Research
I study what determines who rises to leadership—and the hidden costs of getting there.
The Leadership Potential–Sustainability Gap
The incentive systems that help identify high-potential talent may undermine the very qualities those leaders need to lead effectively. My research investigates this paradox from two sides: what predicts executive success, and what the path to success may quietly cost.
Executive Selection and Leadership Potential
Drawing on a subset of 30,000+ executive assessments at ghSMART, I identify the core traits that distinguish C-suite leaders from other ranks—and the traits that separate CEOs specifically. While a common set of traits emerges across private equity and corporate contexts, their relative importance varies across contexts.
Solo Positioning and The Self-Sufficiency Trap
Some professionals choose to stand apart when competing for promotions, joining teams where they're the only one of their kind. But for many first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented leaders, standing alone isn't a strategy. It's a structural reality.
Either way, the pattern is the same: leaders build careers on individual excellence rather than relational capital. I call this the self-sufficiency trap—the independence that fuels their rise may need to be unlearned to lead effectively through others.
My research suggests that the employees most drawn to competition may also be most susceptible to its costs, building independence that serves them early but may limit relational leadership over time.
Research Agenda
For Organizations
For Organizations
Redesigning the systems that shape who rises: AI-enabled talent identification, structured sponsorship programs, promotion processes that reward collaboration alongside individual performance, and coaching frameworks that close the gap between high-potential selection and leadership readiness.
For Leaders
For Leaders
Equipping professionals to navigate competitive environments without sacrificing connection: building relational capital intentionally, recognizing the self-sufficiency trap before it limits growth, and developing the leadership skills that individual excellence alone won't build.
I translate research into tools that help organizations retain the talent they invest in, and help leaders sustain the careers they've built.
Publications
Hellauer, Samantha, Wang, Dina; Smith, Heidi, and Smith, Samantha N. From Corporate Leader to Private Equity CEO: What it Takes to Succeed. Harvard Business Review [July/August 2026 edition].
Smith, Samantha N., Pink, Sophia L., Kirgios, Erika L., Chang, Edward H., and Milkman, Katherine L. (2026). Which Group Should I Join? Competition Drives Group Selection Away from Like-Minded Others. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 122, 104841.
Haygood, Tamara M., Smith, Samantha N., and Sun, Jia. (2018). Memory Bias in Observer Performance Literature. Journal of Medical Imaging, 5(3), Article 031412.
Dissertation
My dissertation examines solo positioning across nine preregistered studies (N = 8,614) and 477 executive career assessments. I find that competition roughly doubles the likelihood that people adopt solo positions—and that those who appraise competition as a challenge are most likely to do so. Over time, I find this positioning can compound into a self-sufficiency trap: the independence that enables early career success may need to be unlearned to lead effectively through others.
Competitive bonuses and promotions—relative to non-competitive reward structures—roughly double the likelihood that people adopt solo positions. This effect is driven by beliefs that being unique increases one's distinct value and reduces opportunities for upward social comparison. Importantly, competition promotes solo positioning even while heightening feelings of threat that otherwise discourage it, and this tendency is amplified under up-or-out incentives.
I then examine what happens when solo positioning is a structural condition rather than a strategic choice. Executives from first-generation and low-income (FGLI) backgrounds provide a natural case: in elite professional settings, they are often structurally solo. Drawing on 477 leadership assessments and 8 in-depth interviews, I find that FGLI executives faced a sponsorship gap rather than a mentorship gap. In response, they substituted individual excellence for relational capital through interconnected compensatory strategies. These adaptations were associated with advancement to equivalent senior positions; however, sustained solo positioning was also associated with persistent guardedness, diminished belonging, and a self-sufficiency trap in which the self-reliance that enabled upward mobility can ultimately undermine the relational demands of senior leadership.
Together, these findings clarify when and why people seek—or are compelled—to stand alone, how incentive systems shape that strategy, and the psychological, relational, and career tradeoffs that accumulate over time.
Work in Progress
Smith, Samantha N., "Flying Solo: A Theory of Compensatory Career Strategies Among First-Generation and Low-Income Executives"
Preparing for submission to ASQSmith, Samantha N., "Challenge Accepted: How and Why Competition Alters Group Affiliation Preferences"
Preparing for submission to SPPSSelect Presentations & Interviews
Smith, Samantha N. (2026, April). Influence Without a Blueprint: Standing Out, Moving Up, and Belonging at Work. Invited fireside chat at Alliant Insurance Services, Inc., Virtual.
Smith, Samantha N. (2026, April). Democratizing Access to Opportunity: How to Move from Intention to Infrastructure. Invited speaker at Amono+Lead, United Nations, New York City, NY.
Brown, Ashley R. and Smith, Samantha N. (2026, March). Leading with Authenticity in Rooms that Matter. Invited presentation for ghSMART at Harvard Black Law Student Association Spring Conference 2026, Boston, MA.
Smith, Samantha N. (2026, March). Flying Solo: A Theory of Compensatory Strategies Among First-Generation and Low-Income Executives. Invited presentation at Relationships Across Differences (RADS), Fontainebleau, France.
Smith, Heidi, Hellauer, Samantha, Paul, Reshmi, and Smith, Samantha N. (2026, January). Products and Measures for Identifying High Potential Talent. Invited presentation at ghSMART Team-Wide Meeting, Virtual.
Smith, Samantha N. (2025, July). The Data-Driven Workforce: Transforming Human Capital into Competitive Advantage. Moderated conversation with Matthew Breitfelder at Apollo Global Management, New York City, NY.
Catoe, Jamel, +Blocker, Victor E., Smith, Samantha N., +Holmes IV, Oscar, Carter, James T., Johnson, Tiffany D., Ruggs, Enrica N., Gonzalez, Jorge A., Muzanenhamo, Penelope, Chico, Robert, Garcia, Alexandria L., De La Haye, DC, Reddick, Joanna, Rivera Piedra, Daniela, Simon, Angel, Thomas, Syreeta A., Turner, Sarah R. (2025, July). Expanding DEI Horizons: Broader Approaches to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Management Research. Co-organized PDW at AOM Annual Meeting, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Smith, Samantha N., Kirgios, Erika L., Chang, Edward H., and Milkman, Katherine L. (2022, November). Which Group Should I Join? Competition Drives Group Selection Away from Like-Minded Others. Oral presentation at SJDM Conference, San Diego, CA.
Smith, Samantha N., Kirgios, Erika L., Chang, Edward H., and Milkman, Katherine L. (2022, November). Which Group Should I Join? Oral presentation at Rising Scholars Conference at Chicago Booth, Virtual.
Smith, Samantha N., Kirgios, Erika L., Chang, Edward H., and Milkman, Katherine L. (2022, August). Which Group Should I Join? Organized presenter symposium and presented at AOM Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA.
Smith, Samantha N. (2021, October). In Conversation with Linda Hill, Ph.D. Rising Scholars Conference at Harvard Business School, Boston, MA.
+ Presented by co-author(s)