Leadership May Have Decisive Influence on Successful Transition of Production Cooperative

In Hungary increasing number of coops have gone bankruptcy or split up after meeting new legal needs because of not being competitive under market conditions after radical reforms. Others, however, could maintain previous level of farming or even increase it. Former coop members and individual farmers have also established new coops using bottom up approach. The paper discusses the importance of leadership of coops with different background which not well addressed in the literature. It took into account that old type produce coops had not only been an economic unit but a social network of people as well giving a special character to the coop. Two cases, one of an old and, one of a new coop, as success stories, were used and comparison of their development and leadership structure has been made. Findings were found that for a traditional agricultural coop a more social (member) oriented leadership has helped to overcome economic, social and psychological barriers occurred during transition, while in case of new coop improving cooperation depended mainly on the level of social capital improved after radical reforms.