Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership Presenters: Eileen Eckhart-Strauch and Jim Wolford-Ulrich, Ph.D. School of Leadership & Professional Advancement Duquesne University International Leadership Association Conference 2006 Friday, 3 November 2006, 9:15 – 10:15 am

About Duquesne University  Founded 1878 by Spiritan order of priests –Private (Catholic); coeducational  Distinctives of the Spiritan charism: –outreach, education, inclusivity  Over 10,000 students in 10 Schools –57% undergraduate / 43% graduate  School of Leadership & Professional Advancement (SLPA) founded in 1983 –Total current enrollment: 1,011 students –Offers 2 bachelors degrees and 5 masters degrees  “We serve God by serving students" 2Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

SLPA Graduate Programs  Awards 5 graduate degrees in leadership –MA in Leadership & Liberal Studies –MS in Leadership & Business Ethics –MS in Leadership & IT –MS in Sports Leadership –MS in Community Leadership  Serves students in these formats: –Pittsburgh & Harrisburg: 183 students –Online: 335 students  MLLS 717 is required for all 5 degree programs 3Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

MLLS 717 Course History “Leading People and Managing Relationships”  Designed by faculty team January-April, 2005 –Offered every semester since Summer 2005  MLLS 717 enrollments: –158 students in 11 face-to-face sections –244 students in 18 online sections  10 faculty hold regular conference calls to review and exchange instructional practice and make curricular adjustments 4Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

Course Objectives  Integrate current theoretical and practical perspectives on leadership with your own practice of leading people and managing relationships.  Demonstrate effective use of self as an instrument of change.  Utilize interpretive frameworks when exercising organizational leadership.  Design strategies for realizing change in self and others through conscious intervention and personal influence. 5Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

Key Assignments  Learning Style Inventory  Leadership Strengths  My Best Self Reflection  Political Savvy Style  Feedback: “Me At My Best” / Reflection  Vignette(s) / Mini-Case(s)  Be the Change / “My Best Self” Speech  Leadership Development Plan Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership6

What Are Interpretive Frameworks?  Framework: –a structure designed to support or hold something together  Interpretation: –explaining or giving meaning to something A leadership interpretative framework is a structure, built around an idea or a set of related concepts or principles, that provides a particular focus for explaining or giving meaning to the act of leading. Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership7

Leaders and Sense Making  “Sense-making” is what leaders do (Weick) –Focus on cues in the environment –Use frameworks to construct meaning, to explain, and to deal with surprise –Interact to produce mutual understanding –Recognize patterns of experience –Explore the plausibility of possible interpretations  They make sense of reality: –Retrospectively and prospectively –In collaboration with others –On an ongoing basis Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership8

Framing: A Leader Skill Organizational Frames: Examples  Bolman & Deal – Four Framework Approach Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership9 –Metaphor –Stories –Traditions –Slogans –Artifacts –Contrast –Spin  Fairhurst & Sarr – Ways of Framing Situations –Structural –Human Resource –Political –Symbolic Bolman & Deal, 1991; Fairhurst & Sarr, 1996.

Implicit Interpretive Frameworks Other Examples  Situational Leadership –Four leadership styles: Directing, Coaching, Delegating, Supporting –Leader must interpret team behaviors to assess levels of competence & commitment  Servant Leadership –Leader interprets what followers need  Kelley’s Followership Model –“Sheep,” “yes people,” “alienated,” “effective” –Leader interprets participation & critical thinking Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership10

Vignette Materials Developed  Teaching notes  Sample vignette  Vignette response rubric  Response to sample (with feedback)  Vignette A – “Leading Up”  Vignettes B1 and B2 – “Leading Out”  Sample student responses with instructor feedback 11Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

Feedback from Students  “Life is a series of leadership vignettes. It's very useful. Not everything is a huge term paper, or a major event. Big progress is often made in a series of small ways.”  “They are great examples to make you think about how you would handle a situation while still in a controlled environment.”  “It paints the picture of what we are discussing.”  “The challenges described in my vignette are typical of those I face on a regular basis.” When asked in a post-course survey if vignettes should be kept as part of the course, 79% of respondents indicated “Yes.” 12Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

Faculty Perceptions  “Vignettes permit me to develop case study examples specific to the needs and interests of the students.”  “Vignettes are a great alternative to standard testing, as they allow me to better assess the progress that each student has made.”  “Students appreciated the opportunity to put into practice theories we have covered in the course”  “Students indicated the vignettes helped them to pull everything together in the course.” 13Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

Lessons Learned  Embed interpretive frameworks in the rubric, and tie the rubric to course objectives.  Give multiple examples of what is desired; explain the rubric (and frameworks) carefully.  Encourage students to: –View leadership as “authorship”: they are designing a solution that fits their strengths & style. –Integrate frameworks into their leadership practice.  Vignettes can be useful in helping online students make effective application of leadership concepts, models and theories. 14Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

Discussion 15Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

16 Key Course Texts Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership  Clifton, D., & Buckingham, M. (2001). Now discover your strengths. New York: Free Press.  DeLuca, J. R. (1999). Political savvy: Systematic approaches to leadership behind the scenes. Berwyn, PA: Evergreen Business Group.  Goleman, D., McKee, A., & Boyatzis, R. E. (2002). Primal leadership: Realizing the power of emotional intelligence. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.  Hammond, S. A. (1998). The thin book of appreciative inquiry (2 nd ed.). Plano, TX: Thin Book.  Jackman, J. M., & Strober, M. H. (2003). Fear of feedback. Harvard Business Review, 81(4),  Koestenbaum, P. (1991). The leadership diamond: Four strategies for greatness. In Leadership: The inner side of greatness (pp ). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

17 Presentation References Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (1991). Reframing organizations. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Burrell, G., & Morgan, G. (1979). Sociological paradigms and organizational analysis. London: Heineman. Fairhurst, G. T., & Sarr, R. A. (1996). The art of framing: Managing the language of leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Kish, M. H. Z. (2004). Using vignettes to develop higher order thinking and academic achievement in adult learners in an online environment. (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University, 2004). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. (AAT ) Smircich, L., & Morgan, G. (1982). Leadership: The management of meaning. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 18(3), Weick, K. E. (1995). Sensemaking in organizations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership

18 Additional Information Using Interpretive Frameworks to Teach Leadership  Handouts and vignette materials package may be downloaded from:  Presenter Contact Information: –Eileen Eckhart-Strauch Phone: –Jim Wolford-Ulrich, Ph.D. Phone: