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Löwstedt, M and Räisänen, C (2018) CEOs Narrating Leadership: Constant Gardeners, Team Players, Actionable Pragmatists and Business Directors. In: Gorse, C and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 34th Annual ARCOM Conference, 3-5 September 2018, Queen’s University, Belfast, UK. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 687–696.
- Type: Conference Proceedings
- Keywords: CEOs, leadership as process, narrative survey, personal leadership, Sweden
- ISBN/ISSN: 978-0-9955463-2-5
- URL: http://www.arcom.ac.uk/-docs/proceedings/d1fb9d6aa2002ece166f2165454c1ca8.pdf
- Abstract:
There is no mistaking that leadership is an extremely hot topic today, more often than not portrayed as a nostrum for all kinds of challenges faced by modern organisations and societies. The construction industry is no exception. There is an increasing stream of leadership-related rhetoric, discourses and training initiatives stemming from management consultants, media, and policy-makers concerning the ‘right’ kind of leadership needed in order for the industry to meet its future challenges. Drawing on illustrative snapshots of a number of leaders, from site managers to CEOs, from several qualitative case studies carried out over the last 10 years, we critically scrutinise the current leadership agenda. Two archetypical leadership styles are highlighted and discussed: the ‘heroic fixer’, a paternal, autonomous and relation-oriented style; and the ‘organisational facilitator’, a managerial, system-oriented and formal style. We argue that the two styles are products or rather projections of a tension between historically embedded structures and cultures, on the one hand, and future aspirations on the other. While some positive tendencies of change can be discerned we also warn for potential conflicts if new leadership ideals and identities are not properly integrated with the dreams of a reformed ‘industrial machine’.