Gary Quehl and William Bergquist
[For the complete report on this project see The Sages Among Us: Harnessing the Power of Civic Engagement, available as a link through the LPC Bookstore.]
In the four essays provided in this eighth issue of Sage we continue the exploration (that we began in Issue Three, Four, Five, Six and Seven) of the central issue regarding Theory S: the civic engagements of the Sage 100. In this eight issue we ask our leaders to be reflective regarding the leaders they see around them and about the ways they themselves have changed over the years as leaders. First, we ask them to identify the strengths of outstanding leaders they have witnessed in person or have experienced indirectly (through the media, books, etc.)–and what about leaders they find to be ineffective. Second, we ask them to reflect on their own leadership experiences and indicate ways in which their own leadership style has changed.
What Makes for Effective Leadership
As we dig deeper into the nature of effective Sage leadership, we ask our emerging and senior leader to identify the characteristics that they have observed in other leaders. What do they like and what don’t they life.
We first ask the Emerging Sage Leaders to reflect on the admired and disliked characteristics of other leaders:
Emerging Sage Leaders: Reflecting on the Characteristics of Other Successful Leaders
We turn next to our Senior Sage Leaders. They have observed many other leaders over their many years of work within various organizations. What do they admire and what do they dislike with regard to the way in which other leaders operate:
Senior Sage Leaders: Reflecting on the Characteristics of Other Successful Leaders
The Changing Nature of Leadership Among Our Sage Interviewees
We found throughout the interviews we conducted that our Sage leaders do not stand still. They are influenced by the challenges they have faced in their personal and work life — and have learned from the other leaders whom they admire or dislike.
We turn first to the Emerging leaders. They are usually in mid-career and have had an opportunity to learn and mature as leaders:
Emerging Sage Leaders: Changes in Their Leadership Style
We turn finally to the Senior leaders. How have they changed over their many years of engagement with organizations and with their community: