COLLABORATIVE EDGE
How leaders catalyze change, turnarounds, and transformation
by Carol Vallone Mitchell
Released Oct. 1, 2026
The Leadership Advantage Hidden in Plain Sight
The command-and-control playbook that built yesterday's companies can't keep up with today's volatility, complexity, and speed. What can? Leaders who are perceptive, inclusive, and participative—who read a room before they try to lead it, widen the circle of voices shaping a decision, and share power instead of hoarding it.
This is Collaborative Edge: a three-domain model, built from twenty-five years of original research, for the kind of leadership that turns individuals into networks and networks into engines of transformation.
The research path that led here is telling. The leaders who've demonstrated this model most consistently, over decades, are executive women—long dismissed as "soft" for the very behaviors now proving to be indispensable. These capabilities that organizations once underestimated have become essential for every leader who wants to drive innovation, transformation, and lasting results.
Collaborative Edge tells the stories of transformational leaders—women and men—who turned around teams, functions, and entire organizations by leading this way. You'll learn from notable CEOs, directors, and catalysts several levels down who changed the trajectory of their companies.
Inside, you'll discover how to:
Lead with greater self-awareness and insight in complex situations.
Build trust and make better decisions by engaging diverse perspectives.
Create shared accountability that strengthens both people and performance.
Develop collaborative teams that innovate, adapt, and deliver lasting results.
Already leading this way? Collaborative Edge will give you the language and the evidence to support what you do.
Building a collaborative team or organization? You'll find the model, the playbooks, and the tools to make it repeatable.
Take the self-assessment in Chapter 8 to find your collaborative edge. Then use the development guides—for yourself and your team—to strengthen it.
The future belongs to leaders who don't simply direct change.
They catalyze it.
ISBN Paperback: 978-9-0837-0492-0
Also available as eBook and hardback
Editor: Kristin Anderson
Cover Design: Cigdem Guven
Typesetting: Hannah Huber
Self-publishing powered by Storyhouse Works
Carol Vallone Mitchell, PhD, is cofounder of Talent Strategy Partners, a 25-year-old leadership consulting firm working with organizations to identify and develop leaders who can nurture a healthy workplace culture and drive exceptional results.
She is author of three books grounded in her original research: Breaking Through “Bitch”: How Women Can Shatter Stereotypes and Lead Fearlessly; Collaboration Code: How Men Lead Culture Change and Nurture Tomorrow’s Leader; and now, Collaborative Edge: How Leaders Catalyze Change, Turnarounds, and Transformation.
Carol earned her doctorate in organizational behavior from the University of Pennsylvania, her bachelor’s degree in microbiology from Rutgers University, and a U.S. patent for molecular biology research conducted at DuPont. Carol lives in the Philadelphia area with her husband and son.
Contact Information: Carol Vallone Mitchell, Talent Strategy Partners LLC
