Video Arts is distributing two comprehensive leadership development resources which highlight the business lessons, and the practical insights for personal success, from Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince and Sun Tzu’s The Art of War.

Called The Mind of a Leader I and II, the new resources feature video interviews in which the sensitive and controversial issues raised in these books are discussed by 34 international business leaders – including the CEOs of Aston Martin and Lego, and the late Dame Anita Roddick – as well as experts in business, politics, art and sport including Philip Kotler, Jan Carlzon and Bjorn Borg.

“The Prince was written 500 years ago and The Art of War is 2,500 years old, yet these books remain astonishingly relevant to leaders of today’s organisations,” said Martin Addison, CEO of Video Arts. “In The Mind of a Leader I and II, contemporary leaders, experts and public figures discuss the positive lessons from these books and the practical implications for modern leadership. The result is an unorthodox learning encyclopaedia that will not only inform and inspire current and future leaders, it will also provide interesting and valuable learning lessons for employees at all levels.”

The Mind of a Leader I is a set of four DVDs containing over 12 hours of learning in 26 modules. It covers Machiavelli’s classic The Prince, which was originally written as a handbook for rulers and offers an uncompromising account of how to seize and retain power.

The Mind of a Leader II is a two-DVD set containing four hours of learning in 13 modules. It covers Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, the definitive work on military strategy and tactics, which has been revered throughout history by great commanders including Napoleon.

Created by Danish film and communication company Holk & Lassenius, The Mind of a Leader I and II cover issues such as motivation, communication, interpersonal relations, delegation, implementing change, the value of strategic intelligence and planning, corporate responsibility, how to gain an advantage over opponents and what to look for in your advisers.

“The resources also cover the more contentious issues that leaders have to deal with, such as manipulation, propaganda, cynicism, ambition and whether it is better to be loved or feared as a leader,” said Martin Addison.

The Mind of a Leader I is available for annual rental on DVD for £1,295; The Mind of a Leader II can be rented annually on DVD for £999. The 39 modules from both resources can be streamed under license as part of the Video Arts digital library. They are also available as SCORM-compliant content on the Video Arts iLearn platform.