<p>In today&rsquo;s global, dynamic, and uncertain business environments, the need for developing leaders and managerial talent throughout the organization is increasingly evident, especially for multinational companies. While the important role of job assignment for leadership and managerial development has been well recognized, there is no aligned, comprehensive global leadership development model. This study focused on understanding leadership development assignments and experiences of successful Japanese managers who are functioning in for-profit multi-national Western companies in the consumer products industry in Japan. A sequential explanatory mixed method design incorporating phenomenological interviews was used to first explore work-related strengths and developmental experiences and key competencies of 24 high performing managers working in the consumer goods industry, representing three different companies. 6 individuals were selected to participate in the phenomenological interview process. </p><p> Key findings from phase 1 research among 24 respondents are (a) while challenging job is the most effective method for leadership development, that alone cannot always develop effective leaders, and (b) effective leaders have more number of challenging assignments and work experiences. Phase 2 research, phenomenological interview was conducted among 6 most effective leaders selected based upon 360 feedback survey results. There were 3 types of developmental experiences those effective leaders found very effective: (a) business challenges, (b) interpersonal and cultural challenges, and (c) developmental relationship. Key findings from phase 2 research are (d) effective leaders have experienced dual challenges from key developmental work&mdash;both business challenge and interpersonal (or cultural) challenges, (e) they possess both business skills and interpersonal skills, (f) they have learned and strengthened both business management and interpersonal skills through overcoming challenges on the job, (g) they have a positive and open mindset and positive attitudes toward new challenging, learning and achievements, (h) they have learned through self reflection during and after developmental experiences. Of note, all of them have had a significant learning and influence from their boss(es) in their career. </p><p> Incorporating the findings from this research, I recommend a systemic leadership development approach that integrates challenging assignments with reflective learning, skill development supports, 360 feedback, and thorough performance review system, involving boss. </p>

<p>Organized religion plays a significant, even defining role for millions of people worldwide. Recently however, churchgoers, pastors, and denominational hierarchies are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with clergy leadership effectiveness and pastors are experiencing higher than expected levels of burnout and emotional exhaustion. Leadership effectiveness is often reported as one of the least satisfying aspects of working in faith-based settings and religious congregations. Clergy and congregational leaders need a leadership paradigm that provides a framework for leading in highly relational contexts such as religious organizations that also addresses the leaders need to maintain emotional health and psychological well-being. The present study utilized a mixed-methods approach to examine the relationship between self-differentiation and leadership effectiveness among 97 pastors in leadership positions from a variety of Christian religious denominations. Participants completed the Differentiation of Self and Role for Clergy and the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. Results of this study suggest that pastors performing in leadership roles have higher levels of self-differentiation than pastors performing in non-leadership roles and that self-differentiation was moderately and positively correlated with the transformational leadership components of intellectual stimulation and individualized consideration. For the qualitative portion of the study, fourteen pastors participated in telephone interviews about their experiences of self-differentiation in leadership roles. Utilizing thematic analysis, nine distinct themes emerged and identified as precipitating event, &ldquo;aha&rdquo; moment, self-regulating, systemic awareness, self-in-role, take a stand, use of self-in-system, lead through connection and inclusion, and followers first. Qualitative results suggest that higher self-differentiation is related to pastors&rsquo; use of self-regulation of emotion, experiential learning, awareness of social context, and willingness to accept risk in exchange for progress. Higher levels of self-differentiation may contribute to the leaders ability to develop and maintain emotional connections with followers during times of conflict or disagreement. </p>

<p> The multi-vendor consulting model is a transorganizational development topic that has gained importance as more organizations strategically source professional services, such as management consulting. Multi-vendor consulting models often require competitors to collaborate on service delivery, fostering coopetitive relationships. This research study acknowledged the paradoxical nature of coopetition and aimed to understand more fully the frequency of coopetition in the management consulting industry, the perceived benefits and risks of coopetition, and the key factors that motivate management consulting leaders to collaborate with their competitors on client engagements. The study revealed that there is a deeper level of motivation for management consulting leaders who chose to collaborate with competitors: the fear of missing out on current and future opportunities and the desire to develop stronger relationships in both their vertical and horizontal networks.</p>

<p> Leadership theories provide guidance, methods, and models for effective leaders. Many leadership theories, such as transactional, transformational, and servant leadership, identify a set of leadership traits or behaviors an effective leader possesses. Robert Greenleaf's (1970) servant leadership theory and characteristics have endured for decades. Greenleaf's servant leadership theory has resurfaced and grown in popularity as evidence by his work being widely cited in new publications, leadership journals, and articles on servant leadership (e.g., Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, and Peter Senge). </p><p> A number of authors have studied Eunice Kennedy Shriver and written about her leadership style, but no one to date has conducted an analysis to determine if her characteristics match those of a servant leader. This dissertation was a historical case study to recognize the leadership of Shriver and analyze the supposition that she was a servant leader. Shriver had the vision that became the Special Olympics movement that transformed the lives of people with intellectual disabilities and their families and communities worldwide. The fact that under the leadership of Shriver the Special Olympics achieved global success makes a study of her leadership style significant to the field of organizational leadership. </p><p> This qualitative case study sought to determine if leadership behaviors of the research subject, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, exemplified the 10 characteristics (behaviors) of servant leadership as defined by Robert Greenleaf (1970) and Larry Spears (1995, 1998b). </p><p> Servant leadership is the antithesis of leadership in much of corporate America. For decades, American managers of large corporations and the military have applied an autocratic (command and control) style of leadership. Servant leaders are selfless and seek to invest in the people they lead by genuinely caring about them and their success. They understand that success is realized through the efforts of their followers over selfinterest (Greenleaf, 1977). </p><p> Leadership can be a company's competitive advantage, and servant leadership can be the key element. Laub (1999) and Parolini (2004) found that organizations that fostered a servant leadership culture capitalized on the skills of both their employees and their leaders, which led to greater employee engagement and profitability (Block, 1993; Wheatley, 2005).</p>

<p> Expatriation is becoming an attractive career path for many people due to the global economic movement. People experience career transitions due to change of organization, locations, responsibilities, reporting structures, and work groups. Expatriates in particular experience more extreme changes because of challenges they encounter from language differences, geographical distance across countries, culture, habit, and life style. These changes influence people's perspective in seeing things, including their self-identity. The aim of this research was to explore the evolvement of expatriates' self-identity. </p><p> A qualitative research design using reflexive narrative inquiry was employed. Seven current and former expatriates from Australia, Japan, Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States participated in this study. Through an interview process, these individuals reflected upon and shared their international experience retrospectively. Using expatriates' own narrative, an individual identity transformation story was constructed in order to answer the research question of this study: How does international experience influence a person's self-identity? </p><p> Participants noticed significant and previously unknown changes in their behavior and outlook from their assignments. These varied based upon their motives for accepting the assignment, social interaction, work requirements, and personal attitudes. The study reveals that international assignments help expatriates discover the identity that they may not have recognized previously, and affirms and transitions their already known identity to a different level through new learning and relationships from their experiences. Expatriates' enjoyment of their experience is highly influenced by their social interaction and dialogue with others. One of the drawbacks from expatriation, especially for those who are on long-term international assignments and deep immersion in the local culture, is the losing of their definition of home.</p><p> As a result of this study, recommendations include an opportunity for organizations to conduct a fit-gap analysis with employees. Results can provide information on employees' level of readiness to take on an international role, and for organizations to better support employees' preparation needs. Onsite coaching and support groups for expatriates can be beneficial to alleviate the stress that occurred during their on-boarding. In addition, expatriates are encouraged to establish their social network in the host country.</p>

<p> This action research study examined the impact of participation in an appreciative inquiry (AI) intervention on social service workers' level of compassion fatigue. Five workers plus two of their managers took part in the study. A 6-hour AI intervention was held and participants completed pre- and post-tests of the Professional Quality of Life Scale to measure their compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, and burnout. A focus group also was held to gather qualitative data about the impact of the intervention. Results indicated that the intervention was highly valuable for strengthening working relationships, underscoring the positives in otherwise emotionally difficult work, and learning how to avoid or reduce compassion fatigue. Based on these findings, periodic AI interventions are advised to reduce social service workers' compassion fatigue by sharing their experiences and focusing on the positive. Future research should eliminate the limitations of the present study by expanding the sample and gathering multiple forms of data.</p>

<p> This study sought to uncover the attributes of successful bicultural leaders. Findings suggested that any one of four acculturation strategies chosen by bicultural leaders depended on the intensity of the dominant spouse's alliance to their Country of Origin, their identity self-construal and opportunities to create supportive in-groups that made the bicultural individual the center of in-group connectivity. Integrated biculturals exhibit a tendency to create networks, where over time they become "central connectors" affording them unique positions of influence, knowledge transfer and power. This study posits that Network Centrality is a Bicultural Competence, recognized by its users as a pivotal antecedent to their success strategies. Educators may benefit from study findings that include participant suggested content specifically targeting new foreign born immigrants to help advance their achievements based on the study's findings of best practices and attributes of successful bicultural leaders.</p>