In 1970 Warren Bennis wrote, The key task of the leader (is) building a climate in which collaboration, not conflict, will flourish.  An effective, collaborative climate should include the following ingredients:  flexible and adaptive structure, utilization of individual talents, clear and agreed-upon goals, standards of openness, trust, and cooperation, interdependence, high intrinsic rewards, and transactional […]

This week we continue our series on participatory, or collaborative, leadership structures by describing a scenario that really happened.  Here goes…   “With rank comes privilege” was the statement made in an executive staff meeting of an organization after a discussion as to how subordinates were to proceed with a directive which clearly had one […]

In one of the multitude of books written on the life and management style of Walt Disney, Capodagli & Jackson (2001) say that “Walt was the embodiment of a great leader, which we define as a person who inspires, motivates, and brings to fruition individual and team effort in an environment of creativity, trust, and […]

I believe that every so often it’s a good thing for leaders to seek out input from those they lead in order to discover what their team really thinks of them.  By asking the question “What comes to mind when you think of your leader?,” we can find out where we stand and if we […]

I’ve worked as a member of many different kinds of teams and work groups through the years.  My experience includes everything from teams where competition was passively encouraged, resulting in unhealthy relationships and the silos that come when it is implied to “go make it happen and don’t worry about the others,” to a 100% […]