Leading Below the Surface

True connection at work isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity. In Leading Below the Surface, award-winning author, professor, and executive coach LaTonya Wilkins offers a powerful alternative to performative corporate norms, challenging leaders to reimagine how organizational culture is built and sustained.

Drawing on lived experience, neuroscience, social psychology, and cutting-edge leadership research, this book is a call to action for those who want to lead with purpose, build real trust, and cultivate teams that connect. Through compelling storytelling and grounded, actionable strategies, Wilkins shows how below the surface leadership creates deeper relationships, encourages belonging, and strengthens organizational resilience.

This updated edition expands on the original insights with new stories, practical tools, and reflections on how inclusive, human-centered leadership drives results and renews organizational culture from the inside out.

Whether you’re a rising leader or a seasoned executive, this book is your compass to lead more courageously; without compromising who you are.

Author Biography

LaTonya Wilkins is an internationally recognized executive coach, keynote speaker, and founder of Change Coaches. Through her dynamic coaching and consulting work, she partners with leaders and teams who take a curious and bold approach to building cultures of trust, connection, and belonging. Her book, Leading Below the Surface, has been widely praised for its actionable insights and powerful storytelling. Her thought leadership has been featured in publications such as Inc. and Fast Company.