Directory UMM :Data Elmu:jurnal:I:International Journal of Educational Management:Vol12.Issue2.1998:
Leadership development: the heart of the matter
Stephen S. Kaagan
Mic higan State Unive rsity, East Lansing, Mic higan, USA
Educators have a comparative
advantage over other professionals when it comes to
leadership development. They
should exploit it in the years
ahead to improve the enterprise for which they are
responsible. Whether they
can capture the moment,
take advantage of their
deeper understanding of
teaching and learning and
skirt some of the expensive
miscues that prevent others
from being an effective force
in leadership development
remains to be seen. This
article assembles and discusses the components
necessary for making the
most of the present set of
circumstances. It explores
the terrain of contemporary
initiatives in leadership development, critiques the
assumptions on which they
are based, and makes a case
for the more cost-effective
deployment of experiential
approaches to educating
leaders.
© Sage Publications,
California
This article is adapted from
a chapter in an upcoming
book on experiential forms
of leadership development
to be published in late 1998
by Sage Publications of
California under the title of
“ Leadership Games”
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [ 1998] 7 4 –8 1
MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[ 74 ]
The nature of the subject
Lea der sh ip developm en t is a bou t tea ch in g
lea der sh ip. Th e r ole of tea ch er is to cr ea te
a n d ca r r y ou t a m ix of a ctivities th a t w ill
h ave a positive im pa ct on lea r n er s, in ter m s
of th e su bject bein g ta u gh t. In th e con tem por a r y con text, th e su bject of lea der sh ip
r equ ir es lea r n er s to becom e a dept a t sh a pin g
a n d fu lfillin g, n ot on ly th eir ow n a im s, bu t
th ose of th eir follower s a s well. As J a m es
O’Toole (1995) n otes in L ea d in g Ch a n ge, lea der sh ip ba sed on im posin g on e’s w ill on oth er s
in cr ea sin gly en gen der s n e ga tive r a th er th a n
positive effects.
In str u m en ta l to lea der sh ip developm en t is
a w ide r a n ge of a ptitu des a n d ca pa bilities, a ll
of wh ich a ffect a per son ’s in ter a ction s w ith
co-wor k er s, con stitu en ts or cu stom er s – per son a l qu a lities, m or a l com m itm en ts a n d
m a n a gem en t sk ills. Th e effects of lea der sh ip
developm en t a r e m ost dir ectly felt in th e
socia l settin g of a n or ga n iza tion , wh er e lea der s a n d follower s a ttem pt to wor k togeth er to
a tta in com m on goa ls (Ter r y, 1993).
Over th e pa st cen tu r y, a s or ga n iza tion s
h ave gr ow n a n d th eir n u m ber s spr ea d a cr oss
th e la n dsca pe of h u m a n en deavor, con cer n
w ith lea der sh ip developm en t h a s w iden ed
a n d deepen ed. In fa ct, it is fa ir to say th a t th e
qu a lity of lea der sh ip ava ila ble to or ga n iza tion s a n d in stitu tion s h a s r ea ch ed th e th r esh old of becom in g a m a jor pr eoccu pa tion
w ith in in du str ia lized n a tion s. Th is sh ou ld
n ot be su r pr isin g sin ce th e per for m a n ce of
th e people in ch a r ge is r a th er con sequ en tia l,
wh en m ost of u s depen d on th e en tities th ey
lea d for both ou r su sten a n ce a n d sen se of
well-bein g.
To m er it th e la bel pr eoccu pa tion , a n issu e
m u st dr aw con sider a ble com m en t over a
su sta in ed per iod fr om exper ts a n d oth er s
w ith en ou gh tim e on th eir h a n ds to fi n d a
pu blic ou tlet for th eir opin ion s. Lik e th e
pr over bia l eleph a n t, th e issu e m u st su pply
en ou gh m a ss for pu n dits to be a ble to step
ba ck , ta k e sigh tin gs a n d a sser t, w ith little
fea r of con tr a diction , th a t th ey h ave
descr ibed a su bsta n tia l pa r t of wh a t is in
fr on t of th em . Th e topic of lea der sh ip
developm en t a dm ir a bly fu lfills th ese r equ ir em en ts. A cu r sor y r ea din g of th e tr a de jou r n a ls r evea ls exten sive discu ssion of va r iou s
pa r ts of th e a m ple bu lk of th e lea der sh ip
developm en t eleph a n t.
Current dimensions
Th er e a r e fou r m a jor dim en sion s to lea der sh ip developm en t. Ta k en togeth er, th ey r epr esen t a u sefu l w ay of fittin g th e pa r ts of th e
eleph a n t in to a m a n a gea ble fr a m e. In clu ded
a r e:
1 W h o sh ou ld do lea der sh ip developm en t?
2 W h en , or w ith in wh a t tim e fr a m e, sh ou ld it
be don e?
3 W h ere sh ou ld lea der sh ip developm en t
occu r, or on wh ose tu r f sh ou ld exper ien ces
be or ga n ized?
4 How sh ou ld it u n fold, or wh a t m a ter ia ls
a n d m eth ods sh ou ld be u sed to tea ch
lea der sh ip?
F ir st w h o. Fou r deca des a go th e a n swer
u n equ ivoca lly wou ld h ave been th a t u n iver sity pr ofessor s sh ou ld tea ch lea der sh ip, especia lly th ose in bu sin ess a n d pu blic a dm in istr a tion , a n d per h a ps a lso in edu ca tion . In th e
la st th ir d of a cen tu r y, h owever, con su lta n ts
h ave becom e a n esta blish ed a n d sign ifi ca n t
pa r t of th e lea der sh ip tea ch in g cor ps. Th eir
pr in cipa l lever a ge in th e field der ives fr om a n
a bility to r espon d m u ch m or e qu ick ly a n d
dir ectly th a n th e pr ofessor a te to expr essed
n eeds w ith in th e wor k pla ce itself. To su ch
im m edia cy th e a ca dem y n ever in ten ded, n or
w a s equ ipped, to r espon d: so u n iver sities
con tin u e to con cen tr a te on th e lon g-ter m
developm en t of lea der s, sepa r a te fr om th e
specific or ga n iza tion a l con text in wh ich th ey
wor k . Con su lta n ts ca n focu s m or e on sh or tter m developm en t of gr ou ps fa ced w ith specific ch a llen ges w ith in a n or ga n iza tion a l
settin g.
Recen tly, th er e h a s been in cr ea sin g sen tim en t voiced th a t n eith er pr ofessor s n or con su lta n ts ca n do th e job of tea ch in g lea der sh ip
a s well a s execu tives, or lea der s th em selves.
Acceptin g th e cr iticism of pr esen t-day lea der sh ip developm en t a s “too r ote, too ba ck w a r d-
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
look in g, too th eor etica l”(Coh en a n d Tich y,
1997), sever a l lea din g th in k er s m a k e th e ca se
th a t or ga n iza tion a l lea der s th em selves
sh ou ld ta k e r espon sibility for developin g
lea der s a t a ll levels in th eir or ga n iza tion s. In
on e gr ou n d-br ea k in g a ppr oa ch execu tives
th em selves for m u la te th eir ow n stor ies a bou t
“idea s, va lu es, edge a n d en er gy,” a n d th ey
sh a r e th em w ith su bor din a tes in th e fir m .
Dr aw n fr om th eir ow n exper ien ce, th e stor ies
becom e th e pr in cipa l tools for bu ildin g cowor k er s’ lea der sh ip sk ills a n d ca pa cities
(Coh en a n d Tich y, 1997).
Th e m a tter of wh o sh ou ld do lea der sh ip
developm en t h a s som e obviou s a ppea l in th a t
it iden tifies, a lbeit in n ocu ou sly, h er oes a n d
villa in s a n d design a tes ow n er sh ip r igh ts.
Th er e is r ea lly n ot m u ch of su bsta n ce to th e
issu e itself, h owever. In m a n y, if n ot m ost
in sta n ces, in dividu a ls of a sim ila r
ba ck gr ou n d w in d u p w ith cen tr a l r oles a s
tea ch er s; it ju st so h a ppen s th a t th ey a r e a t
differ en t poin ts in th eir ca r eer s wh en th ey
a r e en ga ged a s su ch .
A com m on scen a r io is th e for m er execu tive
wh o becom es a con su lta n t a n d th en a pa r ttim e pr ofessor, befor e tu r n in g in to a n execu tive a ga in , on ly to close a ca r eer a s a pr ofessor a n d/ or con su lta n t. Th e edge th a t a pr ofessor m igh t br in g to lea der sh ip developm en t, a s
opposed to a con su lta n t or a n execu tive, is
solely on e of per spective a n d br ea dth of
u n der sta n din g. Th ese a r e r ela ted a s m u ch to
th e r equ isites of wh a t sh ou ld be don e a n d
h ow, a s to wh o does it.
In th e exa m ple cited a bove Coh en a n d Tich y
(1997) a sser t a pr om in en t r ole for execu tives
in lea der sh ip developm en t, bu t it is th eir ow n
fr a m e, n ot th e execu tives’, th a t su pplies dir ection for th e pr ogr a m . So wh en a n a lysts offer a
pr om in en t position to th e qu estion of wh o
sh ou ld do lea der sh ip developm en t, th ey a r e
r ea lly u sin g it a s a w ay of pr ovok in g qu estion s a bou t con ten t a n d m eth odology.
Secon d, w h en sh ou ld th e tea ch in g of lea der sh ip be in sh or t bu r sts of tim e or dr aw n ou t
over lon ger per iods? How m u ch su sta in ed,
con tin u ou s tim e sh ou ld be a lloca ted? Sh ou ld
th e tim e a lloca ted to for m a l in str u ction be
in ter sper sed a m on g lon ger per iods of on -th ejob exper ien ce, wh eth er th r ou gh or ga n ized
pr a ctice session s or a ppr en ticesh ips?
J u st a s th e m a tter of w h o ca n n ot be sepa r a ted fr om th e qu estion of w h a t a n d h ow ,
n eith er ca n th e m a tter of w h en . Tim e a n d
tim in g a r e cr itica l a dju n cts of con ten t a n d
m eth odology, beca u se th ey con n ect to th e
qu estion of sequ en cin g a n d its close pa r tn er,
cu m u la tive effects. Th a t a pr oject gr ou p ca n
h a n dle w ith gr ea t fa cility a ch a r ged issu e
in volvin g eth n ic differ en ces is m or e th a n a
m a tter of good for tu n e. Su ch fa cility h a s r oots
in th e gr ou p’s pr ior lea r n in g. Per h a ps it w a s
foster ed th r ou gh a ser ies of seem in gly in con sequ en tia l, set-u p exer cises exper ien ced in
th e fir st week th e gr ou p spen t togeth er
(Ka a ga n , u n pu blish ed).
With m or e tim e, th er e ca n be gr ea ter
im pa ct if th e lea r n in g ch a llen ges a r e th e
r igh t on es a n d th ey a r e or der ed pr oper ly.
In ter sper sin g per iods of in str u ction w ith
per iods of pr a ctice, sta ge-settin g a ctivity or
ju st pla in fu n , m ay be th e best u se of ava ila ble
tim e. Lettin g discom fitin g n ew idea s settle
a n d ta k e h old in a r ea l wor k con text, a n d th en
la ter, in a m or e r em ote en vir on m en t, a sk in g
pa r ticipa n ts to r eexa m in e a n d r esh a pe th eir
th in k in g in ligh t of r ecen t on -th e-job exper ien ce m ay be th e m ost effective or der in g of
elem en ts.
A solid a n d en du r in g com m itm en t to colla bor a tion , for exa m ple, ca n n ot be m olded solely
in th e h oth ou se settin g of a tr a in in g cen ter,
n or even in th e m or e n a tu r a l m ilieu of th e
wor k pla ce itself. Ca r efu lly in ter weavin g
exper ien ces in both settin gs over tim e m igh t
pr odu ce th e desir ed effects. Th e deter m in a n t
of wh en to do som eth in g is wh a t to do a n d
h ow to ca r r y it off.
Th ir d, w h ere sh ou ld lea der sh ip developm en t a ctivities ta k e pla ce; in a u n iver sity
cla ssr oom ? Or, in a r etr ea t cen ter off th e wor k
site? Or per h a ps in specia l tr a in in g fa cilities
a t th e wor k site? Or, in u n fa m ilia r w ilder n ess
settin gs, or even m or e r em ote ven u es lik e
sou p k itch en s? Or, in th e wor k settin gs of
oth er or ga n iza tion s doin g th e sa m e k in d of
wor k a s th ose u n der goin g tr a in in g? Clea r ly
th e option s a r e m or e diver se today th a n th ey
h ave ever been . Lea der less gr ou ps in a plea sa n t r u r a l settin g, tea m bu ildin g a boa r d r u bber r a fts on a fa st-r u n n in g r iver, a n d ser vice
pr ojects in th e u n der gr ou n d h a u n ts of th e
h om eless in a la r ge city n ow com plem en t
exper t lectu r es a n d Socr a tic give-a n d-ta k e
offer ed in a m ph ith ea ter -style cla ssr oom s of
n oted bu sin ess sch ools. Un der sea or ou ter
spa ce m ay be th e on ly fr on tier s left u n ta pped.
Th e qu estion of pla ce, lik e th a t of wh o offer s
lea der sh ip edu ca tion a n d in wh a t tim e fr a m e,
is su bsidia r y to decision m a k in g a bou t con ten t a n d m eth odology. A pr ogr a m design er
does n ot a pr ior i decide th a t it wou ld be ben eficia l to ta k e a gr ou p of m iddle m a n a ger s in to
th e ou tba ck for two week s of su sta in ed tea m
lea der sh ip tr a in in g. Th er e is u su a lly a n a im
in m in d, wh eth er well- or ill-con ceived,
explicit or im plicit, a n d ch oice of pla ce
[ 75 ]
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
[ 76 ]
r ela tes to h ow best to a ch ieve th a t a im . Th e
ou tba ck ca n offer pa r ticipa n ts a ll th e edu ca tion a l a dva n ta ges of con sider a ble discom for t,
ju st a s a lu sh r esor t ca n offer a ll th e edu ca tion a l a dva n ta ges of com for t. E ith er on e, or
both , cou ld be essen tia l for lea r n in g, or con ver sely, cou ld sta n d in th e w ay of lea r n in g. It
a ll depen ds on th e objectives; a n d objectives
gover n con ten t a n d m eth odology.
In cr ea sin gly, th ose wh o tea ch lea der sh ip
seek to fit pla ce to pu r pose, a n d in m a n y
in sta n ces to a lter n a te pla ces depen din g on
differ en t pu r poses. In te gr a ted, th r ee-week
pr ogr a m s ca n ta k e pla ce in sever a l differ en t
ven u es. Th ey m igh t be gin w ith a sh or t stin t
in th e w ilder n ess, followed by cla ssr oom or
r etr ea t cen ter session s, a n d th en in volve a
m ove to a n u r ba n site for ser vice pr ojects.
Th e cu r r en t liter a tu r e on lea der sh ip developm en t is in fa ct r eplete w ith descr iption s of
pr ogr a m s th a t ta k e pla ce in m u ltiple sites.
For exa m ple, Vicer e (1996) descr ibes th r ee
ver y differ en tly con figu r ed pr ogr a m s – th e
Cen ter for Cr ea tive Lea der sh ip’s Lea der la b,
AT&T’s Lea der sh ip Developm en t P r ogr a m
a n d Ar a m a r k ’s E xecu tive Lea der sh ip In stitu te. E a ch offer s loca les th a t pu r por tedly
com plem en t th e a im s th ey a r e seek in g to
a ch ieve.
Fou r th , w h a t a n d h ow . Th e cen tr a l con cer n s for th ose design in g a n d doin g lea der sh ip developm en t a r e objectives, con ten t a n d
m eth odology. Th ese th r ee a r e th e wellspr in gs
of a pr ogr a m . Th ey deter m in e th e qu a lity of
th e exper ien ces pa r ticipa n ts h ave. Ultim a tely
th e im pa ct on pa r ticipa n ts, in ter m s of wh a t
th ey do in th e wor k pla ce, stem s fr om th ese. If
th e w h a t a n d h ow a r e solid, th ey ca n a ctu a lly
over com e deficien cies in th e w h ere a n d w h en ,
a n d per h a ps even th e w h o. Bu t th e r ever se is
n ot th e ca se.
F r om th e poin t of view of th e pa r ticipa n ts,
th e pr in cipa l veh icles for lea der sh ip developm en t, in ter m s of con ten t a n d m eth odology,
in clu de th e follow in g:
• listen in g to a lectu r e;
• en ga gin g in discu ssion w ith peer s, a lon e or
w ith coa ch es or con su lta n ts;
• pu r su in g a for m a l dia logu e (Boh m , 1992)
w ith peer s, su per visor s, su per visees or
som e com bin a tion of th ese;
• a n a lyzin g a ca se stu dy of a n oth er or ga n iza tion ’s pr oblem s or of on e’s ow n ;
• goin g th r ou gh a sh or t or lon g exper ien ce
w ith peer s, su per visor s, su per visees, or
som e com bin a tion of th ese, a n d th en
debr iefin g it. Th e sh a r ed exper ien ce cou ld
be dr aw n fr om on e’s ow n wor k pla ce or
som eon e else’s. Or it cou ld be con str u cted
fr om n a tu r a l cir cu m sta n ces, lik e th e on es a
w ilder n ess settin g pr ovides, or a r tificia l
on es, lik e th ose con ju r ed in ga m es a n d
sim u la tion s;
• discu ssin g w ith a coa ch or m en tor a design a ted pr oblem ; a n d
• u n der goin g a lea der sh ip a ssessm en t, eith er
via a su r vey in str u m en t or th r ou gh exper t
obser va tion of beh avior, exh ibited eith er
on -th e-job or in a la b settin g.
N a tu r a lly, a n y on e of th ese exper ien ces ca n
ta k e on on e or m or e ch a r a cter istics, depen din g on desir ed con ten t specifica tion s. Th e
m a ter ia l th a t pa r ticipa n ts en ga ge w ith , for
exa m ple, cou ld be h igh ly th eor etica l or qu ite
pr a ctica l. At th e sa m e tim e, it cou ld spa n
both , by pr oddin g pa r ticipa n ts to for m u la te
m en ta l m odels of th e beh avior th ey exh ibit on
th e job (Ar gyr is, 1992; Sen ge, 1993), or pr ovidin g th em w ith open -en ded oppor tu n ities to
a ssess th eir effectiven ess a s pr ofession a ls
(Sch on , 1983). Alter n a tively, th e m a ter ia l
m igh t en cou r a ge pa r ticipa n ts to gen er a te,
a n d tr y ou t, n ew idea s a n d con cepts, or it
cou ld focu s specifica lly on pa st a ction s a n d
th e deter m in a tion of im m edia te n ext steps in
th e wor k pla ce.
In a n oth er vein a ltogeth er, som e of wh a t is
pu t in fr on t of pa r ticipa n ts m igh t r ela te to
th eir pa r ticu la r wor k en vir on m en t. Wh ile
still r efl ective of r ea l wor ld ch a llen ges, th e
m a ter ia l cou ld in clu de issu es a n d pr oblem s
th a t obta in in a w ide r a n ge of settin gs. On th e
oth er h a n d, it m igh t, on its fa ce, h ave little
a ppa r en t r eleva n ce to pa r ticu la r or ga n iza tion a l con texts, or even to issu es or pr oblem s
th a t br oa dly diver se pa r ticipa n ts see a s ger m a n e to th eir wor k situ a tion s. In con tr a st,
th e con ten t cou ld be tim eless a n d en du r in g,
r ela tin g to h ow h u m a n bein gs fa ce a va r iety
of ch a llen ges th a t tr a n scen d a n y or ga n iza tion a l m ilieu . Ta k in g a differ en t per spective
a ltogeth er, it m igh t be tied to th is yea r ’s wor k
pla n a n d h ave little for eseea ble im pa ct
beyon d th a t tim e fr a m e.
Closin g ou t th e r a n ge of possibilities, th e
m a ter ia l cou ld be qu ite tech n ica l or scien tific, in volvin g th e a cqu isition of so-ca lled
h a r d sk ills. If n ot pu r ely tech n ica l, its pr in cipa l a ttr ibu te cou ld be its objectivity, w ith th e
con sequ en t pr esen ce or a bsen ce of a tta in a ble
sk ills ea sily discer n a ble by obser va tion or
su r vey. In con tr a st, th e m a ter ia l in fr on t of
pa r ticipa n ts cou ld em ph a size th e per son a l
a n d in ter per son a l, in volvin g so-ca lled soft
sk ills, tou ch in g u pon th e em otion a l, a n d
per h a ps even th e spir itu a l dim en sion s of
gettin g a job don e.
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
From the literature, some
misleading assumptions
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
It ou gh t to be a bu n da n tly a ppa r en t, fr om th e
r en der in g of option s ju st offer ed, th a t th e
con ten t a n d m eth odology of lea der sh ip developm en t com pr ise a deep a n d th ick wood. Th is
sh ou ld ser ve a s a m ple w a r n in g to a ll wh o
th in k th a t on e sh ou ld a ch ieve th ou gh tfu ln ess
to th e poin t of r igor a n d ca r e to th e poin t of
com pa ssion . Re gr etta bly, con ten t a n d
m eth odology h ave n ot r eceived th e ju diciou s
tr ea tm en t th ey deser ve. Th e con tem por a r y
liter a tu r e on lea der sh ip developm en t – a s
r epr esen ted in r ecen t issu es of Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics, A cross th e B oa rd, T h e J ou r n a l of M a n a gem en t Dev elopm en t, T h e A d m in istra tiv e S cien ce Qu a r terly – betr ays a cover a ge of th ese cr itica l dim en sion s th a t is su per ficia l a t best.
Th is su per ficia lity is m ost a ppa r en t in th e
a ssu m ption s m a de a bou t th e m ost a ppr opr ia te m ea n s of developin g lea der sh ip ca pa city.
Con veyed a s if th ey wer e given s offer in g
essen tia l gu ida n ce for pr ogr a m developm en t,
th ese a ssu m ption s in clu de th e follow in g:
• Issu es a n d pr oblem s dr aw n fr om th e wor k
pla ce of th e pa r ticipa n ts pr ovide th e m ost
fr u itfu l lea r n in g ch a llen ges for con tem por a r y lea der sh ip developm en t.
• E xper ien tia l lea r n in g a ctivities, or ga n ized
in on e for m or a n oth er ou tside tr a dition a l
in str u ction a l settin gs, a r e gen er a lly better
th a n lea r n in g a ctivities th a t a r e cla ssr oom ba sed.
• A h igh ly diver se pr ogr a m th a t in clu des a
m a r k et ba sk et of m eth odologies is gen er a lly su per ior to a n a ppr oa ch th a t is on edim en sion a l.
• Th e w h o, w h en a n d w h ere of pr ogr a m developm en t deser ve th e sa m e level of a tten tion
a s th e w h a t a n d h ow .
Th e pr oblem w ith th ese a ssu m ption s is n ot
th a t a r e fla tly fa lse. Qu ite th e con tr a r y, th er e
is a good dea l of va lidity in th em . Th eir pr in cipa l defect is th a t th ey a r e m islea din g: th ey
do n ot poin t th e w ay to th e m ost a r tfu l a n d
cost-effective lea der sh ip developm en t tr ea tm en ts. Th e fir st a ssu m ption is th a t th e m ost
fittin g m a ter ia l for lea der sh ip developm en t is
th e pr oblem s a n d issu es th a t dom in a te in th e
wor k pla ce of th e pa r ticipa n ts. Ra th er th a n
in va lida tin g th e a ssu m ption ou tr igh t, it is
fittin g to offer th e sim ple r ejoin der, dr aw n
fr om ten ets of good tea ch in g, th a t pa r ticipa n ts in lea der sh ip developm en t pr ogr a m s
sh ou ld spen d a s m u ch tim e aw ay fr om wor k pla ce pr oblem s a n d issu es a s th ey do in th eir
m idst. Th ey cou ld ben efi t equ a lly fr om
gr a pplin g w ith u n fa m ilia r cir cu m sta n ces a s
fr om dea lin g w ith fa m ilia r on es. Assu r edly,
th e u n fa m ilia r sh ou ld con ta in elem en ts r em in iscen t en ou gh to tou ch r espon sive ch or ds in
th e pa r ticipa n ts. At th e sa m e tim e, its differ en ces sh ou ld a id pa r ticipa n ts in over com in g
dysfu n ction a l pa tter n s th a t pla gu e th em in
th e wor k pla ce.
It m igh t seem th a t th e secon d a ssu m ption ,
th e desir a bility of exper ien tia l lea r n in g aw ay
fr om a cla ssr oom -type settin g, is th e cou n ter
to m a n y of th e dow n sides stem m in g fr om th e
fir st. Un for tu n a tely, a s th e liter a tu r e itself
dem on str a tes, th is is n ot th e ca se. E xper ien tia l in m ost in sta n ces in th e liter a tu r e m ea n s
“exotic”, a set of exper ien ces con du cted offsite, fr om wh ich pa r ticipa n ts a r e su pposed to
glea n im por ta n t lesson s th ey ca n th en br in g
ba ck to th eir wor k pla ce. In essen ce, wh a t is
offer ed a s exper ien tia l is th e exper ien ce in
a n d of itself, u su a lly a n a ctivity in volvin g
h igh in ten sity a n d h igh cost. A week a t a n
ou tw a r d bou n d pr ogr a m for 20 top m a n a ger s
is a fi ttin g exa m ple.
Th e n u b of th e pr oblem w ith pr ogr a m decision s pr edica ted on th e secon d a ssu m ption is
th ey a r e a n “expen sive h a lf loa f,” n ot m u ch
better th a n “n o loa f a t a ll.” Wh er ea s pa r ticipa n t exper ien ce is cer ta in ly cen tr a l to lea der sh ip developm en t, it m u st con ta in n ot on ly a
set of a ctivities bu t a lso a n effective m ea n s of
distillin g th e lea r n in g th a t th e a ctivities
pr om ote. Th e on ly w ay th is ca n h a ppen is if
a n a ble tea ch er a ssists pa r ticipa n ts w ith
con cept for m a tion a n d possible a pplica tion to
th eir wor k pla ce. Well-fa cilita ted discu ssion
is cen tr a l to a n exper ien ce, n ot su pplem en ta r y. It ca ptu r es th e lea r n in g a n d m a k es
a ppr opr ia te con n ection s w ith th e wor k pla ce
(Ka a ga n , u n pu blish ed).
As im por ta n t, exper ien tia l does n ot h ave to
m ea n extr em e, r em ote a n d costly. It ca n m ea n
m ild, pr oxim a te a n d in expen sive. Low in ten sity exper ien ces pr ovided pa r ticipa n ts w ith in
th e fou r w a lls of a cla ssr oom ca n lea d to vigor ou s discu ssion s, w ith gr ea t poten tia l for
lea der sh ip lea r n in g. It is often u n n ecessa r y
to ta k e a gr ou p aw ay for a n in ten sive, week lon g tr a in in g session in th e w ilder n ess. With
a gr ou p th a t is r ea dy, sever a l h ou r s of a ctive
en ga gem en t w ith a well-ch osen exer cise in a n
a m ple-sized r oom ca n pr odu ce m a r k ed
effects.
On th e th ir d a ssu m ption , th er e is n o dou bt
th a t h igh ly diver sified lea der sh ip-developm en t tr ea tm en ts ca n m a k e for r ich lea r n in g
oppor tu n ities. A week of ou tw a r d bou n d,
followed by a week of lectu r es a n d discu ssion s on a u n iver sity ca m pu s, a n d th en a fin a l
week of a ser vice pr oject in a city cen ter m ay
[ 77 ]
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
be th e r igh t m ix to cr ea te im pa ct. Th e oth er
side of th e coin is th a t su ch pr ogr a m s m ay be
over don e, fu ll of costly m oves th a t a r e n ot
n ecessa r y for th e a ch ievem en t of a specifi c set
of objectives. Mu ch pr efer r ed a r e exqu isitely
differ en tia ted objectives, clea r ly a r ticu la ted
a t th e ou tset, w ith ta r geted r espon ses by w ay
of pr oposed a ctivities. To do th in gs th is w ay,
h a r d-n osed design wor k is essen tia l, w ith its
pr im a r y focu s th e con ten t a n d m eth odology
of a pr ogr a m , tied ver y clea n ly to a set of
explicit pu r poses.
I h ave a lr ea dy expla in ed in fu ll a bove wh y
th e fou r th a ssu m ption m islea ds – th a t is,
pu ttin g th e w h o, w h ere a n d w h en on a pa r
w ith th e w h a t a n d h ow . It is im por ta n t, h ow ever, to a dd h er e th a t dir ectin g th e eye aw ay
fr om con ten t a n d m eth odology in cr ea ses th e
possibility th a t th ey w ill r em a in u n der exa m in ed. If th e a tten tion is disper sed, th en th e
a m ou n t of in qu ir y dir ected a t a n y on e elem en t w ill lik ely be in su fficien t. Th is is th e
ca se w ith th e pr esen t sta te of th e liter a tu r e on
lea der sh ip developm en t.
Unfortunate consequences of
being misled
Un for tu n a te con sequ en ces a ccom pa n y
a ction s ba sed on th e fou r a ssu m ption s. Toppin g th e list, pr ogr a m qu a lity h a s su ffer ed,
a n d th e costs of pu ttin g lea der sh ip developm en t pr ogr a m s on h ave becom e n eedlessly
exor bita n t. Loss of qu a lity is th e r esu lt of n ot
tyin g a ctivity tigh tly to pu r pose. F in e-gr a in ed
decision m a k in g a bou t th e lea st expen sive yet
m ost effective m ea n s to a n en d is n ot occu r r in g. E xcess is th e r esu lt of m a k in g lea der sh ip developm en t pr ogr a m s in to con glom er a tion s of w h a ts a n d h ow s, th e tota l cost of
wh ich is fr equ en tly u n ju stifi a ble.
In sta r k con tr a st, str on g cu m u la tive im pa ct
on pa r ticipa n ts ca n be a ch ieved if th er e a r e
th e follow in g pr esen t: ca r efu l a tten tion pa id
to th e ch oice a n d sequ en cin g of pr ogr a m
elem en ts; a n u n der sta n din g exh ibited of
pa r ticipa n ts’ n eeds for tr yin g ou t n ew idea s
on sa fe gr ou n d, aw ay fr om th eir wor k pla ce; a
r igh t ba la n ce str u ck between w r estlin g w ith
idea s on a n in dividu a l ba sis a s opposed to a
gr ou p ba sis; a n d pa tien ce sh ow n in ter m s of
br in gin g th e issu es ba ck h om e to th e wor k pla ce. F a ilu r e to m a k e th e r igh t m oves a n d to
effect th e r igh t or der of m oves in evita bly
lea ds to r edu n da n cies a n d to th e n eedless
expen ditu r e of r esou r ces.
Th e dem a n d for better lea der s a n d con sequ en tly for m or e expa n sive lea der sh ip developm en t effor ts is str on g a n d lik ely to becom e
[ 78 ]
str on ger in th e yea r s a h ea d. In th is a cceler a tin g r u sh to cr ea te n ew a n d better pr ogr a m s,
m a n y lea der sh ip developm en t spon sor s h ave
let th eir a ppetites for gr a n diosity over ta k e
th eir pen ch a n t for good ju dgm en t. Lost is
defer en ce to th e pr in ciple th a t well-cr a fted,
m odest in ter ven tion s ta r geted to a ch ieva ble
en ds, a n d tied to br oa der, lon g-r a n ge a im s,
m ay in th e en d pr odu ce m or e pr ofou n dly
positive a n d en du r in g effects.
Wh a t is n eeded is a gr ou n ded pr esen ta tion
th a t ties a ctivities to objectives, th a t is
explicit a bou t objectives, con ten t a n d m eth odology, th a t offer s solid su bsta n ce for lea der s,
tr a in er s a n d oth er s wh o tea ch lea der sh ip.
Th e over a r ch in g goa l sh ou ld be to pr eser ve
a n d exten d th e a dva n cem en ts con ta in ed in
th e pr esen t set of in itia tives, wh ile settin g
a side th e fl u ff. In evita bly th e blu sh w ill com e
off th e r ose of lea der sh ip developm en t in its
cu r r en t for m s, a n d or ga n iza tion a l lea der s
w ill seek ou t m or e r efin ed a n d econ om ica l
a ppr oa ch es, decr yin g th e excesses of th e
cu r r en t a r r ay.
A wiser path
As on e look s to th e h or izon of lea der sh ip
developm en t pr ogr a m m in g, h er e a r e pu r poses th a t sh ou ld be a ccor ded h igh pr ior ity.
Wh ile distilled in to a few pa ges, th ey u n der gir d a n a ppr oa ch to lea der sh ip developm en t
th a t sever a l lea din g th in k er s believe com es
close to th e h ea r t of th e m a tter (Bolm a n a n d
Dea l, 1994; Cla r k e a n d Cla r k e, 1994).
Th e pr im a r y “text” wh ich pa r ticipa n ts
sh ou ld in vest in is sh a r ed exper ien ce – possibly, a set of gr ou p exer cises bu ilt of a r tificia l
cir cu m sta n ces a n d con dition s. N eedless to
say, th is sor t of text is ver y differ en t fr om th a t
wh ich is pu r ch a sed in a book stor e, a pa ck a ge
of idea s con ta in ed between two cover s. E xper ien ce is r aw a n d im m edia te, m essy a n d
open -en ded. As su ch , it pla ces u n u su a l
dem a n ds on a ll wh o seek to u se it for lea r n in g
a n d fu r th er pr ofession a l developm en t. Yet,
wh en a ppr opr ia tely fa cilita ted, its poten tia l
a s a lea r n in g tool is lim itless.
As tea ch er -lea der s we sh ou ld h ave th ose
wh om we tea ch r eflect m or e ca r efu lly on
wh a t we do togeth er a n d m a k e con n ection s
w ith wh a t th ey do ou tside in th e r ea l wor ld.
P r im a r ily fr om th eir r eflection s on exper ien ce – pr ovok ed w ith ca r efu lly ph r a sed a n d
sequ en ced qu estion s – pa r ticipa n ts ca n be gin
to r econ str u ct, r efor m a n d r evise th e idea s
th ey h ave a bou t th e pr a ctice of or ga n iza tion a l
lea der sh ip. On ly secon da r ily a n d a s a su ppor t
sh ou ld r efer en ce be m a de to th e body of
exper t opin ion fou n d in book s a n d a r ticles a s
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
we in qu ir e togeth er in to th e m ea n in g of ou r
exper ien ces. In fa ct, it is wor th r eca llin g th a t
exper t com m en ta r y is n oth in g m or e th a n th e
ou tcom e of exper ts ca r efu lly r efl ectin g on
th eir ow n exper ien ces.
Ma k e n o m ista k e, th e “br idgin g lea p” a sk ed
of lea r n er s h er e is en or m ou s. F r om dwellin g
w ith a tea ch er a n d w ith ea ch oth er on th eir
exper ien ces to for m in g a n d a tta ch in g th em selves to n ew con cepts of lea der sh ip a n d
m a n a gem en t th a t th ey ca n br in g in to th eir
wor k pla ce – th is in volves con sider a ble r ea ch
a n d str a in . Yet on e ca n be a ssu r ed th a t if th ey
becom e em otion a lly en ga ged – discom fi ted or
sa tisfied, plea sed or con cer n ed, a gita ted or
com posed – beca u se of wh a t is h a ppen in g
a r ou n d a n d to th em ; if th eir a ttitu des a n d
th ose of th eir peer s ca n r em a in u n fr ozen ,
even if m om en ta r ily; a n d if th ey be gin to
m a k e in itia l con n ection s between th eir ow n
exper ien ce in a n exer cise a n d n ew idea s
a bou t wh a t m igh t m a k e sen se to do a t wor k ,
th e positive im pa ct on th em w ill be sign ifica n t a n d en du r in g.
Th e r ea dy or der th a t em er ges fr om a n
in str u ctor expou n din g a specific idea or set of
idea s is n ot pr esen t in th e a ppr oa ch ju st
descr ibed. Th er efor e, focu s is m or e difficu lt
to a tta in . Bu t if a tta in ed, a lbeit u n even ly,
th r ou gh em otion -fi lled a n d va lu e-la den dir ect
exper ien ce, th e h old of th e n ew idea s on pa r ticipa n ts w ill be m u ch m or e secu r e (P r ou dm a n , 1992). Th e br ick s, i.e. good idea s, w ill
n ot on ly be in pla ce, bu t th ey w ill be secu r ed
w ith a m ple m or ta r, i.e. a ccom pa n yin g feelin gs a n d a ttitu des.
Con tr a st th e a ppr oa ch ju st descr ibed, for
exa m ple, w ith “r eceivin g th e wor d” fr om
n oted exper ts, in per son , on a big scr een , or
via th e w r itten wor d. Wh ile exper t opin ion ,
h owever con veyed, is ta r geted a n d lu cid, it is
less lik ely to pr om ote a lter ed pr a ctices. How ever cogen t it m igh t be, it is in evita bly ster ile
in th a t it is deta ch ed fr om th e lives of th e
pa r ticipa n ts.
The roots of experiential learning
In la bor in g in th ese fields we sh ou ld be
a cu tely aw a r e of bor r ow in g th e idea s of
oth er s. For em ost is J oh n Dewey wh ose Ed u ca tion a n d Ex per ien ce is sem in a l. Offer ed fir st
a s a lectu r e to a pr ofession a l society in 1938, it
set th e sta ge for m ost of th e exper t com m en ta r y on exper ien tia l lea r n in g th a t followed.
To Dewey (1938):
ever y exper ien ce en a cted a n d u n der gon e,
m odifies th e on e wh o a cts a n d u n der goes,
wh ile th is m odifica tion a ffects, wh eth er we
w ish it or n ot, th e qu a lity of su bsequ en t
exper ien ces.
He goes on to offer two in ter r ela ted pr in ciples, or cr iter ia , of exper ien ce th a t len d th em selves well to a n yon e wh o w a n ts to ca pita lize
on exper ien ce for lea r n in g. Th e fir st is con tin u ity, th e secon d in ter a ction . Th e idea of
con tin u ity is th a t exper ien ces bu ild on ea ch
oth er. “E ver y exper ien ce is a m ovin g for ce. Its
va lu e ca n be ju dged on ly on th e gr ou n d of
wh a t it m oves tow a r d a n d in to” (Dewey, 1938).
Th e idea of in ter a ction is th a t exper ien ce
in volves a per son w ith wh a t is a r ou n d h im .
“An exper ien ce is a lw ays wh a t it is beca u se of
a tr a n sa ction ta k in g pla ce between a n in dividu a l a n d h is en vir on m en t” (Dewey, 1938),
wh eth er oth er people, a n issu e, a book or
wh a tever con stitu tes th a t en vir on m en t.
With in th e fr a m e of th ese tr a n sa ction s th e
r ich dr a m a of h u m a n im pu lses, n eeds a n d
desir es u n folds, a n d fr om th em people seek a
sen se of pu r pose a n d m ea n in g. N otes Dewey,
h u m a n s a r e by n a tu r e n ot sa tisfied w ith
m er ely obser vin g exper ien ce. Th eir im pu lses,
n eeds a n d desir es com pel th em to u n der sta n d
its sign ifi ca n ce, a n d u ltim a tely to pu sh th em
tow a r d a sen se of pu r pose.
A pu r pose is a n en d-view.
Th e for m a tion of pu r poses … in volves
(1) obser va tion of su r r ou n din g con dition s;
(2) k n ow ledge of wh a t h a s h a ppen ed in sim ila r situ a tion s in th e pa st … a n d
(3) ju dgm en t wh ich pu ts togeth er wh a t is
obser ved a n d wh a t is r eca lled to see wh a t
th ey sign ify (Dewey, 1938).
Th e pr in ciples of con tin u ity a n d in ter a ction
in exper ien ce a n d th e in evita ble m a r ch to a
sen se of pu r pose a r e cen tr a l to th e dyn a m ics
th ou gh tfu l edu ca tor s sh ou ld seek to cr ea te in
th e spa ce ch osen for lea der sh ip lea r n in g, be it
a m eetin g r oom of a h otel, th e spa ciou s law n
of a n ea r by pa r k or a n a ca dem ic cla ssr oom .
Th ese spa ces a r e qu ite a m ple for com m on
exper ien ces, in th e for m of gr ou p exer cises,
sim u la tion s or pr oblem s. Specia lly design ed
a n d con str u cted, th ey a r e m ea n t to pose sign ifi ca n t lea der sh ip qu a n da r ies. Con tr a r y to
wh a t m a n y m igh t say, th ey a r e n ot “fa k e” or
“u n r ea l” exper ien ces. As “a r ose is a r ose,” a n
exper ien ce is a n exper ien ce, wh eth er it
occu r s in a n office, on th e w ay h om e fr om
wor k , or in a cla ssr oom or tr a in in g cen ter.
Th e differ en ce between con str u cted exper ien ce a n d th a t of ever yday wor k life is th a t th e
for m er ta k es pla ce in a fa sh ion ed la b settin g
aw ay fr om th e m u ltiple dem a n ds of th e la tter.
It is qu ite con sciou sly r em oved fr om th e
dem a n ds a n d n or m s of th e wor k en vir on m en t. Su ch exper ien ces a llow people tim e
a n d spa ce to r eflect on th eir ow n beh avior, in
som ewh a t less pr eca r iou s cir cu m sta n ces
th a n th ose wh er e jobs a n d r epu ta tion s a r e a t
[ 79 ]
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
[ 80 ]
sta k e. In effect, th ey ta k e pla ce on “sa fe
gr ou n d”, often essen tia l for people to open
th em selves to lea r n in g.
In h is la n dm a r k wor k , T h e R efl ectiv e Pra ctition er , Sch on (1983) offer s str on g su bsta n tia tion of th e n eed for “sa fe gr ou n d,” especia lly
wh en im por ta n t lea der sh ip ca pa cities lik e
r isk ta k in g a n d colla bor a tion a r e a t sta k e.
Sch on a r gu es for th e expa n ded exer cise of
wh a t h e ca lls r efl ection -in -a ction by pr ofession a ls. Th is ca pa city goes beyon d tech n ica l
exper tise, in vitin g a pr ofession a l to r espon d
to u n cer ta in a n d com plex cir cu m sta n ces by
su r fa cin g k ey oper a tin g a ssu m ption s a n d
a n a lyzin g th em even in th e m iddle of on goin g
wor k .
F r om on e of th e ca ses h e pr esen ts, Sch on
(1983) con clu des th a t “th e r efl ection -in -a ction
of m a n a ger s is distin ctive in th a t th ey oper a te
in a n or ga n iza tion a l con text a n d dea l w ith
or ga n iza tion a l ph en om en a ” wh ich involve “a
system of ga m es a n d n or m s wh ich both gu ide
a n d lim it th e dir ection s of or ga n iza tion a l
in qu ir y”. In situ a tion s wh er e m a n a ger s m u st
ta k e cer ta in a ction s to pr eser ve th eir position
a n d im a ge, th ese ga m es a n d n or m s becom e
“disea ses th a t pr even t th eir ow n cu r e”
(Sch on , 1983). Th e effects on or ga n iza tion a l
per for m a n ce a r e in evita bly n e ga tive.
Sch on ’s a ccou n t beckon s th e cr ea tion of
cir cu m sta n ces in wh ich people wh o a spir e to
lea der sh ip a r e com pelled to ta k e a la r ger
view, to look m or e a t th e big pictu r e a n d a t
u n der lyin g a ssu m ption s dr ivin g a ction s a n d
r ea ction s, in a settin g r em oved fr om th e disa blin g ga m es a n d n or m s of th e or ga n iza tion s
in wh ich th ey wor k . Su ch con dition s pr ovide
pa r ticipa n ts a n ecessa r y oppor tu n ity to wor k
th r ou gh th e m u ltiple, in ter tw in ed obser va tion s of exper ien tia l ph en om en a .
Th e in ten t is to a dva n ce th e level a n d qu a lity of th ose obser va tion s to th e poin t wh er e
pa r ticipa n ts be gin to en ga ge in ser iou s
“r eflection -in -a ction ,” a n d u ltim a tely in th e
for m a tion of n ew con cepts. Th e wor k th a t
fa cilita tor a n d pa r ticipa n ts do togeth er in
th is con text becom es a n exer cise in “h yper obser va tion ,” lea din g to a n a n a lysis of wor k in g a ssu m ption s (th eor ies-in -a ction ), a n d to a
r efr a m in g of oper a tin g pr in ciples, gr ou n d
r u les th a t gover n fu tu r e a ction . It is
a xiom a tic th a t su ch a pr ogr ession ca n n ot
ta k e pla ce w ith in th e con fi n es of a n or ga n iza tion ’s wor k spa ce. Th e fr esh a ir of exper ien tia l exer cises con du cted off th e wor k site
offer s a n efficien t w ay of su r fa cin g wor k in g
a ssu m ption s for ser iou s r eview a n d
r evision .
E n dem ic to effective in ter a ction w ith pa r ticipa n ts in th e exer cises is dr aw in g th em u p
sh or t, in to a n a n a lysis of “wh a t h a s ju st ta k en
pla ce in th is r oom .” Th e situ a tion th a t h a s
ju st a r isen is h eld u p a s a m a n ifesta tion of a n
issu e or pr oblem th a t h a s to be dea lt w ith
ou tside th is r oom , in th e r ea l wor ld. To r epea t
a n ea r lier con ten tion , th e exper ien ce pa r ticipa n ts a n d tea ch er a r e h avin g in th e exer cise
a n d discu ssion follow in g is n ot a r tificia l; it is
a s r ea l a s th a t wh ich occu r s elsewh er e.
Th is is pa r ticu la r ly tr u e of a topic lik e lea der sh ip, a t th e ver y h ea r t of wh ich a r e socia l
in ter a ction , defi n ition of pu r pose, a ccom plish m en t of ta sk a n d eva lu a tion of r esu lts.
Su ch in gr edien ts a r e a s m u ch in eviden ce in
th e r oom pa r ticipa n ts a r e m eetin g in a s in
th eir wor k pla ces. Th er e m ay, in a ctu a lity, be
m or e poten tia l for solid lea r n in g fr om th e
“h er e-a n d-n ow,” in con tr a st to th e “h om e
ba se,” r em ote a s th e la tter is in th e h ea t of th e
m om en t.
Conclusion
Th is a r ticle focu ses on essen tia l a spects of
lea der sh ip developm en t, wh ich a t th e cor e is
a bou t tea ch in g lea der sh ip. It r ecou n ts fou r
dim en sion s of lea der sh ip developm en t a n d
fixes on th e cen tr a l on e, con ten t a n d m eth odology. It th en u n cover s sever a l m a jor oper a tin g a ssu m ption s th a t pr eva il in th e cu r r en t
liter a tu r e. Ra th er th a n ser vin g a s a u sefu l
gu ide to effective pr a ctice, th ese a ssu m ption s
ca n m islea d pr a ctition er s in sign ifica n t w ays.
Th e costs of bein g m isled h er e a r e h igh , both
in ter m s of effectiven ess a n d m on eta r y ou tlay.
Havin g la in ba r e cen tr a l deficien cies a ppa r en t in th e pr esen t th in k in g a bou t lea der sh ip
developm en t, th e a r ticle a dva n ces a differ en t
w ay of con ceptu a lizin g it. Th is a ppr oa ch
ca pita lizes on th e pr om ise th a t exists in pr esen t in itia tives, su ch a s gr ou p exper ien tia l
lea r n in g; yet a t th e sa m e tim e avoids pitfa lls,
su ch a s over ly ela bor a te exper ien ces wh ose
effects a r e wea k for th e expen se in cu r r ed.
In th e en d it poin ts th e w ay to m or e lea der sh ip lea r n in g for less exper ien ce, r a th er th a n
th e r ever se.
References and further reading
Ar gyr is, C.(1992), On Orga n iz a tion a l L ea r n in g,
Bla ck well Bu sin ess.
Boh m (1992), “Dia logu e: a n in tr odu ction ”, a
m on ogr a ph .
Bolm a n , L. a n d Dea l, T .(1991), R efra m in g Orga n iz a tion s, A r tistr y, Ch oice a n d L ea d ersh ip,
J ossey-Ba ss.
Bolm a n , L. a n d Dea l, T. (1994), “Look in g for
lea der sh ip: a n oth er sea r ch pa r ty’s r epor t”,
Ed u ca tion a l A d m in istra tion Qu a r terly,
Vol. 30 N o. 1.
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
Bu r k e, W. (1997), “Th e n ew a gen da for or ga n iza tion a l developm en t”, Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics, Su m m er.
Cla r k e, K. a n d Cla r k e, M. (1994), Ch oosin g to L ea d ,
Th e Cen ter for Cr ea tive Lea der sh ip.
Coh en , E . a n d Tich y, N. (1997), “How lea der s
develop lea der s”, T ra in in g a n d Dev elopm en t,
May.
Con ger, J . (1993), “Th e br ave n ew wor ld of lea der sh ip tr a in in g”, Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics,
Win ter.
Csok a , L.S. (1996), “Th e r u sh to lea der sh ip tr a in in g”, A cross T h e B oa rd, Septem ber.
Dewey, J . (1938), Ex per ien ce a n d Ed u ca tion ,
Ma cm illa n .
Ka a ga n , S. (1997), L ea d ersh ip L esson s: From a L ife
of Ch a ra cter a n d Pu rpose in Pu blic A ffa irs,
Un iver sity P r ess of Am er ica .
Ka a ga n , S., “Lea der sh ip ga m es: exper ien tia l
lea r n in g for lea der sh ip developm en t”,
u n pu blish ed m a n u scr ipt.
Keys, J .B. (1988), “Ma n a gem en t edu ca tion a n d
developm en t: cu r r en t issu es a n d em er gin g
tr en ds”, T h e J ou r n a l of M a n a gem en t, Vol. 14
N o. 2.
O’Toole, J . (1995), L ea d in g Ch a n ge: T h e A rgu m en t
for Va lu es-B a sed L ea d ersh ip, J ossey-Ba ss.
P r ou dm a n , S. (1992), “E xper ien tia l edu ca tion
a s em otion a lly-en ga ged lea r n in g”, T h e
J ou r n a l of Ex per ien tia l Ed u ca tion , Vol. 15
N o. 2.
Ra ilin , J . (1997), “Action lea r n in g a n d a ction scien ce: a r e th ey differ en t?”, Orga n iz a tion a l
Dyn a m ics, Su m m er.
Sch on , D. (1983), T h e R efl ectiv e Pra ctition er:
How Profession a l T h in k in A ction , Ba sic
Book s.
Sen ge, P. (1990), T h e Fifth Disciplin e, Dou bleday.
Stu m pf, S. a n d Du tton , J . (1990), “Th e dyn a m ics of
lea r n in g th r ou gh m a n a gem en t sim u la tion s:
let’s da n ce”, T h e J ou r n a l of M a n a gem en t
Dev elopm en t, Vol. 9 N o. 2.
Ter r y, R. (1993), A u th en tic L ea d ersh ip: Cou ra ge in
A ction , J ossey-Ba ss.
Vicer e, A. (1996), “E xecu tive edu ca tion : th e lea din g edge”, Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics, F a ll.
[ 81 ]
Stephen S. Kaagan
Mic higan State Unive rsity, East Lansing, Mic higan, USA
Educators have a comparative
advantage over other professionals when it comes to
leadership development. They
should exploit it in the years
ahead to improve the enterprise for which they are
responsible. Whether they
can capture the moment,
take advantage of their
deeper understanding of
teaching and learning and
skirt some of the expensive
miscues that prevent others
from being an effective force
in leadership development
remains to be seen. This
article assembles and discusses the components
necessary for making the
most of the present set of
circumstances. It explores
the terrain of contemporary
initiatives in leadership development, critiques the
assumptions on which they
are based, and makes a case
for the more cost-effective
deployment of experiential
approaches to educating
leaders.
© Sage Publications,
California
This article is adapted from
a chapter in an upcoming
book on experiential forms
of leadership development
to be published in late 1998
by Sage Publications of
California under the title of
“ Leadership Games”
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [ 1998] 7 4 –8 1
MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[ 74 ]
The nature of the subject
Lea der sh ip developm en t is a bou t tea ch in g
lea der sh ip. Th e r ole of tea ch er is to cr ea te
a n d ca r r y ou t a m ix of a ctivities th a t w ill
h ave a positive im pa ct on lea r n er s, in ter m s
of th e su bject bein g ta u gh t. In th e con tem por a r y con text, th e su bject of lea der sh ip
r equ ir es lea r n er s to becom e a dept a t sh a pin g
a n d fu lfillin g, n ot on ly th eir ow n a im s, bu t
th ose of th eir follower s a s well. As J a m es
O’Toole (1995) n otes in L ea d in g Ch a n ge, lea der sh ip ba sed on im posin g on e’s w ill on oth er s
in cr ea sin gly en gen der s n e ga tive r a th er th a n
positive effects.
In str u m en ta l to lea der sh ip developm en t is
a w ide r a n ge of a ptitu des a n d ca pa bilities, a ll
of wh ich a ffect a per son ’s in ter a ction s w ith
co-wor k er s, con stitu en ts or cu stom er s – per son a l qu a lities, m or a l com m itm en ts a n d
m a n a gem en t sk ills. Th e effects of lea der sh ip
developm en t a r e m ost dir ectly felt in th e
socia l settin g of a n or ga n iza tion , wh er e lea der s a n d follower s a ttem pt to wor k togeth er to
a tta in com m on goa ls (Ter r y, 1993).
Over th e pa st cen tu r y, a s or ga n iza tion s
h ave gr ow n a n d th eir n u m ber s spr ea d a cr oss
th e la n dsca pe of h u m a n en deavor, con cer n
w ith lea der sh ip developm en t h a s w iden ed
a n d deepen ed. In fa ct, it is fa ir to say th a t th e
qu a lity of lea der sh ip ava ila ble to or ga n iza tion s a n d in stitu tion s h a s r ea ch ed th e th r esh old of becom in g a m a jor pr eoccu pa tion
w ith in in du str ia lized n a tion s. Th is sh ou ld
n ot be su r pr isin g sin ce th e per for m a n ce of
th e people in ch a r ge is r a th er con sequ en tia l,
wh en m ost of u s depen d on th e en tities th ey
lea d for both ou r su sten a n ce a n d sen se of
well-bein g.
To m er it th e la bel pr eoccu pa tion , a n issu e
m u st dr aw con sider a ble com m en t over a
su sta in ed per iod fr om exper ts a n d oth er s
w ith en ou gh tim e on th eir h a n ds to fi n d a
pu blic ou tlet for th eir opin ion s. Lik e th e
pr over bia l eleph a n t, th e issu e m u st su pply
en ou gh m a ss for pu n dits to be a ble to step
ba ck , ta k e sigh tin gs a n d a sser t, w ith little
fea r of con tr a diction , th a t th ey h ave
descr ibed a su bsta n tia l pa r t of wh a t is in
fr on t of th em . Th e topic of lea der sh ip
developm en t a dm ir a bly fu lfills th ese r equ ir em en ts. A cu r sor y r ea din g of th e tr a de jou r n a ls r evea ls exten sive discu ssion of va r iou s
pa r ts of th e a m ple bu lk of th e lea der sh ip
developm en t eleph a n t.
Current dimensions
Th er e a r e fou r m a jor dim en sion s to lea der sh ip developm en t. Ta k en togeth er, th ey r epr esen t a u sefu l w ay of fittin g th e pa r ts of th e
eleph a n t in to a m a n a gea ble fr a m e. In clu ded
a r e:
1 W h o sh ou ld do lea der sh ip developm en t?
2 W h en , or w ith in wh a t tim e fr a m e, sh ou ld it
be don e?
3 W h ere sh ou ld lea der sh ip developm en t
occu r, or on wh ose tu r f sh ou ld exper ien ces
be or ga n ized?
4 How sh ou ld it u n fold, or wh a t m a ter ia ls
a n d m eth ods sh ou ld be u sed to tea ch
lea der sh ip?
F ir st w h o. Fou r deca des a go th e a n swer
u n equ ivoca lly wou ld h ave been th a t u n iver sity pr ofessor s sh ou ld tea ch lea der sh ip, especia lly th ose in bu sin ess a n d pu blic a dm in istr a tion , a n d per h a ps a lso in edu ca tion . In th e
la st th ir d of a cen tu r y, h owever, con su lta n ts
h ave becom e a n esta blish ed a n d sign ifi ca n t
pa r t of th e lea der sh ip tea ch in g cor ps. Th eir
pr in cipa l lever a ge in th e field der ives fr om a n
a bility to r espon d m u ch m or e qu ick ly a n d
dir ectly th a n th e pr ofessor a te to expr essed
n eeds w ith in th e wor k pla ce itself. To su ch
im m edia cy th e a ca dem y n ever in ten ded, n or
w a s equ ipped, to r espon d: so u n iver sities
con tin u e to con cen tr a te on th e lon g-ter m
developm en t of lea der s, sepa r a te fr om th e
specific or ga n iza tion a l con text in wh ich th ey
wor k . Con su lta n ts ca n focu s m or e on sh or tter m developm en t of gr ou ps fa ced w ith specific ch a llen ges w ith in a n or ga n iza tion a l
settin g.
Recen tly, th er e h a s been in cr ea sin g sen tim en t voiced th a t n eith er pr ofessor s n or con su lta n ts ca n do th e job of tea ch in g lea der sh ip
a s well a s execu tives, or lea der s th em selves.
Acceptin g th e cr iticism of pr esen t-day lea der sh ip developm en t a s “too r ote, too ba ck w a r d-
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
look in g, too th eor etica l”(Coh en a n d Tich y,
1997), sever a l lea din g th in k er s m a k e th e ca se
th a t or ga n iza tion a l lea der s th em selves
sh ou ld ta k e r espon sibility for developin g
lea der s a t a ll levels in th eir or ga n iza tion s. In
on e gr ou n d-br ea k in g a ppr oa ch execu tives
th em selves for m u la te th eir ow n stor ies a bou t
“idea s, va lu es, edge a n d en er gy,” a n d th ey
sh a r e th em w ith su bor din a tes in th e fir m .
Dr aw n fr om th eir ow n exper ien ce, th e stor ies
becom e th e pr in cipa l tools for bu ildin g cowor k er s’ lea der sh ip sk ills a n d ca pa cities
(Coh en a n d Tich y, 1997).
Th e m a tter of wh o sh ou ld do lea der sh ip
developm en t h a s som e obviou s a ppea l in th a t
it iden tifies, a lbeit in n ocu ou sly, h er oes a n d
villa in s a n d design a tes ow n er sh ip r igh ts.
Th er e is r ea lly n ot m u ch of su bsta n ce to th e
issu e itself, h owever. In m a n y, if n ot m ost
in sta n ces, in dividu a ls of a sim ila r
ba ck gr ou n d w in d u p w ith cen tr a l r oles a s
tea ch er s; it ju st so h a ppen s th a t th ey a r e a t
differ en t poin ts in th eir ca r eer s wh en th ey
a r e en ga ged a s su ch .
A com m on scen a r io is th e for m er execu tive
wh o becom es a con su lta n t a n d th en a pa r ttim e pr ofessor, befor e tu r n in g in to a n execu tive a ga in , on ly to close a ca r eer a s a pr ofessor a n d/ or con su lta n t. Th e edge th a t a pr ofessor m igh t br in g to lea der sh ip developm en t, a s
opposed to a con su lta n t or a n execu tive, is
solely on e of per spective a n d br ea dth of
u n der sta n din g. Th ese a r e r ela ted a s m u ch to
th e r equ isites of wh a t sh ou ld be don e a n d
h ow, a s to wh o does it.
In th e exa m ple cited a bove Coh en a n d Tich y
(1997) a sser t a pr om in en t r ole for execu tives
in lea der sh ip developm en t, bu t it is th eir ow n
fr a m e, n ot th e execu tives’, th a t su pplies dir ection for th e pr ogr a m . So wh en a n a lysts offer a
pr om in en t position to th e qu estion of wh o
sh ou ld do lea der sh ip developm en t, th ey a r e
r ea lly u sin g it a s a w ay of pr ovok in g qu estion s a bou t con ten t a n d m eth odology.
Secon d, w h en sh ou ld th e tea ch in g of lea der sh ip be in sh or t bu r sts of tim e or dr aw n ou t
over lon ger per iods? How m u ch su sta in ed,
con tin u ou s tim e sh ou ld be a lloca ted? Sh ou ld
th e tim e a lloca ted to for m a l in str u ction be
in ter sper sed a m on g lon ger per iods of on -th ejob exper ien ce, wh eth er th r ou gh or ga n ized
pr a ctice session s or a ppr en ticesh ips?
J u st a s th e m a tter of w h o ca n n ot be sepa r a ted fr om th e qu estion of w h a t a n d h ow ,
n eith er ca n th e m a tter of w h en . Tim e a n d
tim in g a r e cr itica l a dju n cts of con ten t a n d
m eth odology, beca u se th ey con n ect to th e
qu estion of sequ en cin g a n d its close pa r tn er,
cu m u la tive effects. Th a t a pr oject gr ou p ca n
h a n dle w ith gr ea t fa cility a ch a r ged issu e
in volvin g eth n ic differ en ces is m or e th a n a
m a tter of good for tu n e. Su ch fa cility h a s r oots
in th e gr ou p’s pr ior lea r n in g. Per h a ps it w a s
foster ed th r ou gh a ser ies of seem in gly in con sequ en tia l, set-u p exer cises exper ien ced in
th e fir st week th e gr ou p spen t togeth er
(Ka a ga n , u n pu blish ed).
With m or e tim e, th er e ca n be gr ea ter
im pa ct if th e lea r n in g ch a llen ges a r e th e
r igh t on es a n d th ey a r e or der ed pr oper ly.
In ter sper sin g per iods of in str u ction w ith
per iods of pr a ctice, sta ge-settin g a ctivity or
ju st pla in fu n , m ay be th e best u se of ava ila ble
tim e. Lettin g discom fitin g n ew idea s settle
a n d ta k e h old in a r ea l wor k con text, a n d th en
la ter, in a m or e r em ote en vir on m en t, a sk in g
pa r ticipa n ts to r eexa m in e a n d r esh a pe th eir
th in k in g in ligh t of r ecen t on -th e-job exper ien ce m ay be th e m ost effective or der in g of
elem en ts.
A solid a n d en du r in g com m itm en t to colla bor a tion , for exa m ple, ca n n ot be m olded solely
in th e h oth ou se settin g of a tr a in in g cen ter,
n or even in th e m or e n a tu r a l m ilieu of th e
wor k pla ce itself. Ca r efu lly in ter weavin g
exper ien ces in both settin gs over tim e m igh t
pr odu ce th e desir ed effects. Th e deter m in a n t
of wh en to do som eth in g is wh a t to do a n d
h ow to ca r r y it off.
Th ir d, w h ere sh ou ld lea der sh ip developm en t a ctivities ta k e pla ce; in a u n iver sity
cla ssr oom ? Or, in a r etr ea t cen ter off th e wor k
site? Or per h a ps in specia l tr a in in g fa cilities
a t th e wor k site? Or, in u n fa m ilia r w ilder n ess
settin gs, or even m or e r em ote ven u es lik e
sou p k itch en s? Or, in th e wor k settin gs of
oth er or ga n iza tion s doin g th e sa m e k in d of
wor k a s th ose u n der goin g tr a in in g? Clea r ly
th e option s a r e m or e diver se today th a n th ey
h ave ever been . Lea der less gr ou ps in a plea sa n t r u r a l settin g, tea m bu ildin g a boa r d r u bber r a fts on a fa st-r u n n in g r iver, a n d ser vice
pr ojects in th e u n der gr ou n d h a u n ts of th e
h om eless in a la r ge city n ow com plem en t
exper t lectu r es a n d Socr a tic give-a n d-ta k e
offer ed in a m ph ith ea ter -style cla ssr oom s of
n oted bu sin ess sch ools. Un der sea or ou ter
spa ce m ay be th e on ly fr on tier s left u n ta pped.
Th e qu estion of pla ce, lik e th a t of wh o offer s
lea der sh ip edu ca tion a n d in wh a t tim e fr a m e,
is su bsidia r y to decision m a k in g a bou t con ten t a n d m eth odology. A pr ogr a m design er
does n ot a pr ior i decide th a t it wou ld be ben eficia l to ta k e a gr ou p of m iddle m a n a ger s in to
th e ou tba ck for two week s of su sta in ed tea m
lea der sh ip tr a in in g. Th er e is u su a lly a n a im
in m in d, wh eth er well- or ill-con ceived,
explicit or im plicit, a n d ch oice of pla ce
[ 75 ]
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
[ 76 ]
r ela tes to h ow best to a ch ieve th a t a im . Th e
ou tba ck ca n offer pa r ticipa n ts a ll th e edu ca tion a l a dva n ta ges of con sider a ble discom for t,
ju st a s a lu sh r esor t ca n offer a ll th e edu ca tion a l a dva n ta ges of com for t. E ith er on e, or
both , cou ld be essen tia l for lea r n in g, or con ver sely, cou ld sta n d in th e w ay of lea r n in g. It
a ll depen ds on th e objectives; a n d objectives
gover n con ten t a n d m eth odology.
In cr ea sin gly, th ose wh o tea ch lea der sh ip
seek to fit pla ce to pu r pose, a n d in m a n y
in sta n ces to a lter n a te pla ces depen din g on
differ en t pu r poses. In te gr a ted, th r ee-week
pr ogr a m s ca n ta k e pla ce in sever a l differ en t
ven u es. Th ey m igh t be gin w ith a sh or t stin t
in th e w ilder n ess, followed by cla ssr oom or
r etr ea t cen ter session s, a n d th en in volve a
m ove to a n u r ba n site for ser vice pr ojects.
Th e cu r r en t liter a tu r e on lea der sh ip developm en t is in fa ct r eplete w ith descr iption s of
pr ogr a m s th a t ta k e pla ce in m u ltiple sites.
For exa m ple, Vicer e (1996) descr ibes th r ee
ver y differ en tly con figu r ed pr ogr a m s – th e
Cen ter for Cr ea tive Lea der sh ip’s Lea der la b,
AT&T’s Lea der sh ip Developm en t P r ogr a m
a n d Ar a m a r k ’s E xecu tive Lea der sh ip In stitu te. E a ch offer s loca les th a t pu r por tedly
com plem en t th e a im s th ey a r e seek in g to
a ch ieve.
Fou r th , w h a t a n d h ow . Th e cen tr a l con cer n s for th ose design in g a n d doin g lea der sh ip developm en t a r e objectives, con ten t a n d
m eth odology. Th ese th r ee a r e th e wellspr in gs
of a pr ogr a m . Th ey deter m in e th e qu a lity of
th e exper ien ces pa r ticipa n ts h ave. Ultim a tely
th e im pa ct on pa r ticipa n ts, in ter m s of wh a t
th ey do in th e wor k pla ce, stem s fr om th ese. If
th e w h a t a n d h ow a r e solid, th ey ca n a ctu a lly
over com e deficien cies in th e w h ere a n d w h en ,
a n d per h a ps even th e w h o. Bu t th e r ever se is
n ot th e ca se.
F r om th e poin t of view of th e pa r ticipa n ts,
th e pr in cipa l veh icles for lea der sh ip developm en t, in ter m s of con ten t a n d m eth odology,
in clu de th e follow in g:
• listen in g to a lectu r e;
• en ga gin g in discu ssion w ith peer s, a lon e or
w ith coa ch es or con su lta n ts;
• pu r su in g a for m a l dia logu e (Boh m , 1992)
w ith peer s, su per visor s, su per visees or
som e com bin a tion of th ese;
• a n a lyzin g a ca se stu dy of a n oth er or ga n iza tion ’s pr oblem s or of on e’s ow n ;
• goin g th r ou gh a sh or t or lon g exper ien ce
w ith peer s, su per visor s, su per visees, or
som e com bin a tion of th ese, a n d th en
debr iefin g it. Th e sh a r ed exper ien ce cou ld
be dr aw n fr om on e’s ow n wor k pla ce or
som eon e else’s. Or it cou ld be con str u cted
fr om n a tu r a l cir cu m sta n ces, lik e th e on es a
w ilder n ess settin g pr ovides, or a r tificia l
on es, lik e th ose con ju r ed in ga m es a n d
sim u la tion s;
• discu ssin g w ith a coa ch or m en tor a design a ted pr oblem ; a n d
• u n der goin g a lea der sh ip a ssessm en t, eith er
via a su r vey in str u m en t or th r ou gh exper t
obser va tion of beh avior, exh ibited eith er
on -th e-job or in a la b settin g.
N a tu r a lly, a n y on e of th ese exper ien ces ca n
ta k e on on e or m or e ch a r a cter istics, depen din g on desir ed con ten t specifica tion s. Th e
m a ter ia l th a t pa r ticipa n ts en ga ge w ith , for
exa m ple, cou ld be h igh ly th eor etica l or qu ite
pr a ctica l. At th e sa m e tim e, it cou ld spa n
both , by pr oddin g pa r ticipa n ts to for m u la te
m en ta l m odels of th e beh avior th ey exh ibit on
th e job (Ar gyr is, 1992; Sen ge, 1993), or pr ovidin g th em w ith open -en ded oppor tu n ities to
a ssess th eir effectiven ess a s pr ofession a ls
(Sch on , 1983). Alter n a tively, th e m a ter ia l
m igh t en cou r a ge pa r ticipa n ts to gen er a te,
a n d tr y ou t, n ew idea s a n d con cepts, or it
cou ld focu s specifica lly on pa st a ction s a n d
th e deter m in a tion of im m edia te n ext steps in
th e wor k pla ce.
In a n oth er vein a ltogeth er, som e of wh a t is
pu t in fr on t of pa r ticipa n ts m igh t r ela te to
th eir pa r ticu la r wor k en vir on m en t. Wh ile
still r efl ective of r ea l wor ld ch a llen ges, th e
m a ter ia l cou ld in clu de issu es a n d pr oblem s
th a t obta in in a w ide r a n ge of settin gs. On th e
oth er h a n d, it m igh t, on its fa ce, h ave little
a ppa r en t r eleva n ce to pa r ticu la r or ga n iza tion a l con texts, or even to issu es or pr oblem s
th a t br oa dly diver se pa r ticipa n ts see a s ger m a n e to th eir wor k situ a tion s. In con tr a st,
th e con ten t cou ld be tim eless a n d en du r in g,
r ela tin g to h ow h u m a n bein gs fa ce a va r iety
of ch a llen ges th a t tr a n scen d a n y or ga n iza tion a l m ilieu . Ta k in g a differ en t per spective
a ltogeth er, it m igh t be tied to th is yea r ’s wor k
pla n a n d h ave little for eseea ble im pa ct
beyon d th a t tim e fr a m e.
Closin g ou t th e r a n ge of possibilities, th e
m a ter ia l cou ld be qu ite tech n ica l or scien tific, in volvin g th e a cqu isition of so-ca lled
h a r d sk ills. If n ot pu r ely tech n ica l, its pr in cipa l a ttr ibu te cou ld be its objectivity, w ith th e
con sequ en t pr esen ce or a bsen ce of a tta in a ble
sk ills ea sily discer n a ble by obser va tion or
su r vey. In con tr a st, th e m a ter ia l in fr on t of
pa r ticipa n ts cou ld em ph a size th e per son a l
a n d in ter per son a l, in volvin g so-ca lled soft
sk ills, tou ch in g u pon th e em otion a l, a n d
per h a ps even th e spir itu a l dim en sion s of
gettin g a job don e.
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
From the literature, some
misleading assumptions
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
It ou gh t to be a bu n da n tly a ppa r en t, fr om th e
r en der in g of option s ju st offer ed, th a t th e
con ten t a n d m eth odology of lea der sh ip developm en t com pr ise a deep a n d th ick wood. Th is
sh ou ld ser ve a s a m ple w a r n in g to a ll wh o
th in k th a t on e sh ou ld a ch ieve th ou gh tfu ln ess
to th e poin t of r igor a n d ca r e to th e poin t of
com pa ssion . Re gr etta bly, con ten t a n d
m eth odology h ave n ot r eceived th e ju diciou s
tr ea tm en t th ey deser ve. Th e con tem por a r y
liter a tu r e on lea der sh ip developm en t – a s
r epr esen ted in r ecen t issu es of Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics, A cross th e B oa rd, T h e J ou r n a l of M a n a gem en t Dev elopm en t, T h e A d m in istra tiv e S cien ce Qu a r terly – betr ays a cover a ge of th ese cr itica l dim en sion s th a t is su per ficia l a t best.
Th is su per ficia lity is m ost a ppa r en t in th e
a ssu m ption s m a de a bou t th e m ost a ppr opr ia te m ea n s of developin g lea der sh ip ca pa city.
Con veyed a s if th ey wer e given s offer in g
essen tia l gu ida n ce for pr ogr a m developm en t,
th ese a ssu m ption s in clu de th e follow in g:
• Issu es a n d pr oblem s dr aw n fr om th e wor k
pla ce of th e pa r ticipa n ts pr ovide th e m ost
fr u itfu l lea r n in g ch a llen ges for con tem por a r y lea der sh ip developm en t.
• E xper ien tia l lea r n in g a ctivities, or ga n ized
in on e for m or a n oth er ou tside tr a dition a l
in str u ction a l settin gs, a r e gen er a lly better
th a n lea r n in g a ctivities th a t a r e cla ssr oom ba sed.
• A h igh ly diver se pr ogr a m th a t in clu des a
m a r k et ba sk et of m eth odologies is gen er a lly su per ior to a n a ppr oa ch th a t is on edim en sion a l.
• Th e w h o, w h en a n d w h ere of pr ogr a m developm en t deser ve th e sa m e level of a tten tion
a s th e w h a t a n d h ow .
Th e pr oblem w ith th ese a ssu m ption s is n ot
th a t a r e fla tly fa lse. Qu ite th e con tr a r y, th er e
is a good dea l of va lidity in th em . Th eir pr in cipa l defect is th a t th ey a r e m islea din g: th ey
do n ot poin t th e w ay to th e m ost a r tfu l a n d
cost-effective lea der sh ip developm en t tr ea tm en ts. Th e fir st a ssu m ption is th a t th e m ost
fittin g m a ter ia l for lea der sh ip developm en t is
th e pr oblem s a n d issu es th a t dom in a te in th e
wor k pla ce of th e pa r ticipa n ts. Ra th er th a n
in va lida tin g th e a ssu m ption ou tr igh t, it is
fittin g to offer th e sim ple r ejoin der, dr aw n
fr om ten ets of good tea ch in g, th a t pa r ticipa n ts in lea der sh ip developm en t pr ogr a m s
sh ou ld spen d a s m u ch tim e aw ay fr om wor k pla ce pr oblem s a n d issu es a s th ey do in th eir
m idst. Th ey cou ld ben efi t equ a lly fr om
gr a pplin g w ith u n fa m ilia r cir cu m sta n ces a s
fr om dea lin g w ith fa m ilia r on es. Assu r edly,
th e u n fa m ilia r sh ou ld con ta in elem en ts r em in iscen t en ou gh to tou ch r espon sive ch or ds in
th e pa r ticipa n ts. At th e sa m e tim e, its differ en ces sh ou ld a id pa r ticipa n ts in over com in g
dysfu n ction a l pa tter n s th a t pla gu e th em in
th e wor k pla ce.
It m igh t seem th a t th e secon d a ssu m ption ,
th e desir a bility of exper ien tia l lea r n in g aw ay
fr om a cla ssr oom -type settin g, is th e cou n ter
to m a n y of th e dow n sides stem m in g fr om th e
fir st. Un for tu n a tely, a s th e liter a tu r e itself
dem on str a tes, th is is n ot th e ca se. E xper ien tia l in m ost in sta n ces in th e liter a tu r e m ea n s
“exotic”, a set of exper ien ces con du cted offsite, fr om wh ich pa r ticipa n ts a r e su pposed to
glea n im por ta n t lesson s th ey ca n th en br in g
ba ck to th eir wor k pla ce. In essen ce, wh a t is
offer ed a s exper ien tia l is th e exper ien ce in
a n d of itself, u su a lly a n a ctivity in volvin g
h igh in ten sity a n d h igh cost. A week a t a n
ou tw a r d bou n d pr ogr a m for 20 top m a n a ger s
is a fi ttin g exa m ple.
Th e n u b of th e pr oblem w ith pr ogr a m decision s pr edica ted on th e secon d a ssu m ption is
th ey a r e a n “expen sive h a lf loa f,” n ot m u ch
better th a n “n o loa f a t a ll.” Wh er ea s pa r ticipa n t exper ien ce is cer ta in ly cen tr a l to lea der sh ip developm en t, it m u st con ta in n ot on ly a
set of a ctivities bu t a lso a n effective m ea n s of
distillin g th e lea r n in g th a t th e a ctivities
pr om ote. Th e on ly w ay th is ca n h a ppen is if
a n a ble tea ch er a ssists pa r ticipa n ts w ith
con cept for m a tion a n d possible a pplica tion to
th eir wor k pla ce. Well-fa cilita ted discu ssion
is cen tr a l to a n exper ien ce, n ot su pplem en ta r y. It ca ptu r es th e lea r n in g a n d m a k es
a ppr opr ia te con n ection s w ith th e wor k pla ce
(Ka a ga n , u n pu blish ed).
As im por ta n t, exper ien tia l does n ot h ave to
m ea n extr em e, r em ote a n d costly. It ca n m ea n
m ild, pr oxim a te a n d in expen sive. Low in ten sity exper ien ces pr ovided pa r ticipa n ts w ith in
th e fou r w a lls of a cla ssr oom ca n lea d to vigor ou s discu ssion s, w ith gr ea t poten tia l for
lea der sh ip lea r n in g. It is often u n n ecessa r y
to ta k e a gr ou p aw ay for a n in ten sive, week lon g tr a in in g session in th e w ilder n ess. With
a gr ou p th a t is r ea dy, sever a l h ou r s of a ctive
en ga gem en t w ith a well-ch osen exer cise in a n
a m ple-sized r oom ca n pr odu ce m a r k ed
effects.
On th e th ir d a ssu m ption , th er e is n o dou bt
th a t h igh ly diver sified lea der sh ip-developm en t tr ea tm en ts ca n m a k e for r ich lea r n in g
oppor tu n ities. A week of ou tw a r d bou n d,
followed by a week of lectu r es a n d discu ssion s on a u n iver sity ca m pu s, a n d th en a fin a l
week of a ser vice pr oject in a city cen ter m ay
[ 77 ]
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
be th e r igh t m ix to cr ea te im pa ct. Th e oth er
side of th e coin is th a t su ch pr ogr a m s m ay be
over don e, fu ll of costly m oves th a t a r e n ot
n ecessa r y for th e a ch ievem en t of a specifi c set
of objectives. Mu ch pr efer r ed a r e exqu isitely
differ en tia ted objectives, clea r ly a r ticu la ted
a t th e ou tset, w ith ta r geted r espon ses by w ay
of pr oposed a ctivities. To do th in gs th is w ay,
h a r d-n osed design wor k is essen tia l, w ith its
pr im a r y focu s th e con ten t a n d m eth odology
of a pr ogr a m , tied ver y clea n ly to a set of
explicit pu r poses.
I h ave a lr ea dy expla in ed in fu ll a bove wh y
th e fou r th a ssu m ption m islea ds – th a t is,
pu ttin g th e w h o, w h ere a n d w h en on a pa r
w ith th e w h a t a n d h ow . It is im por ta n t, h ow ever, to a dd h er e th a t dir ectin g th e eye aw ay
fr om con ten t a n d m eth odology in cr ea ses th e
possibility th a t th ey w ill r em a in u n der exa m in ed. If th e a tten tion is disper sed, th en th e
a m ou n t of in qu ir y dir ected a t a n y on e elem en t w ill lik ely be in su fficien t. Th is is th e
ca se w ith th e pr esen t sta te of th e liter a tu r e on
lea der sh ip developm en t.
Unfortunate consequences of
being misled
Un for tu n a te con sequ en ces a ccom pa n y
a ction s ba sed on th e fou r a ssu m ption s. Toppin g th e list, pr ogr a m qu a lity h a s su ffer ed,
a n d th e costs of pu ttin g lea der sh ip developm en t pr ogr a m s on h ave becom e n eedlessly
exor bita n t. Loss of qu a lity is th e r esu lt of n ot
tyin g a ctivity tigh tly to pu r pose. F in e-gr a in ed
decision m a k in g a bou t th e lea st expen sive yet
m ost effective m ea n s to a n en d is n ot occu r r in g. E xcess is th e r esu lt of m a k in g lea der sh ip developm en t pr ogr a m s in to con glom er a tion s of w h a ts a n d h ow s, th e tota l cost of
wh ich is fr equ en tly u n ju stifi a ble.
In sta r k con tr a st, str on g cu m u la tive im pa ct
on pa r ticipa n ts ca n be a ch ieved if th er e a r e
th e follow in g pr esen t: ca r efu l a tten tion pa id
to th e ch oice a n d sequ en cin g of pr ogr a m
elem en ts; a n u n der sta n din g exh ibited of
pa r ticipa n ts’ n eeds for tr yin g ou t n ew idea s
on sa fe gr ou n d, aw ay fr om th eir wor k pla ce; a
r igh t ba la n ce str u ck between w r estlin g w ith
idea s on a n in dividu a l ba sis a s opposed to a
gr ou p ba sis; a n d pa tien ce sh ow n in ter m s of
br in gin g th e issu es ba ck h om e to th e wor k pla ce. F a ilu r e to m a k e th e r igh t m oves a n d to
effect th e r igh t or der of m oves in evita bly
lea ds to r edu n da n cies a n d to th e n eedless
expen ditu r e of r esou r ces.
Th e dem a n d for better lea der s a n d con sequ en tly for m or e expa n sive lea der sh ip developm en t effor ts is str on g a n d lik ely to becom e
[ 78 ]
str on ger in th e yea r s a h ea d. In th is a cceler a tin g r u sh to cr ea te n ew a n d better pr ogr a m s,
m a n y lea der sh ip developm en t spon sor s h ave
let th eir a ppetites for gr a n diosity over ta k e
th eir pen ch a n t for good ju dgm en t. Lost is
defer en ce to th e pr in ciple th a t well-cr a fted,
m odest in ter ven tion s ta r geted to a ch ieva ble
en ds, a n d tied to br oa der, lon g-r a n ge a im s,
m ay in th e en d pr odu ce m or e pr ofou n dly
positive a n d en du r in g effects.
Wh a t is n eeded is a gr ou n ded pr esen ta tion
th a t ties a ctivities to objectives, th a t is
explicit a bou t objectives, con ten t a n d m eth odology, th a t offer s solid su bsta n ce for lea der s,
tr a in er s a n d oth er s wh o tea ch lea der sh ip.
Th e over a r ch in g goa l sh ou ld be to pr eser ve
a n d exten d th e a dva n cem en ts con ta in ed in
th e pr esen t set of in itia tives, wh ile settin g
a side th e fl u ff. In evita bly th e blu sh w ill com e
off th e r ose of lea der sh ip developm en t in its
cu r r en t for m s, a n d or ga n iza tion a l lea der s
w ill seek ou t m or e r efin ed a n d econ om ica l
a ppr oa ch es, decr yin g th e excesses of th e
cu r r en t a r r ay.
A wiser path
As on e look s to th e h or izon of lea der sh ip
developm en t pr ogr a m m in g, h er e a r e pu r poses th a t sh ou ld be a ccor ded h igh pr ior ity.
Wh ile distilled in to a few pa ges, th ey u n der gir d a n a ppr oa ch to lea der sh ip developm en t
th a t sever a l lea din g th in k er s believe com es
close to th e h ea r t of th e m a tter (Bolm a n a n d
Dea l, 1994; Cla r k e a n d Cla r k e, 1994).
Th e pr im a r y “text” wh ich pa r ticipa n ts
sh ou ld in vest in is sh a r ed exper ien ce – possibly, a set of gr ou p exer cises bu ilt of a r tificia l
cir cu m sta n ces a n d con dition s. N eedless to
say, th is sor t of text is ver y differ en t fr om th a t
wh ich is pu r ch a sed in a book stor e, a pa ck a ge
of idea s con ta in ed between two cover s. E xper ien ce is r aw a n d im m edia te, m essy a n d
open -en ded. As su ch , it pla ces u n u su a l
dem a n ds on a ll wh o seek to u se it for lea r n in g
a n d fu r th er pr ofession a l developm en t. Yet,
wh en a ppr opr ia tely fa cilita ted, its poten tia l
a s a lea r n in g tool is lim itless.
As tea ch er -lea der s we sh ou ld h ave th ose
wh om we tea ch r eflect m or e ca r efu lly on
wh a t we do togeth er a n d m a k e con n ection s
w ith wh a t th ey do ou tside in th e r ea l wor ld.
P r im a r ily fr om th eir r eflection s on exper ien ce – pr ovok ed w ith ca r efu lly ph r a sed a n d
sequ en ced qu estion s – pa r ticipa n ts ca n be gin
to r econ str u ct, r efor m a n d r evise th e idea s
th ey h ave a bou t th e pr a ctice of or ga n iza tion a l
lea der sh ip. On ly secon da r ily a n d a s a su ppor t
sh ou ld r efer en ce be m a de to th e body of
exper t opin ion fou n d in book s a n d a r ticles a s
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
we in qu ir e togeth er in to th e m ea n in g of ou r
exper ien ces. In fa ct, it is wor th r eca llin g th a t
exper t com m en ta r y is n oth in g m or e th a n th e
ou tcom e of exper ts ca r efu lly r efl ectin g on
th eir ow n exper ien ces.
Ma k e n o m ista k e, th e “br idgin g lea p” a sk ed
of lea r n er s h er e is en or m ou s. F r om dwellin g
w ith a tea ch er a n d w ith ea ch oth er on th eir
exper ien ces to for m in g a n d a tta ch in g th em selves to n ew con cepts of lea der sh ip a n d
m a n a gem en t th a t th ey ca n br in g in to th eir
wor k pla ce – th is in volves con sider a ble r ea ch
a n d str a in . Yet on e ca n be a ssu r ed th a t if th ey
becom e em otion a lly en ga ged – discom fi ted or
sa tisfied, plea sed or con cer n ed, a gita ted or
com posed – beca u se of wh a t is h a ppen in g
a r ou n d a n d to th em ; if th eir a ttitu des a n d
th ose of th eir peer s ca n r em a in u n fr ozen ,
even if m om en ta r ily; a n d if th ey be gin to
m a k e in itia l con n ection s between th eir ow n
exper ien ce in a n exer cise a n d n ew idea s
a bou t wh a t m igh t m a k e sen se to do a t wor k ,
th e positive im pa ct on th em w ill be sign ifica n t a n d en du r in g.
Th e r ea dy or der th a t em er ges fr om a n
in str u ctor expou n din g a specific idea or set of
idea s is n ot pr esen t in th e a ppr oa ch ju st
descr ibed. Th er efor e, focu s is m or e difficu lt
to a tta in . Bu t if a tta in ed, a lbeit u n even ly,
th r ou gh em otion -fi lled a n d va lu e-la den dir ect
exper ien ce, th e h old of th e n ew idea s on pa r ticipa n ts w ill be m u ch m or e secu r e (P r ou dm a n , 1992). Th e br ick s, i.e. good idea s, w ill
n ot on ly be in pla ce, bu t th ey w ill be secu r ed
w ith a m ple m or ta r, i.e. a ccom pa n yin g feelin gs a n d a ttitu des.
Con tr a st th e a ppr oa ch ju st descr ibed, for
exa m ple, w ith “r eceivin g th e wor d” fr om
n oted exper ts, in per son , on a big scr een , or
via th e w r itten wor d. Wh ile exper t opin ion ,
h owever con veyed, is ta r geted a n d lu cid, it is
less lik ely to pr om ote a lter ed pr a ctices. How ever cogen t it m igh t be, it is in evita bly ster ile
in th a t it is deta ch ed fr om th e lives of th e
pa r ticipa n ts.
The roots of experiential learning
In la bor in g in th ese fields we sh ou ld be
a cu tely aw a r e of bor r ow in g th e idea s of
oth er s. For em ost is J oh n Dewey wh ose Ed u ca tion a n d Ex per ien ce is sem in a l. Offer ed fir st
a s a lectu r e to a pr ofession a l society in 1938, it
set th e sta ge for m ost of th e exper t com m en ta r y on exper ien tia l lea r n in g th a t followed.
To Dewey (1938):
ever y exper ien ce en a cted a n d u n der gon e,
m odifies th e on e wh o a cts a n d u n der goes,
wh ile th is m odifica tion a ffects, wh eth er we
w ish it or n ot, th e qu a lity of su bsequ en t
exper ien ces.
He goes on to offer two in ter r ela ted pr in ciples, or cr iter ia , of exper ien ce th a t len d th em selves well to a n yon e wh o w a n ts to ca pita lize
on exper ien ce for lea r n in g. Th e fir st is con tin u ity, th e secon d in ter a ction . Th e idea of
con tin u ity is th a t exper ien ces bu ild on ea ch
oth er. “E ver y exper ien ce is a m ovin g for ce. Its
va lu e ca n be ju dged on ly on th e gr ou n d of
wh a t it m oves tow a r d a n d in to” (Dewey, 1938).
Th e idea of in ter a ction is th a t exper ien ce
in volves a per son w ith wh a t is a r ou n d h im .
“An exper ien ce is a lw ays wh a t it is beca u se of
a tr a n sa ction ta k in g pla ce between a n in dividu a l a n d h is en vir on m en t” (Dewey, 1938),
wh eth er oth er people, a n issu e, a book or
wh a tever con stitu tes th a t en vir on m en t.
With in th e fr a m e of th ese tr a n sa ction s th e
r ich dr a m a of h u m a n im pu lses, n eeds a n d
desir es u n folds, a n d fr om th em people seek a
sen se of pu r pose a n d m ea n in g. N otes Dewey,
h u m a n s a r e by n a tu r e n ot sa tisfied w ith
m er ely obser vin g exper ien ce. Th eir im pu lses,
n eeds a n d desir es com pel th em to u n der sta n d
its sign ifi ca n ce, a n d u ltim a tely to pu sh th em
tow a r d a sen se of pu r pose.
A pu r pose is a n en d-view.
Th e for m a tion of pu r poses … in volves
(1) obser va tion of su r r ou n din g con dition s;
(2) k n ow ledge of wh a t h a s h a ppen ed in sim ila r situ a tion s in th e pa st … a n d
(3) ju dgm en t wh ich pu ts togeth er wh a t is
obser ved a n d wh a t is r eca lled to see wh a t
th ey sign ify (Dewey, 1938).
Th e pr in ciples of con tin u ity a n d in ter a ction
in exper ien ce a n d th e in evita ble m a r ch to a
sen se of pu r pose a r e cen tr a l to th e dyn a m ics
th ou gh tfu l edu ca tor s sh ou ld seek to cr ea te in
th e spa ce ch osen for lea der sh ip lea r n in g, be it
a m eetin g r oom of a h otel, th e spa ciou s law n
of a n ea r by pa r k or a n a ca dem ic cla ssr oom .
Th ese spa ces a r e qu ite a m ple for com m on
exper ien ces, in th e for m of gr ou p exer cises,
sim u la tion s or pr oblem s. Specia lly design ed
a n d con str u cted, th ey a r e m ea n t to pose sign ifi ca n t lea der sh ip qu a n da r ies. Con tr a r y to
wh a t m a n y m igh t say, th ey a r e n ot “fa k e” or
“u n r ea l” exper ien ces. As “a r ose is a r ose,” a n
exper ien ce is a n exper ien ce, wh eth er it
occu r s in a n office, on th e w ay h om e fr om
wor k , or in a cla ssr oom or tr a in in g cen ter.
Th e differ en ce between con str u cted exper ien ce a n d th a t of ever yday wor k life is th a t th e
for m er ta k es pla ce in a fa sh ion ed la b settin g
aw ay fr om th e m u ltiple dem a n ds of th e la tter.
It is qu ite con sciou sly r em oved fr om th e
dem a n ds a n d n or m s of th e wor k en vir on m en t. Su ch exper ien ces a llow people tim e
a n d spa ce to r eflect on th eir ow n beh avior, in
som ewh a t less pr eca r iou s cir cu m sta n ces
th a n th ose wh er e jobs a n d r epu ta tion s a r e a t
[ 79 ]
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
[ 80 ]
sta k e. In effect, th ey ta k e pla ce on “sa fe
gr ou n d”, often essen tia l for people to open
th em selves to lea r n in g.
In h is la n dm a r k wor k , T h e R efl ectiv e Pra ctition er , Sch on (1983) offer s str on g su bsta n tia tion of th e n eed for “sa fe gr ou n d,” especia lly
wh en im por ta n t lea der sh ip ca pa cities lik e
r isk ta k in g a n d colla bor a tion a r e a t sta k e.
Sch on a r gu es for th e expa n ded exer cise of
wh a t h e ca lls r efl ection -in -a ction by pr ofession a ls. Th is ca pa city goes beyon d tech n ica l
exper tise, in vitin g a pr ofession a l to r espon d
to u n cer ta in a n d com plex cir cu m sta n ces by
su r fa cin g k ey oper a tin g a ssu m ption s a n d
a n a lyzin g th em even in th e m iddle of on goin g
wor k .
F r om on e of th e ca ses h e pr esen ts, Sch on
(1983) con clu des th a t “th e r efl ection -in -a ction
of m a n a ger s is distin ctive in th a t th ey oper a te
in a n or ga n iza tion a l con text a n d dea l w ith
or ga n iza tion a l ph en om en a ” wh ich involve “a
system of ga m es a n d n or m s wh ich both gu ide
a n d lim it th e dir ection s of or ga n iza tion a l
in qu ir y”. In situ a tion s wh er e m a n a ger s m u st
ta k e cer ta in a ction s to pr eser ve th eir position
a n d im a ge, th ese ga m es a n d n or m s becom e
“disea ses th a t pr even t th eir ow n cu r e”
(Sch on , 1983). Th e effects on or ga n iza tion a l
per for m a n ce a r e in evita bly n e ga tive.
Sch on ’s a ccou n t beckon s th e cr ea tion of
cir cu m sta n ces in wh ich people wh o a spir e to
lea der sh ip a r e com pelled to ta k e a la r ger
view, to look m or e a t th e big pictu r e a n d a t
u n der lyin g a ssu m ption s dr ivin g a ction s a n d
r ea ction s, in a settin g r em oved fr om th e disa blin g ga m es a n d n or m s of th e or ga n iza tion s
in wh ich th ey wor k . Su ch con dition s pr ovide
pa r ticipa n ts a n ecessa r y oppor tu n ity to wor k
th r ou gh th e m u ltiple, in ter tw in ed obser va tion s of exper ien tia l ph en om en a .
Th e in ten t is to a dva n ce th e level a n d qu a lity of th ose obser va tion s to th e poin t wh er e
pa r ticipa n ts be gin to en ga ge in ser iou s
“r eflection -in -a ction ,” a n d u ltim a tely in th e
for m a tion of n ew con cepts. Th e wor k th a t
fa cilita tor a n d pa r ticipa n ts do togeth er in
th is con text becom es a n exer cise in “h yper obser va tion ,” lea din g to a n a n a lysis of wor k in g a ssu m ption s (th eor ies-in -a ction ), a n d to a
r efr a m in g of oper a tin g pr in ciples, gr ou n d
r u les th a t gover n fu tu r e a ction . It is
a xiom a tic th a t su ch a pr ogr ession ca n n ot
ta k e pla ce w ith in th e con fi n es of a n or ga n iza tion ’s wor k spa ce. Th e fr esh a ir of exper ien tia l exer cises con du cted off th e wor k site
offer s a n efficien t w ay of su r fa cin g wor k in g
a ssu m ption s for ser iou s r eview a n d
r evision .
E n dem ic to effective in ter a ction w ith pa r ticipa n ts in th e exer cises is dr aw in g th em u p
sh or t, in to a n a n a lysis of “wh a t h a s ju st ta k en
pla ce in th is r oom .” Th e situ a tion th a t h a s
ju st a r isen is h eld u p a s a m a n ifesta tion of a n
issu e or pr oblem th a t h a s to be dea lt w ith
ou tside th is r oom , in th e r ea l wor ld. To r epea t
a n ea r lier con ten tion , th e exper ien ce pa r ticipa n ts a n d tea ch er a r e h avin g in th e exer cise
a n d discu ssion follow in g is n ot a r tificia l; it is
a s r ea l a s th a t wh ich occu r s elsewh er e.
Th is is pa r ticu la r ly tr u e of a topic lik e lea der sh ip, a t th e ver y h ea r t of wh ich a r e socia l
in ter a ction , defi n ition of pu r pose, a ccom plish m en t of ta sk a n d eva lu a tion of r esu lts.
Su ch in gr edien ts a r e a s m u ch in eviden ce in
th e r oom pa r ticipa n ts a r e m eetin g in a s in
th eir wor k pla ces. Th er e m ay, in a ctu a lity, be
m or e poten tia l for solid lea r n in g fr om th e
“h er e-a n d-n ow,” in con tr a st to th e “h om e
ba se,” r em ote a s th e la tter is in th e h ea t of th e
m om en t.
Conclusion
Th is a r ticle focu ses on essen tia l a spects of
lea der sh ip developm en t, wh ich a t th e cor e is
a bou t tea ch in g lea der sh ip. It r ecou n ts fou r
dim en sion s of lea der sh ip developm en t a n d
fixes on th e cen tr a l on e, con ten t a n d m eth odology. It th en u n cover s sever a l m a jor oper a tin g a ssu m ption s th a t pr eva il in th e cu r r en t
liter a tu r e. Ra th er th a n ser vin g a s a u sefu l
gu ide to effective pr a ctice, th ese a ssu m ption s
ca n m islea d pr a ctition er s in sign ifica n t w ays.
Th e costs of bein g m isled h er e a r e h igh , both
in ter m s of effectiven ess a n d m on eta r y ou tlay.
Havin g la in ba r e cen tr a l deficien cies a ppa r en t in th e pr esen t th in k in g a bou t lea der sh ip
developm en t, th e a r ticle a dva n ces a differ en t
w ay of con ceptu a lizin g it. Th is a ppr oa ch
ca pita lizes on th e pr om ise th a t exists in pr esen t in itia tives, su ch a s gr ou p exper ien tia l
lea r n in g; yet a t th e sa m e tim e avoids pitfa lls,
su ch a s over ly ela bor a te exper ien ces wh ose
effects a r e wea k for th e expen se in cu r r ed.
In th e en d it poin ts th e w ay to m or e lea der sh ip lea r n in g for less exper ien ce, r a th er th a n
th e r ever se.
References and further reading
Ar gyr is, C.(1992), On Orga n iz a tion a l L ea r n in g,
Bla ck well Bu sin ess.
Boh m (1992), “Dia logu e: a n in tr odu ction ”, a
m on ogr a ph .
Bolm a n , L. a n d Dea l, T .(1991), R efra m in g Orga n iz a tion s, A r tistr y, Ch oice a n d L ea d ersh ip,
J ossey-Ba ss.
Bolm a n , L. a n d Dea l, T. (1994), “Look in g for
lea der sh ip: a n oth er sea r ch pa r ty’s r epor t”,
Ed u ca tion a l A d m in istra tion Qu a r terly,
Vol. 30 N o. 1.
Ste phe n S. Kaagan
Le ade rship de ve lo pme nt:
the he art o f the matte r
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 2 / 2 [1 9 9 8 ] 7 4 –8 1
Bu r k e, W. (1997), “Th e n ew a gen da for or ga n iza tion a l developm en t”, Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics, Su m m er.
Cla r k e, K. a n d Cla r k e, M. (1994), Ch oosin g to L ea d ,
Th e Cen ter for Cr ea tive Lea der sh ip.
Coh en , E . a n d Tich y, N. (1997), “How lea der s
develop lea der s”, T ra in in g a n d Dev elopm en t,
May.
Con ger, J . (1993), “Th e br ave n ew wor ld of lea der sh ip tr a in in g”, Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics,
Win ter.
Csok a , L.S. (1996), “Th e r u sh to lea der sh ip tr a in in g”, A cross T h e B oa rd, Septem ber.
Dewey, J . (1938), Ex per ien ce a n d Ed u ca tion ,
Ma cm illa n .
Ka a ga n , S. (1997), L ea d ersh ip L esson s: From a L ife
of Ch a ra cter a n d Pu rpose in Pu blic A ffa irs,
Un iver sity P r ess of Am er ica .
Ka a ga n , S., “Lea der sh ip ga m es: exper ien tia l
lea r n in g for lea der sh ip developm en t”,
u n pu blish ed m a n u scr ipt.
Keys, J .B. (1988), “Ma n a gem en t edu ca tion a n d
developm en t: cu r r en t issu es a n d em er gin g
tr en ds”, T h e J ou r n a l of M a n a gem en t, Vol. 14
N o. 2.
O’Toole, J . (1995), L ea d in g Ch a n ge: T h e A rgu m en t
for Va lu es-B a sed L ea d ersh ip, J ossey-Ba ss.
P r ou dm a n , S. (1992), “E xper ien tia l edu ca tion
a s em otion a lly-en ga ged lea r n in g”, T h e
J ou r n a l of Ex per ien tia l Ed u ca tion , Vol. 15
N o. 2.
Ra ilin , J . (1997), “Action lea r n in g a n d a ction scien ce: a r e th ey differ en t?”, Orga n iz a tion a l
Dyn a m ics, Su m m er.
Sch on , D. (1983), T h e R efl ectiv e Pra ctition er:
How Profession a l T h in k in A ction , Ba sic
Book s.
Sen ge, P. (1990), T h e Fifth Disciplin e, Dou bleday.
Stu m pf, S. a n d Du tton , J . (1990), “Th e dyn a m ics of
lea r n in g th r ou gh m a n a gem en t sim u la tion s:
let’s da n ce”, T h e J ou r n a l of M a n a gem en t
Dev elopm en t, Vol. 9 N o. 2.
Ter r y, R. (1993), A u th en tic L ea d ersh ip: Cou ra ge in
A ction , J ossey-Ba ss.
Vicer e, A. (1996), “E xecu tive edu ca tion : th e lea din g edge”, Orga n iz a tion a l Dyn a m ics, F a ll.
[ 81 ]