Leadership has had a powerful impact on the course of human development. History is full of conquerors, kings, heroes, politicians, scholars, businessmen, human rights activists, or just ordinary people who are recognized as great leaders for various reasons. Although there is no single definition or articulation of leadership, there are a number of determinations that make individuals (successful) leaders. The process is much more sophisticated and complex than often simplified view with which we often encounter, and is conditioned by number of factors such as the culture of the area, individual traits, experiences, life situations, social and economic factors, etc. Various definitions, styles and leadership theories have been handled in the work and allow to understand the reasons for the creation and importance of the application of the theory of authentic leadership in business practices. The concept of authenticity extends through the centuries, from ancient Greece to modern philosophers. The notion of authentic leadership, on the other hand, has only recently gained significance, but soon became a prominent theme among scientific and business circles over the last 15 years. There are clear indications of a number of positive influences of authentic leadership on the leaders themselves, followers and organization. The objective of the empirical part of the work is to determine the level of "authenticity" of leaders in Croatian business practice.