What does character have to do with public service, leadership, and organizational culture?
Drawing on years in government, HR leadership, and the Virtuosity Program, Mélanie shows how character isn’t an abstract idea but a practical lever for courage, accountability, and culture change—whether you’re “acting” in a temporary leadership role or redesigning how organizations hire.
🧠 What you’ll hear:
🔥 Why leadership is about “going first”—and why even whispers from leaders sound like shouts
🕸️ How context stresses different dimensions (humility at the top, courage at the base)
🦸 Why Spider-Man’s “with great power comes great responsibility” is more than a comic line
🧭 The questions leaders should ask: not “What do I do?” but “Who do I want to be?”
👥 Why courage is the most under-activated dimension in employees—and how leaders can spark it
🏛️ The culture–character link: why change feels like pushing a boulder uphill (and how momentum builds)
🗣️ Simple but powerful practices—like team character mapping and everyday conversations—that seed transformation
📝 Inside character-based hiring: why it’s vulnerable, harder than it looks, and worth it
⚖️ How to deliver tough results in character interviews with empathy and integrity
📊 Why internal candidates who “fail” raise vital questions about development vs. succession planning
📲 How Virtuosity’s habit-stacking helps translate lofty virtues into lived micro-moments
🌱 Practical advice for newcomers: start small, keep it simple, and build as you go
Resources
• Make Character Count in Hiring and Promoting (https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/make-character-count-in-hiring-and-promoting/)
• Character Quotient Assessment in Forbes (https://www.forbes.com/sites/marycrossan/2025/03/26/from-good-to-great-10-ways-to-elevate-your-character-quotient/)
• Leader Character Framework with Culture, Virtues, and Vices (https://virtuositycharacter.ca/organization/storage_production_6e2934b8-3e20-47a7-aa79-59a612f967be/9
About Virtuosity
• Website (https://virtuositycharacter.ca/)
• Monthly Newsletter (https://mailchi.mp/virtuositycharacter/subscribe-to-the-virtuosity-monthly-newsletter)
• LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/virtuosity-character)
• Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/virtuositycharacter/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=)
Host, Dr Corey Crossan (https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreycrossan/), is a research and teaching fellow at The Oxford Character Project where she develops and facilitates character development programs for students, industry, and university partners. Corey’s love for elite performance developed as she competed in top-level athletics for most of her life, highlighted by competing as a NCAA Division 1 athlete. Corey translated her understanding of elite performance into a passion for helping individuals and organizations develop sustained excellence. She is also the co-founder of Virtuosity Character, a mobile software application created to support the daily, deliberate practice of character-based leadership development.
