Leadership approaches related to complex global risks : a literature study

[摘要] ENGLISH SUMMARY : An increasingly globalised world presents countries such as South Africa with tremendous challenges and opportunities. Increasing interconnections between the economic, environmental, technological, and geopolitical realms call for a leadership approach that is capable of meeting the demands of such complex global systems.For many decades, the study of leadership has placed an emphasis on the role of the individual leader in dealing with challenges. The development of leadership research has also witnessed a shift from traditional Great Man (Carlyle, 1993:2) theories to approaches that go beyond the scope of an individual leader to incorporate those being led and others within their respective institutions. Although only recently emerging, there is a growing literature on leadership that takes into consideration the system in which leadership operates and revaluates the positions and roles in which leaders find themselves in modern times.The World Economic Forum (WEF) publishes an annual Global Risk Report (GRR) that identifies major risks that reside within the increasingly interconnected global society and the subsequent complexity that arises from these systems. For South Africa, the response to such risks can be found in the National Development Plan (NDP) which aims to address the most pressing issues facing the country by considering its economic, political, social, environmental and technological realms.An analysis of both of these papers strongly calls for an appropriate model of leadership that is adaptable to interconnected, fast-paced and complex global and national systems. Complex adaptive leadership, and more specifically learning leadership, provides a fitting approach that eases the pressure off individual leaders by reconsidering their roles from providing all the answers to asking the right questions and from playing a directive role to becoming key facilitators in a larger system.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University