Tribally owned American Indian enterprises provide a unique cross-cultural setting for emerging Native American business leaders. This article examines the manner in which American Indian leaders negotiate the boundaries between their indigenous organizations and the nonindigenous communities in which they do business. Through a series of qualitative interviews, we find that American Indian business leaders fall back on a strong sense of ''self,'' which allows them to maintain effective leadership across boundaries. This is highly consistent with theories of authentic leadership. Furthermore, we find that leaders define self through their collective identity, which is heavily influenced by tribal affiliation and tribal culture. We add to the literature on authentic leadership by showing the role that culture and collective identity have in creating leader authenticity within the indigenous community.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop two new constructs (career self-schemas and career locus) and present a conceptual model of the influence of Native American culture on MBA fit. Design/methodology/approach – Using a social cognitive lens on career theory, the authors examine the possible effects of cultural influences on the fit between Native Americans’ career goals and an MBA. Specifically, the authors propose that cultural factors contribute to career self-schemas inconsistent with Native American perceptions of business graduate education. Career self-schemas are an individual’s cognitive map of the self in his or her career. Findings – The conceptual model proposes that aspects of career self-schemas may explain lagging Native Americans’ MBA fit: the MBA is culturally inconsistent, and a community career locus. Research limitations/implications – The model needs to be tested empirically. This research has implications that extend beyond Native Americans to help explain the career aspirations of other diverse groups. Social implications – Native Americans are, in recent years, engaging in economic development that would benefit from Native Americans with MBAs. The authors make recommendations for increasing Native American interest in MBA programs. Originality/value – This paper introduces the constructs of career self-schemas and career locus to explain lagging MBA fit for Native Americans. The constructs may also be applied in other cultures and with other ethnic groups to explain differences in career choice. It may be particularly helpful in an international context.

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