Leading beyond boundaries: leadership in local government
Jul 16th
Leaders at all levels shape your organisational culture. They do this by what they pay attention to, the behaviour they role model, and the behaviour in others that they value. Leadership development must be tailored to the needs of both the sector and the unique local features of each authority. In this report, we explore what works and what doesn’t.
Building the place-shaping role of local government
In the report of his inquiry into local government, Sir Michael Lyons argues for a wider, strategic ‘place-shaping’ role for local government. However, he says, the “advantages of local government as a way of pursuing the well-being of communities depend on it being able to understand and respond to the needs and concerns of its citizens”.
This means people operating in new ways, willing and able to take the initiative and break imaginatively through structural and behavioural barriers. To reach out into communities and engage them will require, not just less central direction, but mature organisations with confident leadership at all levels. Effective leadership needs to start in the organisation before it can be visible to the community.
What is less clear is how to go about building this leadership capability. Where to invest and focus precious resource? If leadership is the handle on the future, how to use it to open the door?
This article is filed under: leadership, leadership development, organisational culture