About BALI
An institute that begins with the individual.
Our mission is to advance our understanding of human thought, emotion, and behavior through scientific inquiry, and translate that knowledge into evidence-informed education and practical development that helps individuals grow, strengthen relationships, and create meaningful impact.
Our vision · What we aspire to achieve
Better people. Stronger connections. Lasting impact.
A world in which people continually strive to become better versions of themselves, inspiring positive change that extends beyond the individual to strengthen relationships, teams, organizations, and communities.
BrainAligned Leadership Institute explores how science, human development, and lived experience can inform the way people lead themselves, connect with others, and contribute to the organizations and communities around them.
Its work begins with the individual rather than the organization. BALI brings together neuroscience-informed leadership, emotional intelligence, character development, and organizational research to examine a fundamental question:
How does developing the individual translate into meaningful and measurable improvement for others?
Our guiding principle · How we earn trust
Our guiding principle: How we earn trust
“The strength of our claims should never exceed the strength of our evidence.”
We approach research and human development with curiosity, intellectual humility, and a commitment to distinguishing established scientific findings from emerging ideas and unanswered questions.
Philosophy
Become. Connect. Contribute.
- 01
Become a better version of ourselves.
- 02
Connect with others through understanding, empathy, and meaningful relationships.
- 03
Contribute to something greater than ourselves by helping others discover and develop their own potential.
Origin
A question that grew out of thirty years of leading people.
For more than 30 years, founder Andrew Backman has led teams, solved complex operational challenges, and helped organizations grow. Along the way, his attention shifted toward a question that now guides his professional and academic work: how do we help people become better versions of themselves and, in doing so, create better teams, organizations, and communities?
His experience reinforced a simple belief: technical expertise is essential, but developing the people within an organization is equally important to its ability to thrive. BrainAligned Leadership Institute was created to connect scholarly research with practical human development, contributing evidence-based insights about people, relationships, and organizational performance while remaining useful to practitioners.
Meet the founding teamScience · Self · Others · Impact
Four worlds, one line of inquiry.
- 01
SCIENCE
Understanding what research can, and cannot, tell us about human behavior, leadership, and development.
- 02
SELF
Developing awareness, emotional intelligence, character, resilience, and the capacity for intentional growth.
- 03
OTHERS
Examining how individuals connect, communicate, build trust, develop others, and work together.
- 04
IMPACT
Studying how individual and relational development influences teams, organizations, and communities.
How the institute works
Research, insight, people, initiatives, and resources.
- Research
- The rigorous, scholarly side: research questions, projects, methods, ethics, calls for participation, and, in time, publications.
- Insights
- The translation layer: what we are learning, essays, and evidence-informed commentary for leaders and practitioners.
- People
- The founding team, and the advisors, fellows, and collaborators who join the work.
- Initiatives
- The applied laboratory, beginning with emotional intelligence development for veterans and first responders.
- Resources
- Useful research, reading lists, tools, assessment information, and, over time, materials developed by BALI.
Affiliations & training
Where the work connects.
- Fishing for the Mission 22. BALI is supporting an emerging emotional intelligence initiative for veterans and first responders in collaboration with this nonprofit, which is dedicated to preventing veteran suicide. Andrew Backman, Richard Melloni, and Jonathan Tirrell serve on its Board of Directors.
- LEADx. BALI incorporates LEADx emotional intelligence assessment and coaching tools in its approach to individual growth and applied leadership development. Andrew Backman is a LEADx Certified EQ Facilitator & Coach.
- The founding team’s training. Doctoral study at Temple University’s Fox School of Business and Jacksonville University; neuroscience-informed leadership programs at Harvard Medical School and Wharton Executive Education; faculty research in developmental science at Tufts University and in behavioral neuroscience at Northeastern University.
Good research begins with good questions.
Share research, submit an idea, propose a collaboration, or ask about our initiatives.
Join the Inquiry