Nurturing Leadership in Public Service: Embracing Challenges Beyond Crisis

1. What does it take to be a successful public service professional beyond the crisis? A preview on the emerging ‘job description’ for public sector leaders and how the European Commission deals with it for their own staff Rainer v. Leoprechting – this presentation only engages the author, not the European Commission Leuven 6 May 2011

2. The new leadership job • What’s the job: A view on some major challenges for professionals in public service • The “job requirements”

3. Typical crisis challenges Typical development strategies Budget pressures Downsizing, Process re-engineering, Activity-based management, Privatisation, etc. Generation change (internet generation), Decline of public trust Internal: Post-bureaucratic management, self-organisation, self-realisation, initiatives and change “Governance 2.0” in public: e-government 2.0, citizen-self-organised public action Demography – shrinking populations in Europe Attract entrepreneurs and people to shrinking areas; Integrate increasingly diverse cultures, ethnic groups, religions, educations etc; Empower elderly people to be active in society What’s the new job about?

4. Typical challenges Typical development work Climate change and Energy crisis Shift to small-scale local renewable energy production, Urban planning to minimise energy consumptions, etc. Education crisis Diversity of schools for a diverse population, financial and management autonomy at school level, focus on personality development Weak political leadership Senior and middle managers also “do politics”: Pro-Active change negotiations with a large variety of stakeholders, Performance in media, Preference for “emerging consensus” innovations Europeanisation and Globalisation Continuous Learning across borders, Joint initiatives with Partner Cities and Regions worldwide, Pro-Active Lobbying for developing structural frameworks at European and National levels What’s the new job about? (2)

5. Mainstream in public services: Management Required (new) paradigm: Leadership The world is stable, processes and routines to support status quo. The world is in constant flow, processes and routines to support pro-active change. Work in fixed functions, deviant behaviour is sanctioned (values: compliance and static efficiency). Work in cross-cutting projects, variety of perspectives, constant learning and discovery (value: dynamic holistic performance). Loyalty to the work unit, superiors and the organisation. Status quo is the norm. Loyalty to the emerging future. Status quo is a transition state. Who can do this? Marked paradigm shifts needed, here some examples:

6. How talent develops in adults Leadershipstage Management stage

7. Paradigm basis Be “in the flow” Follow own principles Shift Follow group rules Advance own agenda Distribution of talent

8. Paradigm shifts across stages

9. Some interim conclusions • The emerging future requires leadership paradigms and leaders that we don’t have • However, no one can “be developed”, leaders grow out of their own • The main work of today’s top leaders thus is to cultivate their organisations as a “leadership garden”, in which staff are supported in their growth • This corresponds to the “new generation” strategies of post-bureaucratic self-organisation and –realisation in public services

10. Some leadership gardening practices

11. Developing Leadership Potential (partially done at the EC) • Measure how your incumbent managers make meaning and sense in their work • Compare their level of leadership develop-ment with their current level of leadership requirements • Have managers move if there is a major mismatch • Coach people to accompany the growth to their next level

12. Leadership pipeline • Align the organisational hierarchy so that every staff member has a direct superior that is more developed that they themselves • Coach managers in their transition to new levels of leadership authority • Use organisational change and develop-ment projects as growth assignments for promising talents

13. Action Learning • Accompanies Change Initiatives with Reflection and Learning • Small group learning sets • Question-focused discovery • Brings about (hidden) assumptions, opens to innovation in a consensual way • Bonds project teams • Supports development to leadership level

14. Action Learning

15. Communities of Practice • Staff with a shared professional focus are invited to share their experiences and learning issues • Sponsored by a senior manager that asks the community to produce specific outco-mes • Self-organised learning groups • Can be accompanied by consulting or coaching in the beginning

16. Community of Practice (Planning & Programming)

17. Sharing and learning with peer leaders • Share your initiatives European Commission-wide • Reflect with peers about the overall challenges of the Union and your actions • 8 peer seminars with European Commission directors in 2008-2010

18. The Art of Hosting • The Art of hosting meaningful conversations – the essence of participatory leadership • Self-organised meeting formats: • Open Space • World café • Proaction café • Circle

19. Open Space (Brussels)

20. Open Space

21. Collective Mind Map

22. Voting on Mind Map

23. Landscape

24. Ritual dissent (Lux)

25. Pro Action Café with Directors

26. Pro Action Café in Jean Monnet’s House

27. Stakeholder Café

28. Circle (communication seminar)

29. Circle (Mondorf, Lux)

30. Circle (Jean Monnet House)

31. Some references • Adult DevelopmentRobert Kegan: In over our heads (1994) • Development of Leadership Potential Otto Laske: Measuring hidden dimensions (2006)*www.interdevelopmentals.org • Drotter et al.: The Leadership pipeline (2000) • Action Learningwww.ifal.org.uk • Communities of Practice Etienne Wenger: www.ewenger.com • The Art of Hosting www.artofhosting.org • Systemic constellation work http://www.tetrald.com/EuropeanConstellations • Speaker ContactRainer v. Leoprechting email: rainer.von-leoprechting@ec.europa.eu *Graphics in the preceding slides by Otto Laske