Annual Report · Coming Spring 2027
The Crisis Leadership Index
An annual report on patterns in Mode Finder responses. First edition planned for Spring 2027.
In short
The Crisis Leadership Index will describe patterns in participants’ responses to hypothetical scenarios, using aggregated, anonymized results of the free Mode Finder. These self-reported choices offer questions for reflection; they do not establish how leaders acted in real crises. The first edition is planned for Spring 2027.
What the Index will measure
Primary-mode distribution
The proportion of eligible completed assessments assigned to each of the five modes using the published scoring method.
The prevailing shadow
The most common shadow signals in the reporting sample’s reflective responses.
Contradicted instincts
How often the sample’s primary and secondary modes occupy different parts of the framework’s pressure map.
Methodology
The Index will aggregate completed runs of the Mode Finder, a forced-choice crisis leadership assessment. Most questions are pressure scenarios: each presents a concrete situation and asks what the leader would actually do, with every option mapping to one of the five modes. Reflective questions feed the shadow signal. These responses record what participants say they would do.
Participation is voluntary, so the sample may differ from the wider executive population. Each edition will state its sample size, reporting dates, eligibility criteria, repeat-submission policy, and instrument version. Results will be aggregated and anonymized; no individual result is published or identifiable. A leader's primary mode is their highest-scoring mode across the scenario questions, the secondary is the next highest, and the active shadow is the highest-scoring shadow attached to either. "Contradicted instincts" will count leaders whose secondary mode occupies the opposite quadrant of the pressure map from their primary.
The five modes and their shadows come from the book Honor Under Pressure and are documented in the Five Modes framework.
Frequently asked
What is the Crisis Leadership Index?
The Crisis Leadership Index will summarize patterns in completed Mode Finder responses: modes, reported shadow signals, and primary-secondary pairings. Results will describe participating respondents. They will not establish how all executives behave or predict how an individual will act. The first edition is planned for Spring 2027.
Where will the data come from?
The report will use aggregated, anonymized responses to hypothetical leadership scenarios and reflection questions. These are self-reported choices. Each edition will publish its reporting window, sample size, eligibility criteria, treatment of repeat submissions, and limitations. Individual results will not be published.
What are the five modes the Index will measure?
The five modes are Holding (Cato), Restraining (Washington), Eroding (Seneca), Growing (Lincoln), and Embedding (Marshall). Each names a distinct character structure leaders default to under pressure, drawn from a historical figure who led through a real institutional crisis. Every mode also carries a shadow, the predictable liability that appears when its strength is pushed too far.
How often will the Index be published?
The Index will be published annually, with the reporting window stated in the methodology section of each edition. Once an edition publishes, its figures stay fixed to the stated cutoff date, so a citation to a given year remains stable.
Will I be able to cite the Index?
Yes. Once the first edition publishes, the report will be free to cite with attribution to The Fourth Turning Leader.
Get the first edition when it publishes
One email when the Crisis Leadership Index publishes its first edition in Spring 2027. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
The Instrument
The Index is built one leader at a time.
The Mode Finder is free, takes about five minutes, and requires no credit card. Every completed assessment is one more read in the first edition. Find your primary mode, your secondary, and the shadow operating in you.
Find your mode · free, ~5 min