Leading Change

On April 14, 1789, George Washington cordially received a weary visitor who had traveled for seven days from New York City to deliver a message from Congress. Reading formally from a letter by Senator John Langdon, Charles Thomson, secretary to Congress, informed Washington (most probably in his private study) that he had been unanimously elected the first President of the United States. Washington accepted the position with a prepared statement of his own. This crucial moment in American history ignited a series of changes to the United States’ new republican system of government – changes that still affect the American political system more than 200 years later. This case details the creation of the executive office by our country’s most influential political leader while discussing how today’s leaders can follow his example and achieve real, positive change.