14. Leadership is not a person, but an intelligence

In our traditional way of thinking, we look at leadership too much as the role of a person in or even outside a team. A new vision is gradually emerging that abandons this traditional approach. Hierarchy, obedience and patronizing are under pressure, and we are looking for other ways to make a group of people work successfully. A possible solution might be to see leadership as a dimension in the functioning of a team, a form of intelligence to organize a necessary aspect of group work. As soon as this dimension is filled in properly, the proper functioning of the team is guaranteed.

Having said that, there is of course a great effect on the results  to be expected from a choice for 'personalized' leadership, or even from 'shared' leadership. In the first option, the leadership aspect is entrusted to a person; with the second option, that aspect is integrated into teamwork and locked in a strong team culture. It is to be expected that with the second option a more powerful model will emerge that converts the individual competencies, involvement ... of the team members into better results, without harming the well-being of the team members as an individual.

The aspect of leadership in a team demands that attention is paid to aspects that need to be integrated into the team-operation. Here are some important ones, of course they can be different according to the mission and activities of the organization:

-           Vision of the 'playing field' (sector knowledge in all aspects);

-           Mission definition and integrate it into the ‘mental contract’ of the team-members

-           Translation of the mission and the vision into a strategy, with sufficient flexibility for adaptation

-           Architecture of the organization (team) to be able to realize that plan ( eg via 7- S vision of McKinsey)

-           Organize the connection of the team to the larger whole (policy, reporting, aligning ...)

-           Organization of functional operation (plans, systems, decision making, knowledge , adjustment, division of roles, ...)

-           Developing the appropriate team culture to promote cooperation, personal development, goal orientation)

-           Support for team members who have difficulty integrating smoothly into this teamwork (coaching)

In short, this means that there must be sufficient intelligence and skill in a team to ensure its proper functioning by integrating four dimensions: organization, relationship, future and values.

The main challenge in implementing this 'integrated' leadership is to ensure that sufficient attention is given to this dimension, and that the results of this focus provide a sufficient qualitative effect for the organization and the stakeholders in the long run. In practice, this will often mean that good agreements must be made and a good follow up on the aspects that are dealt with in an integrated manner. This can be done by the team-members themselves, or by some appointed person. Normally it will be a mix; some things are taken care of by the team itself, some by ‘a leader’ for who has the necessary time, focus and competencies. In the latter case, it is of course important that the quality of the relationship between the 'leader' and the team is properly managed, and not a threat to the agreed autonomous functioning of the team, but as an effective support and supplementation.

Shared leadership is sometimes not seen in this sense, but rather as the division of assignments within a team, amongst team-members. Then we are basically talking about a division of roles in terms of content, or at best a division of the above-mentioned aspects between the team members. That option will not lead to integration! In that case, the same mistake is made as in the traditional organization: making the whole manageable through specialization. Truly integrated means that all team members develop an integral focus. The fact that practical tasks such as making proposals and reports are entrusted to specific persons does not have to be an obstacle. But let's be realistic: the realization of integrated leadership requires a lot more than the 'may' but also the 'will' in the minds of those involved. To develop the needed abilities, a learning process will be necessary; and who takes the role to be the inspiration and guardian of it? Perhaps someone who has the talent, the credibility for it, and subsequently receives a mandate in that sense?

Hugo Der Kinderen