Leadership

Leadership is often associated with a particular form of decision-making: being decisive. This paper reflects on the limits of decisiveness and the role of incrementalism in the Russian decision to invade Ukraine and the role of the West and NATO’s decision-making over the prior 10 years. It suggests that incrementalism is both a legitimate mode and a significant problem in such scenarios, and focuses on the historical context to explain the decision to invade and the subsequent military failures.

The essay provides a take, by a historian, on the 2022 Ukraine war. It draws attention to the fact that, over the past 20 years, terms such as “game-changer” or “turning point” have been frequently employed to characterize important junctures. However, 2022 is qualitatively different from all of these, as it represents the antithesis to 1989 and marks the end of an entire era. From the leadership perspective, one immediate effect of a turning point is the reckoning with the past that it entails. It forces a rethink on past behavior. And this collective cognitive rewiring triggers the questioning of the legacy of leaders associated with the now discredited course of action. Taking the example of the crisis of conscience currently underway in Germany, the essay cautions against scapegoating that relies on retrospective selection bias; suggesting instead, that the focus of attention should be shifted to the collective cognitive blinders that prevented the numerous Cassandras, who understood the genuine nature of Putinist aggression, from being listened to. The essay then turns its attention to the proliferation of historical analogies and comparisons, arguing that this tells us less about the event and more about the fact that our compasses have gone haywire. As corollaries of our profound disarray, they even prevent us from gaining a better understanding of the phenomenon. This is addressed in the final part, which includes reflections on Putin as a leader, Putinist followership, as well as the challenges Western leaders are likely to face in the future.

This article is based on research investigating collective memory in the enactment of leadership identities. The context is derived from a study of Māori leadership and decision-making. The methodology is qualitative and underpinned by Kaupapa Māori research. Methods include pūrākau – Māori epistemology in the form of storytelling. Data is sourced from digital archives in the form of documentaries capturing a rich array of Māori leadership in ritual, ceremonies and interviews with leaders in multiple settings. The process of wānanga (collaborative interactive learning) was required for translation of material from Te Reo Māori into English. As a central feature of a Māori collective memory paradigm, words act as a key, unlocking insight and deeper levels of understanding inherent in Māori epistemology, mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) and ontology. We employ whakapapa, a framework for understanding cultural identity and layering of relationships to inform analysis by offering a new concept to the literature; pūmahara, a generative collective memory code. This highlights continuity in the enactment of Māori leadership identities and values which signal social affiliation, self-affirmation and belonging. In terms of contributions, first, the study confirms that as repositories for social and collective memory, digital archives offer a potent opportunity to investigate collective memory in the enactment of leadership identities. Second, a new way of analysing the data through culturally derived methods including wānanga, pūrākau and whakapapa is offered. Third, a distinctive contribution to leadership identity research via a conceptual model highlighting interactions between cognitive, affective, relational, material and cultural values is detailed. Finally, we conclude by offering further avenues of research aimed to advance leadership identity research. In summary, this article offers a distinctive contribution to leadership identity research drawing on collective memory theory.

Our study examines the empirical case of the political leadership response to Covid-19 in England. It shows that, rather than the ideal configuration of leadership suggested by theory, within which individualistic and collective leadership blend, a less balanced configuration emerged that can be characterised as incoherent. In England, an individual political leader behaved in an authoritarian way, which ignored evidence about how to address Covid-19. So, rather than an individual orchestrating a collective leadership effort to address complex issues, leadership was rendered fragmented and chaotic. We suggest that the English context, characterised by populist tendencies and neoliberal economic policy, shaped the poor leadership response to Covid-19.

This article constitutes an interview between a new researcher of the field of Leadership-as-Practice (L-A-P), Jenny Robinson, with one of the co-creators of the field, Joe Raelin. It is dedicated to providing an update and refinement of leadership-as-practice “practice theory,” which has gone through a fair degree of transformation since this journal’s first article on the subject in 2008. The call for such an update is precipitated by the need for emerging L-A-P researchers to appreciate the subject’s conceptual boundaries for more consistent and integrated exploration. In particular, L-A-P claims to differentiate not only from other plural traditions in leadership but from other “as-practice” approaches in the wider management field. Some of the other distinctions covered in this article comprise the role of theory in L-A-P, its contribution to leadership research and leadership development, its connection to other related fields, and its phenomenological, ethical, democratic, and post-humanistic foundations.

Opening Doors to Diversity in Leadership is a hard-hitting look at systemic racism in the workplace. The author provides eye-opening insights into the barriers that those who are marginalized must face when establishing respect and authority in leadership roles. This eight-chapter book examines the plight of four uniquely disadvantaged groups of individuals. These groups include Indigenous populations, women, persons with disabilities, and racialized minorities. These groups were examined with particular interest given the fact that on January 1, 2020, amendments to the Canada Business Corporations Act went into effect and required a greater level of diversity amongst the aforementioned populations (p. 299). Issues within the context of building diversity into the workplace were approached from a triangular perspective, looking at the interplaying dynamics between the psychological, organizational, and cultural/societal dimensions. The author makes it clear that for real and lasting change to take effect, there must be sweeping overhauls within each of the three categories discussed.

In the book entitled “Creative social change: Leadership for a healthy world” which was published before the novel Coronavirus pandemic, there could be lessons that organizations have neglected. Its main argument implies that health together with effectiveness could help leadership sustain their organizations for a healthy world. Correspondingly, this actionable book review aims to provide implications that could help organizations become or stay healthy during the pandemic. A critical analysis of the book’s contents reveals that it could be reasonable to start with gender equality for women before everything else in order to have healthy organizations during the pandemic. Health could improve through gender equality, trust-based partnerships, adaptation to environment, and involving in organizational (and entrepreneurial) activities. This contribution is intriguing for three reasons. Firstly, it provides actionable recommendations during increased uncertainty. Secondly, it prioritizes a sustainable development goal. Thirdly, it is an attempt to strengthen the sustainable development goals that are under challenges. Therefore, the link among health, leadership, sustainability, and organization in the book and the above road map in the book review could be inspiring.