Co-Leadership Research Paper

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Pages: 3

Co-Leadership
The concept of co-leadership, first created by Heenan and Bennis in 1999, is when two or more individuals are equal and stand together to share leadership responsibilities through collective dialog with the workplace (Vine, Holmes, Marra, Pfeifer & Jackson, 2008). To reach optimal success in co-leadership, it will require a compatible and complimentary relationship, working in collaboration, effectively promoting change and visionary leadership (MacTavish & Norton, 1995). A shared understanding between co-leaders, defining what interdisciplinary leadership is and how they envision their joint leadership will be most effective (Ponte, 2004). As Ponte (2004) has documented, the commitment to assuring a strong interdisciplinary
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Referred to as leaderless, Raelin (2011) has stated leaderful practice is not devoid of leadership, it is leaderful as everyone in the team is participating in leadership all of the time. It is characterised by four ‘c’ tenets, collective, concurrent, collaborative and compassionate. Unlike conventional leadership where the team is dependent on one leader, the collective tenet represents everyone in the team can be a leader. All members can lead concurrently, where no one has to stand down while another member makes a contribution. The collaboration tenet signifies the team co-creating, working together to accomplish the work required. And finally, the compassionate tenet where all team members consider each other during decision-making (Raelin, 2004), and treats each other with respect and dignity despite background or point of view (Raelin, 2011). To develop leaderful practice into the workplace, the process needs to begin with the individual using reflection to build self-awareness. To compliment this, staff will require honest feedback from trusted colleagues as without it reflective practice may not be as successful. Everyone believes that our practice reflects what we preach, however being receptive to receiving feedback and reflecting on this, can give us the opportunity to realise the impact of our actions and behaviours (Raelin, 2004, 2011). Challenges in implementing leaderful leadership in an operating suite may vary due to the institutional environment, team dynamics as theatre teams can change from day to day (Raelin, 2004). In addition, education would need to be provided to develop self-reflection and feedback skills for all members of the multi-disciplinary