Over the past three years the United States and its people have experienced crisis and change in ways we have not seen since the Great Depression. From the missteps of corporate giants like BP and Toyota, to our own economic meltdown that was driven by greed and distrust, we have suffered setback after setback, and our confidence has waned accordingly. But now, it’s time for us to learn some new lessons about business leadership in the face of tremendous adversity – and from an apparently unlikely source.

While most thought that it was impossible for the 33 miners in Chile ever to see the light of day again, Chile’s leadership sought to enable an heroic rescue by sticking to some fundamental leadership principles for the beginning of a new era: Embrace the power of diversity; Quickly manage crisis and change; Propel new types of innovations; Allow a country and its people to be their own brand; Function across generations, and Seek to be successful and significant throughout their courageous journey.

These six principles represent the competencies of a new enlightened form of leadership that must be taught and adopted in America’s corporations: The Immigrant Perspective on Business Leadership. Given today’s fiercely competitive global market landscape, we must seek to give people in America’s corporations new purpose, put a premium on innovation, and embrace ethical leadership on driving performance development.

This is what Chilean President Sebastián Piñera and the 33 miners did to seize the opportunities for survival that most found unimaginable. They taught us how to apply the following six characteristics that define the immigrant perspective on business leadership and that represents “the new normal” in how we should think, act and innovate ...