Transcript How do we make the link between the principles of effective

Making the link between the principles of
effective leadership and mediation skills?
Claire Maxwell
Degree Programme Director/
Clinical Senior Lecturer
Post Grad Clinical Leadership
Newcastle University
April 2014
Introductions
Name, role & organisation
 One word to describe what ‘leadership’
means to you?

So - differing perspectives!
‘Seeing’ and ‘feeling’ leadership?
• Complex & multidimensional
• Difficult to define or indeed understand!
• Context specific
• NHS, Education, Armed Forces……..
• Despite complexity – we usually know when we
see it or feel it!
• Always know when its poor/ ineffective!
Main principles of effective
leadership?
Principles of ‘effective’ leadership
Psychological theories view
leadership as a social
influence process –
influencing followers to
group goals
Business-orientated models
place emphasis on the
leadership of organisational
functions
The ‘How’ & ‘What’ of Leadership
Kaiser et al (2012)
Organisational ‘What’
= vision, horizon
scanning, strategy,
goals, systems,
innovation
Interpersonal ‘How’ =
behaviour, connection
to others, emotional
intelligence,
authenticity, integrity
The ‘how and ‘what’ of leadership…
Which is the most
important??
The Apple Paradox
The question of leadership!

Three key questions:
1. Why should we look at leadership?
 2. Why is it important?
 3. How does it differ to management?

1. Why should we/you look at
leadership?
(In context of HE/FE)
Why look at leadership?
Changing environment/
culture
Focus on funding/
financial issues
Competition from other
universities/colleges
International market
New business elements
introduced
2. Why is it important?
Why is it important?
Survival!!
Change management
Engagement of staff
Student/learners ‘journey’
Research & teaching quality
Performance indicators
3. How does leadership differ from
management?
Leaders v Managers (Bennis 1998)
Manager
 Has their eye on the
bottom line
 Relies on control
 Administers
 Maintains
 Has a short-range view
 Asks how and when
 Accepts the status quo
 Does things right

Leader
 Has a vision & their eye
on the horizon
 Inspire trust
 Innovate
 Develop others
 Has a long range
perspective
 Ask what and why
 Challenges the status quo
 Does the right thing

The biggest difference?

Biggest difference between a leader and a
manager rests on the status quo
“managers are willing to live with it and
leaders are not”
(Warren Bennis 1998)
Culture & Context of Education
Environment
of constant
change
Significant
amount of
change
management
Staff coping
with change
– loss and
grief
John Fisher’s
Model of
Transition
(2012)
Coping with workplace change
Leadership AND Mediation skills
Mediation AND Leadership skills
So – surely effective leaders need
to have excellent mediation
skills!
Leadership and Mediation skills
Effective Leaders
need:
Change
management
skills
Strategic
understanding &
vision
Excellent
communication
People skills &
empathy
Emotional
intelligence &
influencing skills
Authenticity &
integrity
AND excellent
mediation skills!
Culture of collaboration and
engagement
“ like good leaders, good
mediators motivate people
to work through difficult
problems in order to achieve
particular goals”
(Hoffmann 2009)
Styles of Leadership in HE/FE?
Distributed Leadership
One definition…..
“The NHS needs people to think of themselves
as leaders not because they are personally
exceptional, senior or inspirational to others,
but because they can see what needs to be
done and can work with others to do it”
(Prof Kim Turnbull James 2011)
From Heroes to Teams………
Research
suggests ‘Great
Man/ Heroic’
approach to
leadership –
outdated
Organisations to
survive – need
more
transformational
approaches
Leader as Coach
Distributed
leadership
Encouraging
effective ‘selfleadership’
Effective
teamwork
How easy can that be?!
Herding Cats??
Leadership Dilemmas
Nothing is
black and
white
Strong
networks
& support
Working
in ‘grey’
Courage
and self
efficacy
Constant
dilemmas/
conflicts
Need
tenacity &
resilience
Strong networks & supportive
culture
How can we ‘measure’ culture?
‘Culture Barometer’
Culture is easier to
‘smell’ than it is to
measure!
Edgar Schein - Culture & Leadership
“The bottom line for leaders is that
if they do not become conscious of
the cultures in which they are
embedded, those cultures will
manage them. Cultural
understanding is desirable for all of
us, but it is essential to leaders if
they are to lead.”
(Edgar Schein 1992)
Mediators as part of this network?
Mediators to support and challenge?
Steven Covey
Argues the single most
important behaviour for
maintaining successful work
relationships is to:
"seek to understand" before
"seeking to be understood"
Self - Leadership
“Its hard to lead others if you don’t
know how to lead yourself, and you cant
lead yourself without the right tools!”
(Blanchard 2014)