UVA Darden Professor Jeanne Liedtka Receives Honorary Medal of the Order of Australia

The University of Virginia Darden School of Business announces today that Jeanne Liedtka, United Technologies Corporation Professor of Business Administration, has received an honorary Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the General Division for “her service to the development of leaders in the museum profession through the Museum Leadership Program.”

As a faculty member of the Getty Leadership Institute’s flagship program for senior museum executives, Liedtka was first invited to teach Australian museum professionals in 1999. Since then, a series of Museum Leadership Programs have invited her back as a key presenter in courses for senior museum executives in Australia.

“Professor Liedtka has inspired a whole generation of leaders and enhanced their capacity for strategic thinking and innovation,” stated a release from the Governor-General of the Australian Government, who announced the honor. “She has made a major impact on how the Australian museum world operates today in guiding, influencing and mentoring over 200 participants of the program over the past 13 years.”

In February, the Australian Embassy of Washington, D.C. will invite Liedtka to an investiture ceremony at which she will receive her insignia. The honor entitles Liedtka to use the post-nominal OAM.

“We applaud Jeanne on this extraordinary honor,” said Darden’s Dean Bob Bruner. “She is an exemplary teacher who brings energy and innovative ideas to every class and student she teaches. When we talk about world-class, transformational learning, we talk about learning with a teacher like Jeanne.”

Formerly executive director of the Darden School’s Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Liedtka teaches design thinking, innovation and organic growth in Darden’s MBA and Executive Education programs. Her research focuses on how design thinking can be used to spark inclusive, strategic conversations about the future of an organization. In 2011, her book Designing for Growth: A Design Thinking Toolkit for Managers, co-authored with Tim Ogilvie, won the 1800 CEO READ best management book of the year. Her previous book Catalyst: How You Can Become an Extraordinary Growth Leader with Robert Rosen and Robert Wiltbank was named one of BusinessWeek’s best innovation books in 2009.

“Her style and the practical content taught in her classes,” stated the Australian Government, “have been credited by many alumni as turning points in their professional careers.”