Perspectives in AE—Towards an arts‐based approach to developing shared leadership

Abstract

In the leadership development sector, it is widely acknowledged that there is a gap between the theory and practice of leadership. Within the field, rapid changes in business, technology, political, and social factors have resulted in a genuine need for knowledge workers to put into practice leadership skills and to draw conclusions about the interplay between their own roles, domain, and organizational context. This article puts forward an arts‐based leadership training approach that uses improvisatory theater techniques, which allows knowledge workers to engage reflexively in the concept of shared leadership. The major focus of this approach is to develop shared leadership competencies among participants, which they acquire by acting out different scenarios they are presented with. This paper argues that art‐based leadership activities can be an effective means of fostering confidence, being empowered to lead and leading others through change. It argues for the need to steer away from traditional models of leadership towards a transformative model using an art‐based approach. This essay also presents key features shared leadership before discussing the proposed model in greater detail.

Book Reviews: Evidence-based school development in changing demographic contexts by Ylimaki, R. M., & Brunderman, L. A.

“…Part 2 is “ Lessons from the Arizona School Development Model ,” which shows essential things to people who worked on AZiLDR. For example, Chapters 3 to 7 show how the authors worked to build and sustain leadership capacity (Clarke, 2018; Wang & Chia, 2020), use data to reflect (p.63), go deeper into the curriculum and pedagogical activities (p.73) and use strengths-based approaches to meeting the needs of culturally diverse students (p.81). To begin, participants in AZiLDR describe each element in their own words; subsequently, the authors explain the aspect in further detail using relevant literature and their own experiences and thoughts.…”

Leading for innovation: A new model for 21st‐century leadership

“…New realities in a VUCA environment, converging with a generationally diverse workforce, call for a fresh new look at leadership and how it can be most effective in the vastly different contexts of organizations today (Wang & Chia, 2019). Add to VUCA, the repercussions of a 2‐year pandemic and the fragility of the economy, and the result is that the nature of work has changed in a profound way.…”

“…The 21st century is being defined by technological revolutions, multi-generational dissonance, and sociological upheavals. Volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA) is a term used in the research literature to discuss unpredictable and rapidly changing environments (Mack et al, 2016;Wang & Chia, 2019). Organizational research and literature have focused on VUCA and other topics that reflect 21st-century realities like sustainable practices, inclusiveness, intrapreneurship, and philanthropy, but there have been few, if any, new leadership theories that take them into account.…”

“…Incorporating traditional aspects of employee engagement, Shuck et al (2017) “operationally defined employee engagement as a positive, active, work–related psychological state operationalized by the maintenance, intensity, and direction of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral energy” (p. 269). Further, they outlined three approaches to engagement: engagement as an outcome (Rich et al, 2010; Schaufeli et al, 2002), engagement as a psychological state (Soane et al, 2012; Yalabik et al, 2013), and engagement as a process (Barrick et al, 2015, p. 280; Kahn, 1990).…”