Abraham Zaleznik, HBS professor, 87

Harvard Business School Professor Emeritus Abraham Zaleznik, a renowned authority on leadership and social psychology, died in Boston on Nov. 28 at the age of 87. At the time of his death, he was the School’s Konosuke Matsushita Professor of Leadership.

As a member of the Harvard Business School (HBS) faculty for more than four decades, Zaleznik made important and lasting contributions as an innovative, prolific, and distinguished scholar, researcher, teacher, course developer, and author of 16 books and more than 40 articles. In all his roles, Zaleznik was never reluctant to go against the grain of conventional wisdom in order to nurture new ideas and perspectives.

He is survived by a daughter, Dori, of Newton, Mass., and a son, Ira, of Lexington, Mass. A funeral has been held. No decision has been made regarding a memorial service.

Read the full obituary.