Collaborative Leadership
Based solely on the words involved, collaborative leadership can be conceived of as a leadership style in which collaborative approaches are actively integrated into the ways in which the leader guides or governs followers. The collaborative aspect could refer to the leader leading with one or more other people in a cooperative fashion; it could also refer to the leader working jointly with subordinates. Borkowski (2015) offers a definition from the work of Ibarra and Hansen which characterizes collaborative leadership as the “capacity to engage people and groups outside one’s formal control and inspire them to work toward common goals – despite differences in convictions, cultural values, and operating norms” (p. 239). This suggests that the first conceptions described earlier in this paper are close but implied a formal relationship, while actual collaborative leadership, at least as conceived by Ibarra and Hansen and supported by Borkowksi, does not necessitate formality.
Markle-Reid et al. (2017) offer a characterization which supports this lack of formality, describing collaborative leadership as having certain “characteristic properties,” namely that it “emerges from a group of interacting individuals,” “features open boundaries,” and “encourage the distribution of expertise across many participants,” which contains echoes of the simple definition offered at the beginning of this paper. Markle-Reid et al. (2017) group collaborative leadership as with shared and distributed forms of leadership. They also note how influence is exerted in collaborative leadership dynamics – that is, it flows reciprocally and mutually (Markle-Reid et al., 2017). Despite this two-way flow of influence, collaborative leadership still needs a leader to facilitate success; the leader becomes the source of motivation and organization for the group(s) and/or individuals within the group (Borkowski, 2015). It should be noted that the aforementioned dynamic and the necessity of managing multiple entities and ensuring their participation can contribute to the slowness (Markle-Reid et al., 2017). It can also be difficult to accurately or meaningfully measure and assess collaborative leadership, raising questions and concerns regarding the effectiveness of this leadership style (Markle-Reid et al., 2017).
In reviewing all of the traits and skills listed by Borkowski (2015) as being characteristic of collaborative leadership, it is difficult to disagree with the importance of any of those listed. It would also be difficult to rank their importance, as they all appear critical for leader employing collaborative leadership. However, three traits and skills which seem particularly critical for successful collaborative leadership include willingness to assume responsibility, collaborative mindset, and communication. Given that in collaborative leadership the leader is responsible for motivation and guiding multiple groups and/or individuals, this individual must be prepared to take on a variety of tasks and roles which involve accountability and liability. That can seem overwhelming, and perhaps especially more so because the dynamic occurs in informal settings which diminishes the potential for formal mechanisms to ensure accountability and liability. The collaborative leader must be willing to take all that on, which is why this author believes this trait is important. The collaborative mindset seems self-evident as part of a collaborative leader’s skill set. An individual-oriented, particularly one who is self-oriented, would not be able to coordinate and motivate a group of people. A group-oriented individual may comprehend the importance of group dynamics, but group dynamics do not necessitate an understanding of the collaborative mindset. Therefore, it makes sense to this author that the collaborative mindset would be critical to ensure that the collaborative approach or a collaborative framework would come into play. Finally, communication seems to be a universally critical element for virtually any enterprise. In the context of collaborative leadership, given how the leader functions to coordinate, organization, understand, and convey information and intentions between groups and individuals, the communication skill seems a significant skill for the leader to possess.
The Turning Point Leadership Development National Excellence Collaboration describes six key practices and necessary steps for leaders to guide successful collaborations (Borkowski, 2015). The effective collaborative leader will understand and carry out these practices and steps adeptly. That is not to say that the effective collaborative leader will carry out each of these practices and steps with equal competency. The one that this author struggles with is practice #5, develop people. Borkowski (2015) defines this skill with the action(s) that the leader needs to accomplish; this includes bringing out the best in others; maximizing the use of other people’s talents and resources; building power through the sharing of power; and relinquishing “authoritarian ownership or control” (p. 241). These actions are intended to increase the leadership capacity of others involved in the collaborative effort as well as other relevant skills and traits. This might include the use of performance feedback, goal-setting, and encouraging or permitting experimentation. In essence, this facet of collaborative leadership is focused on enhancing the skills of the other non-leader members of the collective. This author feels that they have room to improve on. This emerges from their sense that they are self-motivated to develop their own strengths and address their weaknesses; professionally speaking, this author believes that all professionals should regard growth and development in a similar fashion. However, the collaborative leader acknowledges that (1) that not all professionals share this believe and (2) one cannot assume that all the individuals and/or groups involved in a cooperative project may not have access to development opportunities. Therefore, the leader must facilitate such efforts among participants in order to develop existing strengths and resources and overcome weaknesses and/or identify resources and individuals to complement those weaknesses.
References
Borkowski, N. (2015). Organizational behavior, theory, and design in health care. Burlington,
M.A.: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Markle-Reid, M., Dykeman, C., Ploeg, J., Stradiotto, C. K., Andrews, A., Bonomo, S., … &
Salker, N. (2017). Collaborative leadership and the implementation of community-based fall prevention initiatives: A multiple case study of public health practice within community groups. BMC health services research, 17(1), 141.
