Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries

Author of The Leadership Mystique: a user's manual for the human enterprise

82 Works 554 Members 3 Reviews 1 Favorited

About the Author

Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries is the Distinguished Clinical Professor of Leadership Development and Organizational Change at INSEAD, the Founder of INSEAD's Global Leadership Center, program director of INSEAD's top management program, "The Challenge of Leadership: Developing Your Emotional show more Intelligence," and Scientific Director of the Executive Master's Program "Consulting and Coaching for Change." The Financial Times, Le Capital, Wirtschaftswoche, and The Economist have rated Manfred Kets de Vries among the world's top 50 leading management thinkers. show less

Includes the names: M.F.R. Kets de Vries, Manfred Kets De Vries, Manfred Kets de Vries, Manfred Kets De Vries, Kets de Vries Manfred, M. F. R. Kets De Vries, Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries, Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries, Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries

Image credit: Photograph by M. Aubry

Works by Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries

The Neurotic Organization (1984) 48 copies

Leaders, Fools and Impostors: Essays on the Psychology of Leadership (1993) 43 copies

The Leader on the Couch: A Clinical Approach to Changing People & Organisations (2006) 30 copies

Life and Death in the Executive Fast Lane: Essays on Irrational Organizations and Their Leaders (1995) 27 copies

The Hedgehog Effect: The Secrets of Building High Performance Teams (2011) 18 copies

The Happiness Equation (2002) 17 copies

Unstable at the Top (Mentor) (1988) 15 copies

The New Global Leaders: Richard Branson, Percy Barnevik, David Simon and the Remaking of International Business (1999) 15 copies

Sex, Money, Happiness, and Death: The Quest for Authenticity (INSEAD Business Press) (2009) 14 copies, 1 review

Reflections on Leadership and Career Development: On the Couch with Manfred Kets de Vries (2010) 13 copies

Organizational Paradoxes: Clinical Approaches to Management (1980) 12 copies

Coach and couch : the psychology of making better leaders (2007) 12 copies

Mindful Leadership Coaching Journeys into the interior (2014) 11 copies

Leiderschap ontraadseld (2001) 10 copies

Family Business on the Couch: A Psychological Perspective (2007) 10 copies

Organizations on the Couch: Clinical Perspectives on Organizational Behavior and Change (Jossey Bass Business and Manage (1991) 10 copies

Wat leiders drĳft : een klinische benadering van gedragsverandering in organisaties (2006) 9 copies

Family Business: Human Dilemmas in the Family Firm : Text and Cases (1996) 9 copies, 1 review

Are Leaders Born or Are They Made?: The Case of Alexander the Great (2004) 8 copies

Telling Fairy Tales in the Boardroom: How to Make Sure Your Organization Lives Happily Ever After (INSEAD Business Press) (2015) 8 copies

Worstelen met de demon : over emoties, irrationaliteit en onbewuste processen in mens en organisatie (1999) 8 copies

Lessons On Leadership By Terror: Finding Shaka Zulu In The Attic (New Horizons in Leadership Studies Series) (2004) 8 copies

Leading Wisely: Becoming a Reflective Leader in Turbulent Times (2022) 7 copies, 1 review

Reflections on Character and Leadership: On the Couch with Manfred Kets de Vries (2009) 6 copies

De F-factor psychologische aspecten van leiderschap (1989) 6 copies

You Will Meet a Tall, Dark Stranger: Executive Coaching Challenges (INSEAD Business Press) (2015) 6 copies

Irrational Executive: Psychoanalytic Explorations in Management (1984) 6 copies

Reflections on Groups and Organizations: On the Couch With Manfred Kets de Vries (2011) 5 copies

The Coaching Kaleidoscope: Insights from the Inside (INSEAD Business Press) (2010) 5 copies

Global Executive Leadership Inventory (GELI), Participant Workbook (2004) 5 copies

Riding the Leadership Rollercoaster An observer’s guide (2016) 5 copies

Leiderschap van wereldklasse : over de achtergronden van succesvol ondernemerschap aan de hand van de visies en prestaties van Richard Branson (Virgin), Percy Barnevik (ABB) en… (1998) 5 copies

Down the Rabbit Hole of Leadership: Leadership Pathology in Everyday Life (Palgrave Kets De Vries Library) (2018) 4 copies

Het geluk : een handleiding (2000) 4 copies

Harvard Deusto: La mente del lider (Expansion) (2006) 4 copies

Prisoners of Leadership (1989) 4 copies

Leben und Sterben im Business (1996) 3 copies

Seks & geld, geluk & dood mijmeringen uit het ondergrondse (2008) 2 copies

Organizational Paradoxes: Clinical Approaches to Management 2 copies

L'organizzazione irrazionale. La dimensione nascosta dei comportamenti organizzativi (2000) 2 copies

De uitdaging van het leiderschap 2 copies

Effetto porcospino. Il segreto per costruire team eccellenti 2 copies

The CEO Whisperer: Meditations on Leadership, Life, and Change (The Palgrave Kets de Vries Library) (2020) 2 copies

De geest van despotisme Shaka Zoeloe en de psychologie van tirannieke macht (2004) 2 copies

The Daily Perils of Executive Life: How to Survive When Dancing on Quicksand (The Palgrave Kets de Vries Library) (2022) 2 copies

Quo Vadis?: The Existential Challenges of Leaders (The Palgrave Kets de Vries Library) (2021) 2 copies

Het leiderschap van Alexander de Grote (2003) 2 copies

Leiderschapstest (2002) 2 copies

Reflexões Sobre Caráter e Liderança (Em Portuguese do Brasil) 2 copies

Down the Rabbit Hole of Leadership: Leadership Pathology in Everyday Life (Palgrave Kets De Vries Library) (2018) 1 copy

A empresa familiar no divã: uma perspectiva psicológica 1 copy

REFLEXÕES SOBRE CARATER E LIDERANÇA 1 copy

Beyond The Quick Fix: The Psychodynamics of Organizational Transformation and Change 1 copy

COMBAT CONTRE L'IRRATIONALITE DES MANAGERS (0000) (2002) 1 copy

The Path to Authentic Leadership: Dancing with the Ouroboros (The Palgrave Kets de Vries Library) (2023) 1 copy

The Coaching Kaleidoscope: Insights from the Inside (INSEAD Business Press) 1 copy

Raadsels in de organisatie : een klinische benadering van management (1981) 1 copy

The Daily Perils of Executive Life: How to Survive When Dancing on Quicksand (The Palgrave Kets de Vries Library) (2023) 1 copy

Handbook of Character Studies: Psychoanalytic Explorations (1991) 1 copy

Het egeleffect executive coaching en het geheim van high-performanceteams (2012) 1 copy

Leadership Unhinged: Essays on the Ugly, the Bad, and the Weird (The Palgrave Kets de Vries Library) (2021) 1 copy

The Dangers of Feeling Like a Fake 1 copy

The Darker Side of Leadership: Pythons Devouring Crocodiles 1 copy

Kets de Vries over mindfulness 1 copy

Mentaliteitsverandering in organisaties een gebruikershandleiding (1998) 1 copy

Les mystères du leadership : Diriger, c'est vendre de l'espoir (2002) 1 copy

The new Russian business leaders (2004) 1 copy

La face cachée du leadership (2005) 1 copy

The Leadership Mystique: A User’s Manuel for the Human Enterprise 1 copy

Mindful leadership coaching. Percorsi verso una leadership consapevole (2015) 1 copy

Struggling with the Demon: Perspectives on Individual and Organizational Irrationality (2001) 1 copy

Raadsels in organisaties 1 copy

Quo Vadis? 1 copy

L'organizzazione nevrotica. Una diagnosi in profondità dei disturbi e delle patologie del comportamento organizzativo 1 copy

A boldogság egyenlete töprengések a boldogságról és a sikerről 1 copy

Figure di leader: le sfide della leadership nei cambiamenti della vita organizzativa (2010) 1 copy

De geest van het despotisme 1 copy

The White Raven, the Bear-King, and Other Grim Tales (2016) 1 copy

The CEO Whisperer: Meditations on Leadership, Life, and Change (The Palgrave Kets de Vries Library) (2020) 1 copy

Down the Rabbit Hole of Leadership: Leadership Pathology in Everyday Life (2019) 1 copy

Tajna vodstva - ponašanje vođa u poduzetništvu 1 copy

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3 reviews

Demis_Greece 24 reviews

Leading Wisely: Becoming a Reflective Leader in Turbulent Times by Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries

What a beautifully written book from Manfred on wisdom, it’s nature and the importance of being a wise leader and human being.

Wisdom can not be learned. Wisdom - unlike being smart - is a culmination of life experiences… in fact you can be wise without having accumulated book knowledge …

Being wise is connected to being able to see the wider picture and it is about caring for the greater good.. acting wisely is deeply connected to that.

Manfred journeys us beautifully through the main show more pillars of wisdom…

1. The golden rule as the basis of all wisdom… ‘don’t do to others what you would not like to have done to yourself..’

2. Forgiveness. As an act you do for yourself first - not for others

3. The importance of being humble and recognizing how little you know… as a true base for being wise..

4. The importance of knowing yourself deeply and fully … and accepting your shadow side as a key aspect of you…

5. Wisdom — and how it is not aligned with Greed or Envy…

6. Wisdom .. comes from deep and real listening …

7. Wisdom is to choose your battles carefully…

8. Wisdom is courage … or courage leads to wisdom. Whichever it is - the two are connected.

9. Wisdom = happiness in the sense of recognizing the importance of the small things that make you happy show less

Sep 14, 2025

Demis_Greece 24 reviews

Sex, Money, Happiness, and Death: The Quest for Authenticity (INSEAD Business Press) by Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries

Deep and touching on all the major elements of a life well lived (or not).

Deals with the importance of sex, money, happiness and death in our lives as the main drivers on everything we do.

A book I plan to revisit often and I made a lot of notes from.

Sep 14, 2025

LOM-Lausanne 982 reviews

Family business : human dilemmas in the family firm : text and cases by Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries