WRITTEN BY shekhar Profile Picture Shekhar Bhutkar • 21 Sep 2023

A qualified professional with broad-based skills in business development, training design, training & development, business process improvement, product solutions, project management.

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Greetings from Sydney, Australia. Shekhar here!

In this blog, we will explore some key concepts, "Leadership in Context".

(This is an article in a series. Read this current issue #8 of 9) 

 
In Essence

Managers focus on maintaining order, while leaders inspire change by displaying authentic and genuine qualities that cannot be taught. Wicked problems are those that have multiple interconnected causes and solutions with no clear right or wrong answer. To solve wicked problems, leaders must adopt collaborative and adaptive leadership approaches that prioritize learning and experimentation. Adaptable leadership practices are necessary when dealing with wicked problems because of the uncertainty involved. Reflecting on these key concepts highlights that leaders must understand context, have authentic qualities, and be adaptable to solve complex issues.

 
 
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Leadership in Context

The readings and videos provided valuable insights into the ongoing debate about the nature of leadership and management. The seminal work of researchers, such as Bams (1978), Grint (1995), Gill (2003), and Hales (1986, 1999) highlighted the ambiguity and fragmentation of current leadership and management theory. This lack of coherence in the field has resulted in the difficulty of building a consistent body of knowledge and of sustained, systematic accretion of knowledge.

 

The Elusive Nature of Leadership

Listening to the Radio National Best Practice audios on 21C Management Failure, Authentic Leadership, Genuine Leadership, Good Boss Bad Boss, and Why Responsible Leadership is Good for Business, reinforced the idea that leadership and management are highly contextualized phenomena that require different skills, styles, and strategies depending on the specific situation.The interviews with various experts and practitioners underscored the importance of understanding the complexities of the contemporary workplace, including new technologies, diverse workforces, changing values and norms, and the need for ethical, sustainable, and socially responsible practices.
 

Top 10 Differences between Managers and Leaders

The videos on the Top 10 Differences between Managers and Leaders, What is Context, Leadership as Practice, What is a Wicked Problem, and Got a Wicked Problem provided additional frameworks and concepts that helped me to understand the role of context in leadership.The Top 10 Differences video highlighted the key distinctions between the two roles, such as focusing on systems versus people, delegating versus collaborating, and maintaining status quo versus driving change.The videos on context and wicked problems emphasized the need to recognize the multiple perspectives, values, and interests that shape any problem, and the importance of adaptive and creative responses to complex and uncertain situations.
 

 

Watch these Videos: Top 10 Differences between managers and leaders https://youtu.be/8ubRzzirRKs What is context: https://youtu.be/OztAiKJbU1ALeadership as practice: https://youtu.be/GhBtiqFcaTQWhat is a Wicked Problem Got a Wicked Problem? https://youtu.be/vSb7cJn2A

 

 

Leadership and management cannot be understood without considering their context. The work of a manager is shaped by different institutional and organizational systems they operate within.

Leadership research and practice must prioritize contextual analysis to yield meaningful results. It is essential to acknowledge and understand the difference between managers and leaders. 

 
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Managers focus on maintaining order, while leaders inspire change by displaying authentic and genuine qualities that cannot be taught. Wicked problems are those that have multiple interconnected causes and solutions with no clear right or wrong answer. To solve wicked problems, leaders must adopt collaborative and adaptive leadership approaches that prioritize learning and experimentation. Adaptable leadership practices are necessary when dealing with wicked problems because of the uncertainty involved. Reflecting on these key concepts highlights that leaders must understand context, have authentic qualities, and be adaptable to solve complex issues.