Dr. Vanessa Druskat

Vanessa is a leading expert on team leadership and a pioneer of the team emotional intelligence (Team EI) model. Unlike traditional team development models that focus on fixing people, Vanessa teaches leaders how to build social systems that address the emotional needs of team members, fostering authentic collaboration and innovation. An award-winning researcher and teacher, Vanessa advises teams at some of the world’s top organizations. She has taught at the University of New Hampshire for 22 years and lives in Durham. Her forthcoming book, The Emotionally Intelligent Team, will be published by Harvard Business School Press in July 2025.