Leading My Way

Leading My Way is the remarkable life story of Danica Purg, the visionary founder of the IEDC-Bled School of Management, one of the world's leading business and management schools, and longtime president of CEEMAN (the International Association for Management Development in Dynamic Societies). She has been awarded the highest national orders in France and Brazil, the International Educator of the Year Award, and was inducted into the Thinkers50 Hall of Fame. From a small Slovenian village in postwar Yugoslavia to the global stage of management education, Purg forged an approach to leadership rooted in humanity, courage, and imagination. Her memoir traces a journey shaped equally by family warmth, political turbulence, international encounters, and the belief that leaders must balance global wisdom with local responsibility. The book follows her rise from a determined young student to a pioneering educator who built the first business school in Central and Eastern Europe. Along the way, she navigated the upheavals of socialism, the Cold War, and the violent breakup of Yugoslavia, transforming IEDC into a space where dialogue continued even as war raged nearby. Through stories of students crossing borders under threat, executives confronting purpose, and cross-cultural programs in Sarajevo, China, and beyond, Purg reveals how leadership development can be an act of reconciliation and renewal. Interwoven with reflections on Peter Drucker, the arts, Eastern European transformation, and the hidden champions of dynamic societies, this memoir is both a personal saga and a guide to leading with integrity. Leading My Way offers a powerful message: the best way to predict the future is to create it - with empathy, clarity, and a commitment to the common good.

Professor Danica Purg is the founder and Dean of IEDC-Bled School of Management, Slovenia, and President of CEEMAN, which brings together 200 management schools from 50 countries. Professor Purg has been an innovator in management education, incorporating the arts and artistic processes into management education and building an ethics component into the curriculum of all longer management programs at IEDC since its inception. She authored and co-authored several books and numerous articles on leadership issues. She is a frequent guest speaker at universities around the world and at international conferences. For her work in international management education, Danica Purg has been recognized worldwide. She received the International Educator of the Year Award from the Academy of International Business in 2010. The President of the Republic of Slovenia bestowed upon her the Honorary Order of Freedom, and she has received the highest awards from the French and Brazilian governments. Her latest achievement is her induction into the prestigious Thinkers50 Hall of Fame in 2025. Her influence extends to universities worldwide. She is a member of several international advisory boards at management schools around the world and serves as the Chairlady of the Academic board of the International Research Center for Hidden Champions at Zhejiang University, China. Prof. Danica Purg is very active in PRME (Principles of Responsible Management Education), an initiative started by UN Global Compact, where she held many important roles in the past and in July 2017, the Global UN PRME Forum awarded Prof. Purg for her pioneering work in establishing the UN PRME initiative. She has received the titles Doctor Honoris Causa at several universities around the world (the most recent is from the University of Wollongong, Australia), and holds two honorary professorship titles.