From Iconic Business Leader to Russian Icon Museum Founder: Bridging Business and the Arts Across Cultures

Abstract

This case study portrays Gordon Lankton, a highly successful U.S. executive who, drawing upon the relationships that he had built during two decades of doing business in Russia, succeeded in having Moscow’s renowned State Tretyakov Gallery lend priceless icons to his new museum in a small Massachusetts town. We demonstrate how a charismatic and gently determined executive-turned-museum founder exhibited transformational leadership while bridging business and the arts across cultures. The case study includes an interview with Gordon Lankton, and is followed by a commentary that features an interview with Museum of Russian Icons curator, Kent dur Russell, and a SWOT analysis of Lankton’s leadership style.

Keywords: transformational leadership, Russia, business and the arts, philanthropy