1. An Introduction to Leadership

3 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Foundational Principles  Leadership is a concern of all of us.  Leadership is viewed and valued differently by various disciplines and cultures.  Conventional views of leadership have changed.  Leadership can be exhibited in many ways.  Leadership qualities and skills can be learned and developed.  Leadership committed to ethical action is needed to encourage change and social responsibility.

4 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Needing a New Paradigm  Our times involve change that is rapid and unpredictable.  Conventional ways of approaching problems no longer work.  Instead of individual determinism, competition, and predictable structures, we seem to need organizations that are:  Nimble and able to respond quickly  Collaborative  Aware of shared values that honor our diversity

5 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. A Leadership Paradigm Shift  Focus on the leader.  Assumption that the manager of the group is the one person doing leadership.  The leader has the vision and motivates the followers to work to achieve it.  Focus on the relationships and processes between everyone in the group.  Group purposes are mutually determined with input from everyone in the group.

6 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. A New Conceptualization of Followers It seems woefully inadequate to call group members by the term followers, implying they are following someone or something, unable to think for themselves, or remaining indifferent to the group’s goals, when actually they are creating and shaping the context themselves.

7 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. A New Term for Follower? Rather than follower, which implies a passive role in the group, scholars are searching for new terms.  Constituents  Co-creators  Collaborators  Participants

8 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. New Meaning for the Term Leader? Two different meanings for leader:  Positional leader  The person filling a position in an organizational structure (elected, selected, or hired)  Usually has a title (president, chair, team captain)  Anyone actively engaging in the leadership process (the meaning used in this text)  Can be operating from a position or not

9 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Purposes of Leadership  In this text, leadership is assumed to have an intentional purpose.  To make a positive difference in some way  To engage in the community  To advance the welfare and quality of life for all  This is in contrast to other leadership studies, aimed at learning how to achieve a position of power or authority and keep it.

10 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Multiple Lenses on Leadership  Leadership is a social construction.  The context in which it happens plays a role in how it is analyzed.  For example, academic discipline or field of study

11 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Openness to Learning Leadership development requires taking on a life-long attitude of being open to learning.  Taking personal responsibility for one’s learning and self-development  Maximizing learning from experience  Take on challenging new roles.  Reflect on those experiences.  Form new theories to operate from.

12 Copyright ©2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. The Relational Leadership Model A relational and ethical process of people together attempting to accomplish positive change.