Reflecting on Crucibles: Clarifying Values in Authentic Leaders

This qualitative study explores the role of crucibles, life-triggering moments, parents’ life mottos and definitions of success, and holding values in the lives of authentic leaders. This research used the life-story approach to explore the experience of such concepts on authentic leaders. Self-identified leaders with more than five years of experience in a leadership position or in a role of managing and developing others were invited to this research. Qualified authentic leaders (between 65 to 80 in ALQ) were invited to a qualitative interview utilizing the life story approach to explore significant forming factors of their leadership qualities. An inductive coding method was used in analyzing the transcription of interviews. Significant themes and codes show that life-triggers, crucibles, parents’ life mottos, their definition of success, and holding values play a significant role in authentic leadership development. Leadership scholars should emphasize the forming experiences of authentic leadership in their leadership development studies. In other words, the experienced dynamics of parents (life mottos and definitions of success), the experience of crucibles are suggested as antecedents of authentic leadership. The research shows that parents’ dynamics, crucibles, and life-triggering moments resonate with Erikson’s stages of development on authentic leadership development.

Awakenings: An Authentic Leadership Development Program to Break the Glass Ceiling

Companies are vital agents in achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. One key role that businesses can play in achieving the 5th Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality is implementing training programs for their women executives so they can reach top corporate leadership positions. In this paper, we test the effectiveness of an Authentic Leadership Development (ALD) program for women executives. By interviewing 32 participants from this ALD program and building on authentic leadership theory, we find that this program lifts women participants’ self-efficacy perception, as well as their self-resolution to take control of their careers. The driver for both results is a reflective thinking process elicited during the program that leads women to abandon the stereotype of a low status role and lack of self-direction over time. Through the relational authenticity developed during the program, women participants develop leadership styles that are more congenial with their gender group, yet highly accepted by the in-group leader members, which enhances their social capital. After the program, the women participants flourished as authentic leaders, were able to activate and foster their self-esteem and social capital, and enhanced their agency in career advancement, increasing their likelihood of breaking the glass ceiling.

Leadership Special Issue: Do we need Authentic Leadership? Interrogating authenticity in a new world order

Claimed it as the ‘root construct’ (Avolio BJ and Gardner WL (2005) Authentic leadership development: getting to the root of positive forms of leadership. The Leadership Quarterly 16(3): 315–338) for other forms of ‘aspirational’ leadership with underpinnings in positive psychology, and explicitly positioned as a response to the ‘ethical corporate meltdown’ (May DR, Chan AYL, Hodges TD, et al. (2003) Developing the moral component of authentic leadership. Organizational Dynamics 32(3): 247–260: 247) said to have resulted from previous forms of leadership, Authentic Leadership has struggled to live up to its acknowledged functionalist and instrumentalist aims. At the same time, it has proved resistant to important philosophical challenges seeking to problematize the nature of the ‘true self’ and draw attention to the complexities of enacting authenticity in the daily practice of leadership. These ambitious claims and unaddressed issues are at the heart of this special issue's enquiry as to whether Authentic Leadership is fit for purpose as a driver of leadership theory and practice in the current world order, and its call for more critical attention to be paid to the notion of authenticity in leadership. The contributions to this special issue blend traditional, empirical papers with invited ‘Leading Questions’ thought pieces to offer a fundamental interrogation of authenticity at the same time as achieving a balance of perspectives.

The importance of authentic leadership

Purpose Firm performance can be significantly enhanced when its leaders are authentic. A focus on trigger events and leadership crucibles can help such leaders to learn from past experiences and acquire and enhance the key qualities required to increase the overall effectiveness of authentic leadership development. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Firm performance can be significantly enhanced when its leaders are authentic. A focus on trigger events and leadership crucibles can help such leaders to learn from past experiences and acquire and enhance the key qualities required to increase the overall effectiveness of authentic leadership development. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Exploring Authentic Leadership in relation to Followers’ Authentic Leadership Development in Public and Private Sector Universities

The study aims to explore the authentic leadership attributes (ALA) and its impact on the followers’ authentic leadership development (FALD). The objectives of the study were to investigate authentic leadership attributes of leaders, find out existing position of followers’ authentic leadership development and measure relationship between authentic leadership attributes and followers’ authentic leadership development at university level. The population of the study was 6975. The sample of the study was 967. The mixed method approach was used to collect information from the sample through modified form of ALQ developed by Walumbwa, Avolio, Gardener, Wernsing, & Peterson (2008) and in-depth interviews. Analysis was done with Mean, STD deviation, Pearson’s rank correlation and thematic analysis. It was found that r value (.513) which was significant at .000 showed significant positive large correlations between authentic leadership attributes and followers’ authentic leadership development at university level.

Trigger events and crucibles in authentic leaders' development

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the role of trigger events and leadership crucibles in the lives of authentic leaders. The study was based on two theories: authentic leadership theory and born versus made theory.Design/methodology/approachParticipants were included in the study if they scored between 64 and 80 on the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire (ALQ). The qualified leaders were then asked to participate in a qualitative interview utilizing an interview guide born out of the relevant literature. The interview followed the guidelines of the Critical Incident Technique (CIT).FindingsThe data indicated that trigger events and leadership crucibles play a significant role in authentic leadership development.Practical implicationsPractitioners should emphasize the prominent themes of self-awareness, relational transparency, balanced processing and moral perspective and the connection with other themes that emerged from the current study when developing or training leaders. Furthermore, practitioners concerned with creating an authentic leadership culture may consider the findings of the current study to develop and employ hiring and promotion strategies that increase the probabilities of hiring and promoting leaders that exhibit authentic leadership behaviors.Originality/valueThe findings of the research indicate that trigger events and crucibles both affect authentic leadership development. The research findings confirm characteristics associated with authentic leadership theory were predominant in the participants. However, one theme that prevailed was that of spirituality, which may or may not be considered to be part of an authentic leader's moral perspective