ten years as a professor at the Harvard Business School. His research, publications, and consulting address issues of top leadership development, executive succession, and board governance.  Read more.

Our Team

Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld Founder, President & CEO

Cyndy Oswald Morris Vice President & Chief Operating Officer

Joseph DeLillo Vice Chair & Interim Chief Financial Officer 

Donna DeLillo Program Logistics

Isabella Giansanti Assistant Director

Stephen Henriques Senior Fellow

Georgia Hirsty Fellow