HWS News
3 October 2025 • Faculty Forbes and Talmage Publish on Business Leadership
New book by HWS professors explores the qualities that create impactful leaders.
With leadership demands shifting faster than ever, Essentials of Contemporary Business Leadership, a new book by Adjunct Professor of Business Management and Entrepreneurship Amy Forbes and Associate Professor of Business Management and Entrepreneurship Craig Talmage offers a timely, actionable roadmap for students, new managers and practitioners alike. Drawing on deep expertise, Forbes and Talmage present a five-dimensional leadership model and learning approach to help readers develop a full range of leadership capabilities.
The book introduces readers to the Contemporary Leadership Dimensions framework, a progressive model that spans the interrelated areas of Self Leadership, People Leadership, Business Leadership, Client Leadership and Community Leadership. The text encourages students and professionals to build in each area and integrate personal growth with organizational and societal responsibility.
“Leadership is no longer about a single skill set or isolated role,” says Talmage. “It requires agility across multiple domains, from understanding yourself to serving communities and clients in ethical and sustainable ways.”
Each chapter of the book combines theory with application, featuring case studies, discussion questions and interactive exercises. Supplemental online resources extend the learning experience, making the book well-suited for classrooms, executive education and professional development settings.
Forbes, who has extensive experience designing leadership programs for executives, emphasizes that the text equips readers to meet contemporary challenges. “We wanted to create a resource that bridges academic insights with real-world practice,” she says. “The goal is to empower the next generation of leaders to be authentic, inclusive and impact-driven.”
Essentials for Contemporary Business Leadership also addresses pressing topics including emotional and cultural intelligence, inclusive leadership, digital transformation, sustainability and social entrepreneurship.
Published by Routledge, the book is available to order.
Forbes joined HWS in 2011, previously serving as director of the Centennial Center. She also serves as the strategic director for custom executive education at Cornell University. Her specialty areas include leadership development, leadership instruction, college student learning and development, and entrepreneurial leadership. Forbes earned a bachelor’s degree from Salisbury University, a master’s degree from Bucknell University and a doctorate from the University of Vermont.
Talmage joined HWS in 2016. Along with his role as a professor, he serves as director for the Bozzuto Center for Entrepreneurship. Talmage’s courses cover economic principles, quantitative tools, social innovation, the history of entrepreneurial thought and senior capstone experiences. His research explores community and economic development, particularly how social innovation and entrepreneurship influence community well-being, local economies and place-based identity. He earned a bachelor’s degree from The University of Arizona, a master’s from Minnesota State University, Mankato and a Ph.D. from Arizona State University.
