Distinguished Professor, University of Nebraska, Emeritus. Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior/Theory and Management, Social Psychology, University of Iowa (1965); MBA University of Iowa (1962); BS in Mathematics, University of Iowa (1961). President of The Academy of Management (1985-86); Distinguished Management Educator Award (1997); Lifetime Achievement Award (2017); AOM Awards of Distinguished (1917); Distinguished Scholarly Contributions to Management (2021): Outstanding Research and Creative Activity (ORCA) Award from The University of Nebraska System; H index of 125 ( over 175,000 citations) and i-10 of 303. Dr. Luthans has the first mainline text on Organizational Behavior and is the founder of Positive Organizational Behavior (POB). Through Dr. Luthans’ rigorous research, he is also the founder of Psychological Capital (PsyCap) as a new competitive advantage in the development of positive psychological resources previously untapped.

Luthans has recently been identified as the #1 cited researcher in Organizational Behavior textbooks. Among numerous highlighted examples of where Dr. Luthans has had direct involvement of applying his PsyCap include the NASA Manned Mars Project, Harvard Medical School projects on sports concussions and cancer recovery; HR projects from corporate level at Shell and DuPont; Burger King at restaurant level; China Mobile EAP, Chinese National Science Foundation on Education, Indonesian Marketing Industry, Norwegian Maritime Industry, and Finnish HR Society. Fred has been married to Kay for 60 years and they have four children and eight grandchildren.

Bruce Avolio (PhD, University of Akron) is a leading American scholar in the field of leadership studies, and seminal  researcher of authentic, transactional and transformational leadership. He is Professor of Management, Mark Pigott Chair in Business Strategic Leadership, and executive director of the Center for Leadership & Strategic Thinking in the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington. Bruce is also a fellow of the American Psychological Society, the Academy of Management, the American Psychological Association, the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and the Gerontological Society of America. Within POB and Organizational Behavior, Bruce is one of the most cited and revered academic scholars of our time.

Dr. Carolyn Youssef-Morgan is the Redding Endowed Chair of Business at Bellevue University, where she is a co-founder and core faculty member of the first PhD program in human capital management in the world. She is a leading global researcher, author, speaker and consultant on psychological capital, with her collaborative research spanning North and South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.  She is the co-author of Psychological Capital: Developing the Human Competitive Edge [Oxford University Press, 2007], and Psychological Capital and Beyond [Oxford University Press, 2015].

Dr. Youssef-Morgan’s research focus is on developing and managing positivity in the workplace. She specializes in the development of measurable human resource strengths and positive psychological resources which can lead to improved performance, attitudes, and behaviors. Her authoritative and seminal work on PsyCap has been widely cited, presented at national and international conferences, and applied in organizations worldwide (such as USAID, International Standards Organization (ISO), U.S. Corp of Engineers, and police department/law enforcement/ first responders, etc.). Dr. Youssef-Morgan earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and her MBA from the American University in Cairo, Egypt. She earned her Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. According to Google Scholar, her work currently has over 12,500 citations and her h-index is 26 and i10-index is 34.

Dr. James Avey is the Distinguished Professor of Research at Central Washington University in the College of Business. With an h-index of 37 and an i-10 index of 45, he was recently listed as one of the top 100 researchers in the world in organizational behavior. He was the lead author on the first meta-analysis on positive psychological capital (2011).  His research has been published in academic outlets such as Personnel Psychology, Journal of Management, Journal of Business Ethics and Human Resource Management as well as recognition in popular outlets such as the Wall Street Journal and the Huffington Post. He lives in Ellensburg Washington with his wife and four children.. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Avey, J. B., Reichard, R. J., Luthans, F., & Mhatre, K. H. (2011). Meta‐analysis of the impact of positive psychological capital on employee attitudes, behaviors, and performance. Human resource development quarterly, 22(2), 127-152.

Dr. Sarah Dawkins is a clinical psychologist and senior lecturer in Management at the Tasmanian School of Business and Economics, University of Tasmania (UTAS), Australia. She is also co-leader of the UTAS Work, Health & Wellbeing Network. In addition, Sarah is a Director and Senior Consultant with Pracademia, a knowledge translation organisation working with business and industry to create evidence informed approaches to health and social issues in working life. Sarah’s research investigates the measurement and development of PsyCap in employees and work teams. Her research has emphasized the importance of fostering team-level positivity, by demonstrating that the benefits of team-level PsyCap can operate at both the team and individual level.  Her research has been published in top-tier Management journals including Journal of Organizational Behaviour, Academy of Management: Learning & Education and Human Relations. Sarah’s current research is examining the development and evaluation of a brief, team based PsyCap intervention aimed at enhancing the performance and wellbeing of work teams and individual employees. An example of her contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Dawkins, S., Martin, A., Scott, J., Sanderson, K. (2013). Building on the positives: a psychometric review and critical analysis of the construct of Psychological Capital. Journal of Occupational and organizational Psychology, 86(3), 348-370.

Dr. Eid is a Professor, Director/ Center for Crisis Psychology, University of Bergen; Associate Dean and Dean at the Faculty of Psychology, University of Bergen; Associate Professor of work and organizational psychology. Captain (R) Royal Norwegian Navy/ The Royal Norwegian Naval Academy, clinical psychologist and senior lecturer. Leadership and team training, crisis intervention, operational psychology, stress and coping with critical incidents and hardships.
The types of research Dr. Eid is more passionate about are: PsyCap, leadership and team training in high risk/reliability organizations. Operational psychology, crisis psychology, training and development, resilient societies,  sustainability. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Bergheim, K., Nielsen, M. B., Mearns, K., & Eid, J. (2015). The relationship between psychological capital, job satisfaction, and safety perceptions in the maritime industry. Safety science, 74, 27-36.

Dr. Huang’s research focuses on leadership, employee voice and creativity, and workplace mistreatment. In particular, his recent research has explored the role of positive psychological resources in leadership practices and employee proactivity. Dr. Huang’s work has been published in elite journal outlets, such as Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Management, and Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, among others. His research has been cited or reported in numerous media outlets, such as Forbes, Yahoo, INC, Science Daily, and Business News Daily. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Huang, L., & Luthans, F. (2015). Toward better understanding of the learning goal orientation–creativity relationship: The role of positive psychological capital. Applied Psychology, 64(2), 444-472.

Dr. Susan M. Jensen is a Professor of Management in the College of Business & Technology at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She also previously served as Associate Dean of the College and Director of the Nebraska Business Development Center at Kearney.  Susan’s research focuses on how PsyCap relates to entrepreneurial and academic success as well as leadership effectiveness. She is also exploring the link between PsyCap and the development of intercultural competencies. Susan received her Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska Lincoln. Susan researches the connections between PsyCap and both entrepreneurship and leadership, as well as exploring ways to help college students leverage PsyCap for academic and professional success. An example of her contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Avey, J.B., Luthans, F. and Jensen, S.M. (2009) Psychological Capital: A Positive Resource for Combating Employee Stress and Turnover. Human Resource Management, 48(5), 677-693.

Dr. Paul B. Lester is an Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Defense Management at the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA. He earned his Doctorate from the College of Business Administration at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, as well as degrees from Murray State University and West Point. Paul served as a US Army officer for over 20 years in the Infantry and as a Research Psychologist in the Medical Service Corps. He is the founding director of the Research Facilitation Laboratory, the Department of Defense premier data science organization dedicated to people analytics. Additionally, Paul previously served as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Behavioral Science and Leadership at West Point. He has published over 50 articles, book chapters, and technical reports, and his research interests include leadership, PsyCap, courage, and psychological health. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Luthans, F., Vogelgesang, G. R., & Lester, P. (2006). Developing the psychological capital of resilience. Human Resource Development Review, 5(1), 25-44.

Dr. Brett C. Luthans received his Ph.D. in management from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  He has been a professor of management in the Steven L. Craig School of Business at Missouri Western State University since 1996 where he has taught several management courses and has received multiple teaching awards, including most recently the 2020 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Education. Dr. Luthans’ main-stream of research in recent years has focused on the impact and development of positive psychological capital (PsyCap) on desired organizational, and especially academic outcomes.  Brett, along with his brother and POBI Fellow Kyle (and other colleagues) have most recently been using their “academic” PsyCap in mediation models with emerging popular constructs such character strengths and grit in relation to students’ performance.  His research has appeared in outlets such as Group & Organization Management, Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, Journal of Management Education and Journal of Management Development. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Luthans, B. C., Luthans, K. W., & Jensen, S. M. (2012). The impact of business school students psychological capital on academic performance. Journal of Education for Business,
87(5), 253-259.

Dr. Kyle W. Luthans is the John Becker Endowed Professor of Business at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, teaching classes primarily in human resource management. He holds a Ph.D. in management from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. He has an active interest in exploring the relationship between positive PsyCap and workplace performance in a variety of industries such as transportation, health care, and banking. More recently, Kyle has explored the impact of PsyCap on desired academic outcomes for business students. His research has been published in diverse outlets such as The Journal of Management Education, Human Resource Management, Business Horizons, and Journal of Nursing Administration. Based upon his research findings, Dr. Luthans has worked with organizations in the manufacturing and health care sectors in order to implement practical guidelines for managing and developing the positive psychological resources of employees. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Luthans, F., Luthans, K.W., & Luthans, B.C. (2004). Positive psychological capital: Beyond human and social capital. Business Horizons, 47(1), 45-50.

Dr. Ivana Milosevic is an assistant professor at the College of Charleston, Department of Management and Marketing. Her research interests include the application of process theorizing to understand how different organizational level phenomena emerge through individual level practices. Her research places strong emphasis on how context and interactions between leaders and followers shape individual development. An example of her contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Combs, G. M., Milosevic, I., Jeung, W., & Griffith, J. (2012). Ethnic identity and job attribute preferences: The role of collectivism and psychological capital. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 19(1), 5-16.

Dr. Alex Newman conducts research in the areas of organizational behavior, organizational psychology, leadership, entrepreneurship and human resource management. He was recently highlighted as one of Australia’s top 40 rising stars in Academia and has published over 80 peer reviewed articles since obtaining his PhD in 2010. He is presently Associate Dean (International) for the Faculty of Business and Law at Deakin University and the Director of the Centre for Refugee Employment, Advocacy, Training and Education. He is also the Chair of the Global Committee for the Organizational Behavior Division at the Academy of Management. He looks at the PsyCap of people from a refugee and migrant background and the role of PsyCap in fostering innovation and performance. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published of knowledge is: 

Newman, A., Ucbasaran, D., Zhu, F., and Hirst, G. (2014). Psychological capital: A review and synthesis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 35(S1), 120-138.

Dr Ted A. Paterson is an Associate Professor of Management at Oregon State University. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska in 2014. Prior to his doctoral studies he was a financial advisor for nearly 10 years. Dr. Paterson’s research interests center on positive organizational behavior, leadership, ethics, and identity. His primary research methodology is field studies, but he also conducts experiments and qualitative research. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Paterson, T. A., Luthans, F., & Jeung, W. (2014). Thriving at work: Impact of psychological capital and supervisor support. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 35(3), 434-446.

Dr. Roche is Senior Lecturer in Human Resources and Leadership at University of Waikato. Her research passion spans three interconnected clusters (1) positive leadership mind-sets, (2) employee wellbeing/positive psychology at work, and (3) indigenous, particularly Māori, leadership and employee wellbeing in New Zealand. Maree investigates the contagion of leaders’ wellbeing (i.e. PsyCap, cultural values), and its impact on employee wellbeing and performance. Her research continues to inform international and national audiences of the value of properly understanding and resourcing leaders psychologically, and the positive impact of this on employees and organizations, as they continue to navigate today’s complex, changing and difficult business environments. An example of her contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Roche, M. A., Haar, J. M., & Luthans, F. (2014). The role of mindfulness and psychological capital on the well-being of leaders. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 19(4), 476-489. doi:10.1037/a0037183 

Joana Story (PhD University of Nebraska-Lincoln) is currently an Associate Professor at Sao Paulo School of Business Administration (EAESP/FGV), Brazil. Her main research interests include leadership processes, organizational behavior, and interpersonal relationships; employee-organization relationship; psychological capital; ethics in organizations; and cross-cultural management. She has published over 20 articles in journals such as Journal of Management, Human Resource Management, and International Journal of Human Research Management. She has taught in many leadership development programs in the USA, Brazil, Portugal, and Angola. Joana received multiple teaching awards and is often requested to talk to the media about organization behavior/leadership in Brazil. She is the leader of the Organizational Studies research group at EAESP and leads a research group in leadership with CNPQ (National Council for Scientific and Technological Development) in Brazil. An example of her contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Rego, A., Yam, K. C., Owens, B. P., Story, J. S. P., Pina e Cunha, M., Lopes, M. P., Bluhm, D. (2019). Conveyed leader PsyCap predicting leader effectiveness through positive energizing. Journal of Management, 45, 1689-1712. 

Dr. René van Wyk, (Ph.D. Psychology), is a Registered NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) practitioner and applies the principles of PsyCap in coaching. René is a fellow of the Pan Pacific Business Association, and Transcultural Management Society (Japan). René’s main research interest is in positive organizational behavior, specifically the role of PsyCap and neuroscience in the workplace. She has published chapters in books and scientific papers in national and international journals and conferences. Rene received outstanding paper awards at the Pan-Pacific conference during 2016 and 2017, and researcher awards: University of Pretoria, 2001, and University of Johannesburg 2014. René has acted as Editor-in-Chief SA Journal of Human Resource Management and South African Journal for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management. She also serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies. Her interest is specifically in the relationship between PsyCap and the nurturing of positive emotions in building endured social, physical, intellectual and psychological resources. An example of her contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Van Wyk, R. 2014. Nelson Mandela’s Defence: A Psychological Capital Documentary Analysis. South African Journal of Science, 110(11/12), 1-7. http://www.scielo.org.za/pdf/sajs/v110n11-12/17.pdf

Dr. Vogelgesang Lester is currently an associate professor at San Jose State University.  Her research interests include mutli-domain leadership development, transparency between leaders and followers, and resilience. She teaches applied organizational behavior, strategy, and leadership at the graduate and undergraduate levels. 
At San Jose State, Dr. Vogelgesang Lester was selected to serve as an executive coach to MBA students as part of the ExecutivEdge Coaching Program, funded by ExecutivEdge of Silicon Valley. She also serves as the historian for the Network of Leadership Scholars, a community of leadership researchers which fosters interconnectivity and linkages amongst leadership scholars from different fields.  Dr. Vogelgesang Lester’s research interests include transparency in leader communication, leadership in multiple domains, trust, and leadership development. She has published papers in Academy of Management Learning & Education, The Leadership Quarterly, Human Resource Development Review, Journal of Leadership and Organization Studies as well as many book chapters. An example of her ontribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Luthans F, Vogelgesang GR, Lester PB. Developing the Psychological Capital of Resiliency. Human Resource Development Review. 2006;5(1):25-44.

Dr. Dianne H.B. Welsh is the Hayes Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship and Founding Director of the Entrepreneurship Programs at The University of North Carolina Greensboro. Dianne has held three endowed chairs where she started three entrepreneurship programs/centers and is well-recognized for implementing entrepreneurship across campus. The Board of Governors awarded her with the highest teaching award for North Carolina in 2019. She has lectured and conducted research in 55 countries, serving as the Fulbright-Hall Distinguished Chair for Entrepreneurship for Central Europe in 2015. Dianne is a recognized award-winning scholar in family business, international entrepreneurship, women-owned business, franchising, no-cost employee reward systems, and PsyCap. A chapter on PsyCap and creativity in family businesses is forthcoming. She has authored seven books and over 200 publications. The 4^th edition of Global Entrepreneurship and 3^rd edition of Cases in Global Entrepreneurship will be available in 2020.An example of her contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Memili, E., Welsh, D.H.B., & Luthans, F. (2013). Going beyond research on goal setting: A Proposed role for organizational psychological capital of family firms. Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice, 37(6),1289-1296. Impact Factor: 4.916

Dr. Hui Wang is a professor and associate dean at Guanghua School of Management, Peking University. He received his PhD from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology majoring in organizational management. His research interests focus on leadership behavior in the Chinese context, organizational culture, and PsyCap. His articles have appeared in top journals including Academy of Management Journal, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Process, The Leadership Quarterly, Management and Organization Review, and Journal of World Business. He is also on the editorial boards of Journal of World Business, Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, and Psychologica Sinica. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Wang H., Sui, Y, Luthans, F., Wang, D., & Wu, Y.H.  2014. Impact of Authentic Leadership on Performance: Role of Followers’ Positive Psychological Capital and Relational Processes. Journal of Organizational Behavior.35, 5-21.

Dr. Kazuo Yano is a Fellow, Hitachi Ltd, and CEO, Happiness Planet Ltd. He is known for the pioneering work in the world-first room-temperature single-electron memories.  He has pioneered the measurement and analysis of social big data. He and coworkers have succeeded in quantifying the happiness of people from unconscious physical motion and has founded the company “Happiness Planet” in 2020 for improving happiness and PsyCap through technology. He has provided keynote speeches on data for happiness worldwide. He has applied for over 350 patents and his papers are cited by over 2500 papers. His book, “The Invisible Hand of Data,” is cited as one of top-10 business books in Japan in 2014.  He received 2020 IEEE Frederik Phillips Award and many other international awards. Dr. Yano is also a Fellow of the IEEE. An example of his contribution to the PsyCap published body of knowledge is:

Employees’ Wearable Measure of Face-to-Face Communication Relates to Their Positive Psychological. Capital, Well-Being Authors: Satomi Tsuji, Nobuo Sato, Kazuo Yano profile image Kazuo Yano, Julie Broad, Fred Luthans Publication: WI ’19 Companion: IEEE/WIC/ACM International Conference on Web Intelligence – Companion Volume October 2019 Pages 14–20

Dr. Peterson is a professor of leadership and management at The Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University. She is focused on bringing her leadership expertise and content to Thunderbird’s executive education clients as well as graduate students.  She has previously served as the Faculty Director of Executive Education at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University where she designed and delivered the executive leadership journey and served as a liaison to industry with the goal to effectively develop business leaders of tomorrow.

Dr. Peterson has published over 30 research articles in reputable management and psychology journals.  Her research has focused on Positive Organizational Behavior and Psychological Capital, CEO leadership traits and behaviors,  the neuroscience of leadership, servant leadership, and leadership style and communication.

 Dr. Peterson also has extensive industry experience.  She has served as a coach and advisor to more than 300 senior leaders, including 50 C-Level executives. She has worked for more than 15 years with Fortune 500 companies, hedge funds, law firms, private equity funds, investment banks, insurance companies, and technology and media companies.  Dr. Peterson is a highly sought-after speaker on a variety of areas of leadership.  Her work on leadership style appeared in 2020 issue of Harvard Business Review and quickly became a featured webinar and podcast for Harvard.  The article was just listed as HBR’s Top 50 Best Selling articles.

Peterson, S. J., Luthans, F., Avolio, B. J., Walumbwa, F. O., & Zhang, Z.  (2011).  Psychological capital and employee performance:  A latent growth modeling approach.  Personnel Psychology, 64, 427-450