When organizations start to digitize, this often means that processes will be changed. The management paradigm that is centered on the continues review and improvement of organizational processes is Business Process Management (BPM). To digitize processes, an organization should have the right competences to deal with both technological and process changes. However, currently, it is not known which competences are needed by leaders to guide an organization with digital process transformation initiatives. Hence, this paper consists of an explorative study based on interviews with five experts to find out if and how the competences related to digital leadership can guide such initiatives. The experts are employees within five different organizations. The interviews showed some interesting results. First of all, several competences of digital leadership were mentioned by various experts. Many of these competences corresponded with each other. In the interviews, the following competences of digital leadership were mentioned most often: Collaboration, Self-direction, Lifelong learning, and Flexibility. Secondly, there are many approaches to gain insight into processes within organizations. The use of models is necessary to create added value, to help coordinate information provision between the processes and the people who work for the organization. One such approach is the use of Business Process Management Maturity models, which provide insight into the process maturity level of an organization. According to the respondents, there is a relationship between BPM maturity and digital leadership.
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University teacher teams can work toward educational change through the process of team learning behavior, which involves sharing and discussing practices to create new knowledge. However, teachers do not routinely engage in learning behavior when working in such teams and it is unclear how leadership support can overcome this problem. Therefore, this study examines when team leadership behavior supports teacher teams in engaging in learning behavior. We studied 52 university teacher teams (281 respondents) involved in educational change, resulting in two key findings. First, analyses of multiple leadership types showed that team learning behavior was best supported by a shared transformational leadership style that challenges the status quo and stimulates team members’ intellect. Mutual transformational encouragement supported team learning more than the vertical leadership source or empowering and initiating structure styles of leadership. Second, moderator analyses revealed that task complexity influenced the relationship between vertical empowering team leadership behavior and team learning behavior. Specifically, this finding suggests that formal team leaders who empower teamwork only affected team learning behavior when their teams perceived that their task was not complex. These findings indicate how team learning behavior can be supported in university teacher teams responsible for working toward educational change. Moreover, these findings are unique because they originate from relating multiple team leadership types to team learning behavior, examining the influence of task complexity, and studying this in an educational setting. https://www.scienceguide.nl/2021/06/leren-van-docentteams-vraagt-om-gezamenlijk-leiderschap/
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Purpose – Against the background of current leadership theory, this research paper analyses and compares the leadership approaches of two outstanding leaders: Daniel Vasella, chairman of the leading Swiss pharmaceutical organization Novartis and Ricardo Semler, owner of the Brazilian conglomerate Semco. In contrast to many rather abstract, unpractical and pointlessly theoretical papers on leadership this analysis provides a more applied view of leadership by means of the life history approach delivering insight into both leaders’ development and leader personality. Methodology/approach – First, this paper locates the ideas and practices associated with the term “leadership” as a concept through theories that have developed over time and shows how the practices of leading can be derived and understood through chosen theories. Based on this, the specific characteristics and career paths of both leaders are presented and compared so that a final analysis of their leadership approach can be done. The paper is based on secondary sources such as peer-reviewed business journals and literature on leadership. Information about both leaders and their approach to leadership is gathered mainly from published interviews with them. Additional information on Semler is taken from his autobiography. Conclusions – It is difficult to identify an “essence” of leadership, whether that takes the form of personality characteristics or traits, charisma, the ability to transform people or organizations or a brain function. All presented theories of leadership seem to have their raison d’être. Both Vasella and Semler apply a combination of different attitudes and behaviours that characterize their leadership style containing elements of transformational, charismatic, ethical, servant and authentic leadership.
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Various studies suggest that the fashion and textile industry need to move away from traditional, extractive leadership models. Dreier et al. (2019) show how traditional top-down, hierarchical leadership approaches are not effective in fostering sustainability, and argued that a more collaborative, participative approach is needed to implement true and long-standing change. Moreover, research also shows how fashion and textile designers don’t see themselves as leaders but instead as ‘creators’ who employ others to manage their business and lead the team. This change in leadership is also necessary to achieve the European vision for Industry 5.0 (2022), which places the wellbeing of the worker at the centre of the production process. If we want to find solutions to the problems we face today, we need to change the way we think, lead, and do business. This calls for regenerative leadership which involves not only minimising negative impacts, but also actively working to restore and enhance the social ecological systems in which an industry operates. And since technology has become ubiquitous in every aspect of our lives (including business), it is important to explore its role in helping us become better regenerative leaders. With ReLead, The Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS) aims to amplify consortium partner i-did’s social and environmental impact. Since its inception in 2009, i-did has helped more than 400 people become gainfully employed while helping recycle almost 60.000 kgs of textile waste. This has been possible due to the transformation of i-did’s founder (Mireille Geijsen) from a creative designer, into a collaborative and mindful leader. The intended outcome of this project is to create a tech-enabled leadership transformation toolkit and leadership academy that helps creative designers transform into regenerative leaders.
