Management Today Book Series

The Heart and Soul of Leadership

The Heart and Soul of Leadership explores current concepts of leadership in the Australian context. This anecdotal and conversational book revolves around the premise that leadership is intensely personal. It encapsulates the concepts behind the desire to lead, to organise, and to communicate this meaning to others in the modern organisation.

The book draws on the authors' informed views about the subjects and includes examples of how other practising Australian managers connect with the topic.

Chapters include 21st Century Leadership: Leading in the Networked World, Women and Australian Leadership, Emotion: the essence of integrated leadership and The Secret of Making Leadership Work.

Book Contents

 

Extract

Chapter 8: Leadership in the Networked World
by Prof. Ashley Goldsworthy

 

Chapter summaries

James Sarros PhD, BA, DipEd (La Trobe), MEd (Melb), PhD (Alberta)
The heart and soul of leadership: the personal journey

James Sarros takes a holistic approach to the definition of leadership, exploring some essential qualities of successful leaders from around the world. He states that the new role of contemporary leaders is to show a greater compassion and consideration for their employees.

Dr Sarros argues that as well as being bureaucratic, a leader must make a balanced judgement in business by considering 'human nature', as it reflects on the integrity of work, family and friendship units.

He comes to the conclusion that a good leader must lead with the heart (be sensitive to a worker's situation and environment), and lead with the soul (understanding the core values and beliefs that underlie their decisions).


Harry Onsman MA, Litt B, BEd
The problem with leadership: defining what we don't understand

Harry Onsman blames bad business decisions and failure of companies to perform on the fact that people do not understand the fundamental values of 'leadership'.

He states the term 'leadership' has been redefined so many times by biographies, publishers, academics etc, that it has become more of a commodity than a serious role to be played by leaders.

In his attempt to find a meaning for 'leadership', Onsman explores whether leadership occurs naturally as a trait, or whether it is acquired through time and practice.


Maria Gardiner BA (Hons), MPsych Clinical
Women and Australian leadership: beyond the current paradigms

Maria Gardiner stresses that a new approach to leadership in business is needed as more women begin to reach the upper echelons of corporate management.

The pressure for women to adopt 'masculine' styles of leadership incurs unnecessary stress and pressure on women who find themselves in a traditionally male dominated environment.

Maria Gardiner suggests a change in the way women think about their careers, by listening to themselves rather than letting organisations', men's or women's agendas influence them.


Lindsay Barker AM, BSc(Hons), MSc, Bed(Melb), PhD(NEB), FACE, FAIM
Power, influence and action: making leadership work

In his essay, Dr Barker defines leadership as the 'power to influence the behaviour of people towards achieving an outcome.'

Dr Barker includes case studies of four Australian leaders- Tim O'Loughlin, Bronwyn Halliday, Daryl Jacobs and Steven Marshall, who discuss their ideas on the most important characteristics of leadership.


Ken Parry BA (Qld), GradDip Mangt (CQU), DipEd (Qld), MBus (USQ), PhD (Mon), CMAHRI, FAIM
Better leadership? Ask the right questions

Ken Parry states that the challenge for Australian managers is to change leadership styles to tap into the values that Australians hold dear. Interestingly, Parry discovers that in Australia, respect from employees must be earned rather than assumed, as organisational culture dictates a natural dislike of management.

Parry suggests leaders spend time in developing organisational integrity and having a sense of purpose and a feeling of family within an organisation. Most importantly, Parry wants managers to realise that leadership is a self-development challenge, defined by the needs of their followers and personal wants.


Andy Hede BA(Hons), PhD(Syd)
Emotion: the essence of integrated leadership

Andy Hede introduces the term integrated leadership in his essay. He defines this as a person who is able to integrate emotional life into their intellectual, professional and social lives.

Of the nine emotional competencies defined by Hede, self-awareness in leadership is considered as one of the more important attributes in business because it prevents distorted judgement and allows for a more accurate business decision to be made.


Ray Elliott BSc, Med, BD (MCD), GradDip Applied Psych (VUT) STM (Yale), MAPS
The spirit of Australian leadership

Ray Elliot describes the tendency of Australians to look sceptically upon authority as a two edged sword. On one hand, it arms people against any naïve trust in powerful people and organisations, but at the same time, stops potential leaders from being innovative.

Dr Elliot states that in order to combat the natural tendency for employees to be wary of authority, leaders must understand the spirit of an organisation in order to influence the heart and soul of its followers.


Ashley Goldsworthy AO, OBE, FTSE, FCIE, BCom, MSc, DipPubAd, AAUQ, FCPA, FCA, FCIM, FCIS, FACS, FIFS
Twenty-first century leadership: leading in the networked world

Ashley Goldsworthy explores the issues and effects that convergence and globalisation will have on leadership in the 21st Century.

In particular, Professor Goldsworthy looks at the danger of Australian business, government and research becoming 'backwater' without many global companies on our shores to keep the drive of dynamic leadership.

Professor Goldsworthy stresses that it is not technology that will make the difference between effective or unsuccessful leadership, but knowledge that will provide sustainable competitive advantage in the future.


The Heart and Soul of Leadership

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