The Aspen Executive Seminar
Challenging experienced leaders from every sector to achieve meaningful growth into the executive leadership frame of mind through a critical examination of their core values and foundational ideas of the past 2,000 years within the context of leadership today.
Dialogue, Not Dogma.
Leadership today is harder than ever. Executives must deliver results, guide teams through constant change, and make decisions that shape not just their organizations, but society at large. These are leadership skills that can’t be taught in a lecture hall or in an online module. They are honed at a leadership seminar.
The Aspen Executive Seminar on Leadership, Values, and the Good Society gives leaders the tools to lead with discernment, clarity, and conviction—answering the question:
“How do I lead well and live justly in a good society?”
We cannot lead others through today’s complex professional landscape until we fully understand our values and how they inform the actions we take as a leaders, impacting our teams, organizations, and communities.
Guided by the Aspen Method of text-based dialogue, the Aspen Executive Seminar expands critical leadership capacities by examining the foundational ideas of the past 2,000 years within the context of leadership today.
Outcomes & Impact
The Aspen Executive Seminar gives leaders the tools and frameworks to lead in a rapidly changing, complex world. The ability to parse different values at play in challenging situations, the ability to discern the impact of your decision, and to communicate the chosen course with conviction and consistency even to people who don’t agree with you, both in current roles and across careers.
Outcomes participants walk away from include:
- Greater understanding of your personal leadership values and how they manifest in action
- Increased sense of professional purpose and leadership mission
- Enhanced ability to understand complexity and navigate change
- Improved capacity to listen, critically think, and bridge disagreement on your teams
- Heightened ability recognize, articulate, and navigate moral trade-offs inherent in organizational and civic life
- Greater consciousness of the philosophical underpinnings of modern institutions and systems
- Reconnection with the human side of leadership
Upcoming Seminar Dates
7-day residential seminar hosted at the Aspen Meadows Resort in Aspen, CO.
Each seminar cohort is made up of 15-20 experienced leaders from a variety of industries, sectors, and experiences looking to advance to the next stage of their leadership.
2026 Seminar Dates
- April 18-24, 2026 in Aspen, CO [Sold out!]
- May 30-June 5, 2026 in Aspen, CO [Sold out!]
- October 17-23, 2026 in Aspen, CO [Sold out!]
2027 Seminar Dates
Note that the Aspen Airport is closed for renovations starting April 4, 2027 through November 2027. Transportation from the Eagle County Regional Airport will be available and additional details will be provided upon acceptance to the seminar.
- April 3-9, 2027 in Aspen, CO
- June 5-11, 2027 in Aspen, CO
- August 21-27, 2027 in Aspen, CO
- October 16-22, 2027 in Aspen, CO
Over the week-long seminar, participants participate in a series of moderated, text-based dialogues focusing on the ideas and ideals that have shaped the last 2,000 years of our world. These examinations are prompted by readings and are interspersed with excursions, casual down time for connection, and shared meals.
2027 Seminar Fee: $14,450*
*Inclusive of seminar materials, activities, meals, and lodging at the Aspen Meadows Resort. Cancellation/transfer fees apply
Seminar alumni include leaders across sectors and around the world with access to the Aspen Institute’s wealth of resources, including opportunities for continued leadership development and other programing for you, your network, and your team or organization.
The moral challenges of leadership run across all industries, sectors, disciplines, and specialties. From corporate boardrooms to non-profit field workers
Leaders attend from all over the world to explore the ideas and ideals that have created the world we all share and the future we are building together.
About the Aspen Executive Seminar
Where other leadership programs focus on the how or the what of leadership, the Aspen Executive Seminar invites you to zoom out to the “why” and examine leadership in context of today—the personal values, organizational structures, and historical systems that shape our leadership.
Designed for experienced leaders new to or reaching the executive level of leadership, the Aspen Executive Seminar combines moderated, text-based dialogue around a wide group of thinkers—from Aristotle to bell hooks and more—with a diverse cohort of peers to expand critical leadership capacities in a complex world of rapid change.
Seminar Awards
A limited number of highly competitive, full-tuition seminar awards are available for leaders from a variety of industries.
Frequently Asked Questions
Have questions about the Aspen Executive Seminar? We’ve gathered key details about what to expect and how to prepare.
Information for Employers
Resources for the professional development funding or managerial approval process within your organization.
Our Method & Impact
Explore the seminar room—where meaningful texts, diverse perspectives, and focused conversation change how leaders see and show up.
Our Moderators
Meet the skilled moderators who guide Aspen seminars with curiosity, humility, and a gift for drawing insight from every voice.
More questions?
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