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Imagine there are no leaders: Reframing leadership as collaborative agency

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  • Raelin, Joseph A.

Abstract

Fearing that our overreliance on an individual, heroic model of leadership will only continue to dampen the energy and creativity of people in our organizations and communities, this essay proposes a practice perspective of leadership based on a collaborative agency mobilized through engaged social interaction. After briefly reviewing the emerging practice tradition in leadership studies, the article turns to the inseparable connection between leadership and agency and discusses how structure may pacify but, under dialogic conditions, release agency. Acknowledging the cultural constraints against collaborative agency, the account affirms its potential realization through interpersonal interaction and sociality. Specific leadership activities associated with collaborative agency and their conditions are illustrated. The paper concludes by showing how the collaborative agentic model might produce a more sustainable future for our world while suggesting avenues for future research of a collective rather than a personal approach to leadership.

Suggested Citation

  • Raelin, Joseph A., 2016. "Imagine there are no leaders: Reframing leadership as collaborative agency," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 12(2), pages 131-158.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:espost:268457
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    7. Brad Jackson, 2005. "The Enduring Romance of Leadership Studies," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(6), pages 1311-1324, September.
    8. Frances Cleaver, 2007. "Understanding Agency in Collective Action," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(2), pages 223-244.
    9. Norman Dalkey & Olaf Helmer, 1963. "An Experimental Application of the DELPHI Method to the Use of Experts," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 9(3), pages 458-467, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Akram Hatami & Jan Hermes & Anne Keränen & Pauliina Ulkuniemi, 2023. "Creating Social Sustainability Through Distributing Leadership and Co-Responsibility in Corporate Volunteering," South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, , vol. 12(1), pages 81-96, April.
    2. Fatima Afzal & Roksana Jahan Tumpa, 2024. "Exploring Leadership Styles to Foster Sustainability in Construction Projects: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-32, January.
    3. Alvaro Mendez, 2024. "Latin American agency: The New Development Bank, Uruguay's accession and Brazilian influence," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 15(2), pages 405-413, May.
    4. Raelin, Joseph A. & Robinson, Jennifer L., 2022. "Update of leadership-as-practice “practice theory”: Featuring Joe Raelin Interviewed by Jenny Robinson," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 18(5), pages 695-706.
    5. Raelin, Joseph A., 2019. "Toward a methodology for studying leadership-as-practice," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 16(4), pages 480-508.
    6. Aymen Sajjad & Gabriel Eweje & Muhammad Mustafa Raziq, 2024. "Sustainability leadership: An integrative review and conceptual synthesis," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(4), pages 2849-2867, May.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Leadership; Agency; Collaboration; Collective leadership; Shared leadership; Leaderful practice; Symbolic interactionism; Dialogue; Critical reflection; Meaning making;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • M10 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - General
    • M12 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Personnel Management; Executives; Executive Compensation
    • M14 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Corporate Culture; Diversity; Social Responsibility
    • M53 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Training
    • M54 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Labor Management

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