Löwstedt, M and Räisänen, C (2018) Ceos narrating leadership: Constant gardeners, team players, actionable pragmatists and business directors. In: Gorse, C and Neilson, C J (eds.) Proceedings of 34th Annual ARCOM Conference, 3-5 September 2018, Queen’s University, Belfast, UK.
Abstract
There is no mistaking that leadership is an extremely hot topic today, more often than not portrayed as a nostrum for all kinds of challenges faced by modern organisations and societies. The construction industry is no exception. There is an increasing stream of leadership-related rhetoric, discourses and training initiatives stemming from management consultants, media, and policy-makers concerning the 'right' kind of leadership needed in order for the industry to meet its future challenges. Drawing on illustrative snapshots of a number of leaders, from site managers to CEOs, from several qualitative case studies carried out over the last 10 years, we critically scrutinise the current leadership agenda. Two archetypical leadership styles are highlighted and discussed: the 'heroic fixer', a paternal, autonomous and relation-oriented style; and the 'organisational facilitator', a managerial, system-oriented and formal style. We argue that the two styles are products or rather projections of a tension between historically embedded structures and cultures, on the one hand, and future aspirations on the other. While some positive tendencies of change can be discerned we also warn for potential conflicts if new leadership ideals and identities are not properly integrated with the dreams of a reformed 'industrial machine'.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | ceos; leadership as process; narrative survey; personal leadership; Sweden |
| Index terms: | Sweden, survey, embedded structure, leadership style, facilitator, drawing, society, case study, construction industry, media, identity, site manager, stream, narrative |
| Subjects: | practitioner, data collection methods, technical documentation, qualitative and interpretive research, water management, Geography, structural engineering, communities and social development, leadership, industry analysis, sociology |
| Topics: | Design Practice, Organizational Design, Research Practice, Geographical Context, Engineering Principles, Sustainability, Stakeholder Management, Roles and Professions |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here