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Coaching Leaders God’s Way: A Biblical Approach to Transformational Leadership

Coaching Leaders God’s Way: A Biblical Approach to Transformational Leadership

Annette Wilson | 2026

Abstract

In today’s complex and rapidly evolving global environment, the demand for ethical, authentic, and values-driven leadership has reached a critical threshold. Across sectors, including politics, nonprofit organizations, corporate institutions, and church ministries, persistent patterns of corruption, moral compromise, and misuse of power continue to undermine organizational trust, effectiveness, and long-term sustainability. This study examines the contemporary leadership crisis through the lens of strategic leadership, identifying a significant departure from foundational principles rooted in integrity, accountability, and servant leadership.

Grounded in biblical teachings and modeled after the life and character of Jesus Christ, this research explores the integration of spiritually grounded leadership within modern organizational systems. It emphasizes the role of leaders as ethical stewards who influence culture, shape organizational behavior, and drive sustainable transformation. By applying strategic leadership frameworks, this study highlights how values-based leadership fosters trust, enhances decision-making, and strengthens organizational resilience in complex and uncertain environments.

Furthermore, this work positions biblical leadership as a transformative model that aligns personal character with organizational strategy. It argues that leaders who prioritize humility, ethical responsibility, and service over self-interest are better equipped to lead adaptive, high-performing organizations. The findings suggest that re-centering leadership practices on moral and spiritual foundations is essential for cultivating effective transformational leadership, restoring organizational integrity, achieving long-term impact, and fulfilling the Great Commission as mandated by Jesus.

This research contributes to the field of strategic leadership by bridging faith-based principles with contemporary leadership theory, offering a holistic approach to developing leaders who are both mission-driven and strategically effective.

Keywords: Strategic Leadership, Biblical Leadership, Servant Leadership, Ethical Leadership, Organizational Integrity, Transformational Leadership, Spiritual Leadership, Organizational Culture

From the Streets to the Pulpit

From the Streets to the Pulpit

Robert Tull | 2026

Abstract

At a time when there are so many confused youth, middle-aged, and even full adults we can and do find ourselves confused with the love of the world and what our inner spirituality (God’s voice) has to offer. There seems to be an emphasis on physical gains without exploring our inner strengths and maximize the Strategic Leadership God has instilled inside of us. Being able to remove the outside influences and people to help propel us to where God has destined us to be, can be a difficult and tug-of-war struggle at times, but who will win this war that we have inside.

This manuscript was written with a real-life story of struggle, anger, resistance and finally God’s ordained love and purpose. From street life to utilizing the inner tools of strategic foresight and organizational leadership it is designed to answer how we can use the love of God to find purpose to move From the Streets to the Pulpit.

LEAD U Institute: The Student Leadership Curriculum Model

LEAD U Institute: The Student Leadership Curriculum Model

Jasmine Smith | 2026

​​Abstract

This doctoral project explores the development and implementation of Lead U, an eight-week leadership and career readiness program designed to equip college students with the skills, courage, and practical experience necessary to successfully transition from higher education into the workforce. Rooted in principles of transformational leadership, experiential learning, and faith-based development, the program emphasizes self-leadership, purpose discovery, and career alignment.

The study addresses the growing gap between academic preparation and workforce readiness among college students, particularly within underserved and faith-based communities. Through a combination of interactive workshops, mentorship, hands-on project-based learning, and a culminating student showcase, participants engage in real-world applications of leadership, entrepreneurship, and content creation for mission-driven initiatives.

Using a mixed-methods approach, data was collected through participant surveys, reflective assessments, and program outcome evaluations to measure growth in leadership capacity, courage, and career preparedness. Findings indicate that students who participated in Lead U demonstrated increased clarity in career direction, improved communication and leadership skills, and a heightened sense of purpose and personal responsibility.

This project contributes to the field of strategic leadership by offering a scalable and replicable model for integrating leadership development within higher education and community-based programs. It further highlights the importance of faith-integrated approaches to leadership formation, emphasizing holistic development that encompasses personal, professional, and spiritual growth.

Transformational Leadership in a QSR World

Transformational Leadership in a QSR World

Sandra Simmons | 2026

Abstract

This leadership development workshop, Transformational Leadership in a QSR World, introduces a six‑part PowerPoint series designed to ignite a cultural shift within the quick‑service restaurant (QSR) industry. The series redefines leadership by tracing its evolution from rigid, transactional models to dynamic, people‑centered practices that fuel sustainable success in fast‑paced operational environments. Each session builds sequentially to guide managers and supervisors toward authentic, service‑driven leadership that cultivates growth, engagement, and excellence across teams. Reflection exercises embedded in every session provoke immediate application of key insights, while concise feedback surveys capture relevance, identify gaps, and strengthen alignment among leadership tiers.

More than a training program, this series serves as a catalyst for transformation—empowering QSR leaders to lead with vision, empathy, and adaptability, and to model the behaviors that inspire lasting organizational change. Beginning with The Road to Transformational Leadership, the series establishes a historical and conceptual foundation for change. Subsequent sessions contrast transactional and transformational styles, explore situational and servant leadership, and translate theory into practical behaviors that strengthen team performance and morale. The development series culminates in a call to action, having examined the heart, mind, and spirit of the transformational leader—empowering QSR leaders to lead with vision, empathy, and adaptability amid daily operational challenges. 

Ultimately, this series serves as both a professional development framework and a catalyst for cultural transformation, equipping QSR leaders to model the mindset, behaviors, and values that define transformational leadership in today’s service‑driven world.  

The Leadership Toolbox: Essential knowledge, practices, and frameworks for frontline leaders

The Leadership Toolbox: Essential knowledge, practices, and frameworks for frontline leaders

Gerardo Sanchez | 2026

Abstract

Promoting frontline leaders is a common practice across all organizations, but leadership development for promoted individuals is uncommon. You have been promoted, now what? Leaders must move beyond the “boss” mentality and begin the growth process. The Leadership Toolbox: Essential knowledge, practices, and frameworks for frontline leaders assists newly promoted leaders, those who feel stuck, and those looking to grow in their leadership careers. The purpose of this book is to provide leaders with a sophisticated yet accessible toolkit to address the many challenges they face in their roles. Drawing on a 25-year career in manufacturing and his education in Human Resource Development, Dr. Gerardo Sanchez takes readers on his journey from a material handler to an HR Director. His real-world experience of being promoted required delivering immediate results, with no leadership experience or training. Needless to say, he struggled in his assignment and failed as a leader. From this failure, Dr. Sanchez vowed to learn, grow, become competent, and teach others how to avoid the pitfalls of bad leadership. This book explores leadership fundamentals, the basics of the leadership cycle, emotional intelligence, self-efficacy, and leadership boundaries, among others, all of which are vital to your role as a leader. With real-life examples from the workplace and the world, this book helps leaders examine themselves and become more effective leaders. The results are actual success stories of leaders and the impact on followers. From the Little League Baseball coach to the experienced mentor, every leader must answer the call to influence their followers positively. Becoming a great leader requires continual growth, and this book provides a solid foundation for that growth. The Leadership Toolbox is essential for frontline leaders and serves as a study for undergraduate programs.    

The Blockchain Leadership Framework: An Ethical Decision-making Model for the Digital Age

The Blockchain Leadership Framework: An Ethical Decision-making Model for the Digital Age

Oscar A. Rodriguez | 2026

Abstract

This project examines how blockchain—an “architecture of trust” that relocates authority from institutions to protocols—reshapes leadership practice and how Christian theology can resource faithful, ethical decision-making in decentralized, analytics-driven systems. Through a qualitative, multi-source design that synthesizes scholarship, technical artifacts, and cross-case analysis (finance inclusion, decentralized identity, and supply-chain traceability), the study develops FLAME (Faith, Leadership, Analytics, Morality, Ethics), a practical framework that operationalizes theological commitments as concrete design and governance choices. Findings show that blockchain’s core affordances (immutability, transparency, consensus) both enable auditability and introduce dilemmas around privacy, remediation, and diffused accountability. Leadership that pairs analytic competence with moral discernment, supported by transparent decision trails, privacy and bias safeguards, and non-zero remediation, tends to increase stakeholder trust. Theologically, principles of justice, mercy, stewardship, and humility function as upstream design constraints, guiding “bounded automation,” human-in-the-loop governance, and redress mechanisms that preserve ledger integrity while allowing mercy. The FLAME framework performs as a decision scaffold: surfacing value tensions early, translating convictions into model/metric/governance artifacts, and specifying participatory processes and public rationales. The study contributes: (1) a theologically integrated leadership model for decentralized technologies; (2) a “leadership decision episode” lens that couples protocol artifacts with governance moments; (3) operational tools (checklists, mercy/rectification rubric, governance posture matrix); and (4) a constructive account of auditable mercy. Limitations include qualitative scope, public-source bias, and ecosystem dynamism. Implications span leadership formation, church practice, technology policy, and research agendas that benchmark FLAME against secular toolkits. Overall, decentralized analytics intensify—rather than replace—moral leadership; faithful stewardship of code, data, and institutions requires virtues encoded in practice.

Keywords: blockchain; decentralized governance; Christian ethics; leadership analytics; FLAME framework; auditability and mercy 

Love Is Me: A Digital Leadership Framework for Women

Love Is Me: A Digital Leadership Framework for Women

Bertha Robinson | 2026

Abstract

Leadership development research continues to reveal meaningful limitations in skill-based and competency-driven models that prioritize external performance while often overlooking the deeper work of internal identity formation and self-efficacy. This study examines an identity-centered, faith-informed leadership development approach designed to support women living in low-income housing contexts, including public housing. Many of these women may appear externally stable or successful, yet quietly experience diminished self-worth, internal fragmentation, and an underdeveloped leadership identity that constrains both personal and professional growth.

This study arises from observed patterns in which women rely on externally constructed identities shaped by appearance, role performance, or perceived self-sufficiency, while lacking the internal clarity, confidence, and leadership capacity necessary for sustained advancement. Without intentional identity formation, external stability can mask internal constraints that limit self-efficacy, decision-making, and leadership effectiveness across life domains. Addressing this gap requires more than skill instruction; it requires formative development that strengthens the inner architecture of leadership.

Grounded in leadership development theory, emotional intelligence research, and coaching literature, this study positions leadership development as a formative process rooted in internal coherence, self-efficacy, and relational integration. The Love Is Me Learning Management System (LMS) is explored as a pathway-based digital learning environment that coaches and guides women through a structured process of self-discovery, identity alignment, and leadership formation. Rather than focusing solely on external performance, the LMS emphasizes whole-person development that integrates personal and professional growth.

Leadership development within the Love Is Me LMS is organized across four interrelated domains: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. Coaching serves as the primary developmental mechanism, fostering reflective learning, insight development, and behavioral integration. Through guided learning pathways, intentional reflection, and formation-oriented engagement, the LMS is designed to help participants strengthen confidence, clarify purpose, cultivate essential soft skills, and move toward greater self-sufficiency in personal, professional, and community contexts.

This study contributes to leadership development knowledge and practice by demonstrating how an identity-centered, faith-informed digital pathway can address the gap between external self-presentation and internal formation. The findings offer practical implications for faith-based organizations, housing authorities, workforce development initiatives, and leadership practitioners seeking sustainable approaches that support holistic personal and professional development. Ultimately, this research affirms that when identity formation is intentionally cultivated, women are better positioned to lead themselves and others with authenticity, clarity, and enduring confidence.

Keywords: identity-centered leadership development, women in low-income housing, personal and professional development, externally constructed identity, underdeveloped leadership identity, identity in Christ, self-efficacy, faith-informed coaching, digital leadership development

Two Workshop Presentations: Leading and Working in a Multi-Generational Workforce: Understanding Generational Characteristics and How They Impact Organizations and Trauma-informed Leadership: Understanding Trauma and Strategies That Support Teams

Two Workshop Presentations: Leading and Working in a Multi-Generational Workforce: Understanding Generational Characteristics and How They Impact Organizations and Trauma-informed Leadership: Understanding Trauma and Strategies That Support Teams

Annalisa Casteen Queen | 2026

Abstract

Purpose: This project offers leaders and their followers the opportunity to engage in two different seminars/workshops. The presentation for the first workshop aims to promote understanding, appreciation, and respect for how the different generations in the current workforce (Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z) have distinct perspectives, experiences, attitudes toward workplace values, technology skills, communication styles, and organizational commitment.

The statistics on the percentage of the population in the United States who have experienced trauma are overwhelming. Presentation two aims to equip trauma-informed leaders with resources to support their followers in the workplace.

Objective: Both presentations aim to provide leaders with resources to effectively lead their multi-generational workforce and support those who experience trauma so their organizations remain healthy and productive.

Methodology: These presentations draw on the literature from experts in generational history and the multi-generational workforce, as well as from the fields of neuroscience and trauma-informed leadership.

Findings: Creating generationally diverse teams, mentoring workplace relationships, and implementing the ACORN imperatives promote understanding, appreciation, and respect in a multi-generational workforce.

It is vital that trauma-informed leaders support their teams by being emotionally intelligent, creating a psychologically safe environment, and implementing both long-term and immediate strategies to support those in their organizations who have experienced trauma.

Conclusion: Embracing the perspectives and experiences of a multi-generational workforce and supporting teams as a trauma-informed leader position organizations for health and success.

Keywords: Multi-generational workforce, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, Generation Z, ACORN imperatives, trauma-informed, Emotional intelligence, Psychological safety, Transformational leadership, Authentic leadership, Servant leadership, Neuropsychology

Balancing Church Mobilization & Vocational Discernment: A 10-month Gap Year Internship Framework for a Campus-reaching Church

Balancing Church Mobilization & Vocational Discernment: A 10-month Gap Year Internship Framework for a Campus-reaching Church

Barry Lee | 2026

Abstract

Campus-reaching church plants face a dual challenge: helping young adults discern calling while mobilizing laborers for mission. This project proposes a 10-month gap-year internship to address a formation gap among recent graduates and mobilize young leaders for outreach. The purpose is to help young adults discern long-term calling and develop transferable skills through active participation in the life and mission of the church. Interns clarify vocational direction, cultivate servanthood and stewardship, and develop habits of work and prayer.  

The program contains four core elements:   

  • Formation (spiritual disciplines & liturgical rhythms)  
  • Forums (strategic instruction from experienced leaders & a dual mentorship model)  
  • Fieldwork (hands-on campus ministry) 
  • Frontiers (innovative outreach to unreached campus groups) 

The intended audience is for recent graduates and young adults seeking deeper discipleship, discerning a call to ministry, and desiring growth in transferable and relational skills. The program progresses through three phases: Orientation, Apprenticeship, and Missional Outreach Project. Embedded in a church plant, the internship leverages proximity to major universities to integrate mission and formation in a real-world ministry environment. This internship helps recent graduates become spiritually grounded, practically equipped, and missionally empowered to step into adulthood with greater clarity and conviction, while providing leaders for the church’s mission.

The project provides chapters on the strategy, design, curriculum, implementation, management, and recruitment components of the internship. 

Keywords: Leadership, Campus Ministry, Ecclesial Leadership, Human Resource Development, Leadership Development, Coaching, Mentorship, Evangelism, Discipleship, Formation   

The Grace Garrison: Restored by Grace – Strengthened to Stand: A Place for Healing for Those Who Serve

The Grace Garrison: Restored by Grace – Strengthened to Stand: A Place for Healing for Those Who Serve

Karon S. James | 2026

Abstract

Homelessness among U.S. military veterans has been the focus of sustained policy, clinical, and scholarly attention. Nevertheless, the unique experiences of female veterans—particularly those who are mothers—remain relatively under-theorized and underserved in both research and practice. The proportion of women in the armed forces has steadily increased over the past decade, as has the rate of housing instability and homelessness among female veterans, which is presently estimated to be increasing at a rate of approximately nine percent annually.

The Grace Garrison’ project was selected as a programmatic intervention and as a case study intended to clarify the scope, complexity, and gendered dimensions of female veteran homelessness, an issue that is largely overlooked in public communication and local policy agendas. The objective of this study was to begin the actual business setup and to contextualize The Grace Garrison within the existing scholarship on veteran homelessness, gendered trauma, and housing stability in order to increase comprehension of the potential of targeted, place-based interventions to tackle intersecting forms of structural disadvantage and promote community accountability and moral responsibility. The Grace Garrison is on the path to integrate stable congregate housing with individualized case management, mental health services, employment readiness, financial counseling, and access to childcare, drawing on best practices from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), HUD-VASH, and the Transitional in Place (TIP) framework. The model is founded on trauma-informed care principles that acknowledge the presence of MST and other gender-based damage among female veterans, with a focus on relational healing, cultural humility, empowerment, and safety. The program conceptualizes homelessness as a multidimensional phenomenon that is influenced by institutional barriers, relational ruptures, and cumulative trauma, rather than being solely treated as a housing deficit.

This approach calls for coordinated, comprehensive services. The combination of faith-based social ethics with evidence-based housing and clinical practices is a fundamental theoretical contribution of this paper. The Grace Garrison is predicated on a theological devotion to the Imago Dei, hospitality, and justice. It regards the care of vulnerable veterans as both a civic obligation and a moral obligation of the church. This method does not replace professional services; rather, it strengthens it through encouraging long-term relational support, spiritual meaning-making, and communal belonging.  

The Denver Metro region provides a strategic context for this project, given the documented need for veteran housing and the availability of underutilized public and private properties, such as surplus government facilities and closed schools. Grace Garrison proposes an adaptive reuse strategy that is consistent with housing stability objectives, urban revitalization, and mechanisms for conveying public benefit. This paper considers the policy implications of similar partnerships, specifically how nonprofit–government collaboration can leverage existing infrastructure while tackling regulatory, zoning, and funding constraints. The Grace Garrison is a nonprofit organization operating within a diversified funding ecosystem comprising individual donors, faith communities, philanthropic foundations, corporate partners, and prospective government collaborations. This organization is a replicable, gender-responsive model that not just addresses the immediate need for housing but also the broader structural and relational conditions that perpetuate female veteran homelessness. This approach honors the service of female veterans while furthering justice, dignity, and our joint responsibility.

Keywords: Church, female veterans, gender-responsive, homeless, interventions, VA