Miguel Pina e Cunha is one of the most prominent figures in the fields of Leadership and Organizational Behaviour, in Portugal and internationally, widely recognized for his impact on the development of multiple generations of managers and leaders.
Over the past two decades, his research has explored the extremes and surprises of organizational life — from paradox and improvisation to serendipity and vicious circles — seeking to understand how organizations oscillate between the virtuous and the dysfunctional.
On these topics, Miguel has published over 150 scientific articles in leading international journals, including the Academy of Management Review, Organization Studies, and Journal of Management Studies. He is also the author and co-author of several books, including the best-selling Handbook of Organizational Behaviour and Management, widely used in management and organizational behaviour courses, as well as the recent Manifesto for a Humanist Capitalism (2025).
At Nova SBE, Miguel currently serves as Vice-Rector for Innovation & Impact, holder of the Fundação Amélia de Mello Chair in Leadership, and Academic Director of corporate programs in Executive Education.
He believes that what truly distinguishes a university is its ability to generate and share proprietary knowledge grounded in research. For Miguel, teaching gains meaning and relevance when anchored in this research (in his case, focusing on paradoxes, improvisation, organizational resilience, and leadership virtues).
In the classroom, he favours a highly interactive and story-driven approach. He simplifies complex ideas and engages participants in debate and reflection through concise, original cases developed at Nova SBE: what he calls “theory wrapped in stories.”
For Miguel Pina e Cunha, teaching is about “showing the world differently,” creating experiences that transform the way people think, learn, and lead. He is not an advocate of easy answers: he believes that leadership is about navigating tensions, cultivating virtues, and exploring the unexpected—and that actual impact occurs when leaders turn paradoxes into opportunities.