Dancing with the D-man: Exploring reflexive practices of relational leadership in ballet and ice hockey

Abstract

This paper explores relational leadership as a reflexive activity that comprises the subtle interplay between the verbal and bodily acts of people at work. Although the existing literature on collective leadership acknowledges various qualities of relational leadership, the latter's deeply reflexive nature has remained underexplored. By drawing on ethnographic research material from the two controversial; yet, surprisingly similar contexts of ballet and ice hockey, we set out to explore the fine-grained dynamics of the reflexive practices of relational leadership in greater detail. Based on our findings, we argue that relational leadership builds on a bundle of verbal and embodied reflexive practices, entwined with offstage and onstage power dynamics in the workplace. Consequently, our study calls for a more nuanced and bodily appreciative understanding of relational leadership in organisation studies in general.

Exploring the embodied subtleties of collaborative creativity: What organisations can learn from dance

“…Our findings and those of previous studies suggest the importance of a predominantly equal balance of micro-gestural power in workplace relationships, in line with contemporary theories of relational leadership (Biehl, 2019;Ryömä and Satama, 2019;Uhl-Bien and Ospina, 2012). However, it is important to proceed with caution when applying these results, particularly in the context of larger, more formal organisational situations.…”

“…Embodiment is a way of knowing that involves sensuous sources of knowledge. Within organisation studies literature, the theme of embodiment has often been investigated in relation to leadership, and it has been studied in various contexts, including theatres (Biehl-Missal, 2010; Sutherland, 2013), symphony orchestras (Koivunen and Wennes, 2011), expert organisations (Ropo and Parviainen, 2001), techno DJs (Biehl, 2019) and dance (Biehl, 2017; Ryömä and Satama, 2019). Early turns to embodiment in organisation studies (Dale, 2001; Hassard et al, 2000) led to expansion of the literature on the role of the body in workplaces (De Vaujany and Aroles, 2019; Huopalainen and Satama, 2018; Valtonen et al, 2017; Yakhlef, 2010), in particular noting how bodies are implicated in processes of learning (Willems, 2018).…”

“…We base this study on the notion that collaborative creativity is a collective social phenomenon that emerges from the constant negotiation of meanings, ideas and interpretations of one another in bodily ways (Koivunen and Wennes, 2011; Ryömä and Satama, 2019), that is, in ways that highlight sensuous, empathetic and reflexive ways of being in the world in relation to others. We see collaborative creativity not as a linear, neat process with an end result that motivates work, but a messy, complex and embodied process in which ideas arise by listening, sensing and empathising with the subtle gestures and movements of others’ bodies (Stierand et al, 2017).…”

Peculiarities of Leadership Manifestation in the Youth Social Group

“…The compound model of engineering leadership is developed in the research (Rottmann, Sacks, & Reeve, 2015). The finegrained dynamics of the reflexive practices of relational leadership in ballet and ice hockey explored in the research (Ryömä & Satama, 2019). The article by Duguay, Loughead, and Cook (2019) discusses leadership at the individual, dyadic and network levels in 4 competitive female youth soccer teams.…”

Peculiarities of Leadership Manifestation in the Youth Social Group

“…The compound model of engineering leadership is developed in the research (Rottmann et al, 2015). The finegrained dynamics of the reflexive practices of relational leadership in ballet and ice hockey explored in the research (Ryömä & Satama, 2019). The article by Duguay et al (2019) discusses leadership at the individual, dyadic and network levels in 4 competitive female youth soccer teams.…”