Lewis and her “Both/And Thinking: Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Toughest Problems” co-author, Wendy K. Smith, were also included in this lofty ranking for being “masters of navigating paradoxes.” Lewis has been Lindner’s dean since 2019 and is also a professor of management.
Smith is the Dana J. Johnson Professor of Management and Faculty Director of the Women’s Leadership Initiative at the Lerner College of Business and Economics at the University of Delaware. Lewis and Smith were honored with the Thinkers50 Breakthrough Idea Award in 2023.
“I’m humbled by this honor, particularly given Paul Polman’s well-earned position at the top spot,” Lewis said. “Wendy and I study how great leaders embrace tensions, finding creative friction amid their most challenging, competing demands. Polman has long inspired my work, serving as a model of our paradox approach and great leadership.”