Leadership Challenge 12

LdC Template #12

Influential Practitioners (Leadership Challenge): Leading in a COP

Enhancing Action Research and Leadership Possibilities

through the Development of your Collaborative Skills

Module 12                                                                 Name: James D. Lett

The process below relates to the following new Leadership Provocative Question(s): 

What research or theories have you applied so far to increase the possibility that those involved in your problem and/or innovation are on board?  Use Wenger and other sources.  

Theories for Empowerment and Engagement, Diffusion and Innovations of Change and Communities of Practice

Kanter (1977), Weick (1993), Bentley (2009), Wenger (1998) I have chosen the Kanter (1977) to help articulate how empowerment and engagement improves organizational effectives at all levels. Moreover, leveling hierarchy is an essential component to empowerment. That mechanism is a tight knit group or community that shares an understanding of the common community and organizational goals and their role in that goal achievement. In the theory of collective mind, Weick (1993) discussed three principles: contributions, representations, and subordination. Starting with contributions and ending with subordination, heedful mindedness is a shared understanding of what is required to do excellent work. Bentley’s (2009) innovation and diffusion theory of change will support my conversations around creating a shared vision, looking internally for our answers rather than externally, and working collectively to identify opportunities for growth and to address any potential challenges along the way. All of these theories build a foundation for community of practice. Wenger (1998) would refer to the spreading of knowledge and skills as a shared repertoire, essential to sustaining a healthy thriving community of practice. The other three essentials that I would highlight include mutual engagement, joint enterprise, and negotiating meaning in practice.

Quote/ideas from the book; applications/instances from your workplace setting	Page number
The first characteristic of practice as the source of coherence of a community s the mutual engagement of participants.	Wenger (1998, 73)
The concept of collective mind is developed to explain organizational performance in situations requiring nearly continuous operational reliability. Collective mind is conceptualized as a pattern of heedful interrelations of actions in a social system.	Weick & Roberts (1993)
Twenty-first century education cannot succeed without becoming more explicit or authoritative about the meaning of understanding and excellence.	Bentley (2009)
Empowerment can turn a manager’s attention from control over others to more organizationally relevant matters as planning and innovation, unlocking hidden capabilities.	Kanter, 1977, 278
Empowerment must….start with, and rest fundamentally on, modification of official structural arrangements.	Kanter, 1977, 276
Flattening the hierarchy – removing levels and spreading formal authority – is among the more general and important strategies.	Kanter, 1977, 276
It (flattening hierarchy) has the virtues of adding to the power component of jobs (the non-routine, discretionary, and visible aspects) along with increasing contact among managers, at the same time that it can speed up decisions and improve communications.	Kanter, 1977, 276
It is always hard to get at real power issues or make impactful changes in a power structure, since, almost by definition, those with power have a stake in keeping it for themselves.	Kanter, 1977, 276

f. Holding an on-line Conversation

After participating/viewing the “fishbowl” conversation record notes here (below) about your responses to your peers or new thoughts based on their postings.  Be certain your notes here are comprehensive, as were your responses to peers. (If you participate as a “fish,” in the fishbowl your notes, which should be entered below, can be much more succinct.)

Michelle, Kevin, and Sean discussed the theories that they have applied to their problem of practice. Kevin started the conversation. Kevin spoke about how stages of concern can encourage buy-in. Michelle discussed being empathetic with regard to the stages of concern. She discussed maintaining an open mind and supporting them through their concerns. Kevin talked about how others may also be feeling the same concerns. Michelle also spoke about how the social networks will help improve those connections and address those concerns. Kevin spoke about using these connections to improve his knowledge and inform his problem of practice. Sean spoke about increasing student engagement and how the quotes from Wenger have helped him build the community needed to investigate his problem of practice. Sean spoke about branching out and getting feedback from knowledgeable others. Michelle stated that the more factors supporting the intervention including stakeholders, the more likely the change will occur. Kevin spoke about how the goal of is to reach the renewal stage in the Levels of Use.

   

g. Determining your Leadership Challenge/New Leadership Challenge

Based on your own quotes/ideas from Wenger, your workplace experiences, and new insights you developed as you reflected on your peers’ work, what behavior do you want to experiment with/try out for your leadership challenge in the next few days?

Including others in the decision making process.

I attempted to include my advisors in the development of our daily advising schedule and helping select our marketing materials for outreach events. With regard to the schedule, I got “you’re the boss, I’ll do whatever.” I have an advisor who was most recently a member of the U.S. Army. I understand where he is coming from. It is my hope that as he grows into the position and the environment, he will become more engaged in the decision making process. I have a new advisor who was most recently an outreach coordinator. She provided a couple of suggestions for improving some of our printed marketing materials. I went ahead and ordered a give-away item based upon her recommendation. I plan to work with her to create a mock-up of this updated outreach pamphlet between registration periods.