The Leader's Conundrum or "You cannot lift yourself up by your own shirt collar, can you?" (Inaugural Lecture)

The aim of the lecture will be to do demonstrate the need to challenge continuing traditional images of leaders, often depicted at the apex of things, on top of a hill or at the centre of a complex web of activity. I will argue that those nominated as leaders MUST become aware of what I will call the leader's conundrum and complement their inspiration with 99 x perspiration. To appreciate this call, attendees to the lecture as respectfully asked to do the following just before the lecture: a. Use google and find as many definitions of leadership as you can b. stop when you have found 10 definitions Research suggests that we have spent too long focussing on 'heroic' models of leaders, thereby equating leadership with individual leaders and that this rather misses the possibility of other views of leadership that are concerned with the working of groups, teams and whole units or organisations. This does raise something of a difficulty, especially those who are tasked with a role as leader and responsibility to act as a leader. If we regard leadership as something different from nominated leaders, this is bound to create problems. I refer to this situation as the leader's conundrum which I see as a position where a nominated leader is expected to be a leader while power and influence are significantly distributed throughout and between organisations. However, my aim in the lecture is not to spread disillusion and hopelessness for those in leader positions; instead, I will argue that there is a need for leaders to become 'hands-on' and 'heads-in' by accessing intelligence from the whole organisation and adopting an inclusive stance on talent - a return to basics perhaps, and in so doing, become an inspirational force for organisation learning.