Thesis (D. Min.)--Denver Seminary, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 264-278).

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Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / This thesis examines contemporary ideas on leadership with special emphasis on how these concepts affect the development and selection of senior leaders. Leadership is a complex discipline and is described and analyzed through different leadership theories and models. Ongoing leadership research is promoting more integrative leadership constructs. Common features of effective leadership are present in the different models, as well as common characteristics of effective leaders. Organizations must have a single, clearly defined leadership model, closely coordinated with its selection and development strategies. The leadership model must be relevant and meaningful for the people in the organization and be consistent with the organizational culture. The leadership model should underpin selection and development activities, and this applies in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and other organizations. Developing leaders within the organization is more effective than recruiting leaders externally. The concept of a leadership pipeline is examined. To select the best people for future leadership roles, succession management and talent management systems should be established. Leadership development strategies include education, training, job experiences, action-learning projects, and mentoring and coaching. The ADF and other organizations should use an integrated leadership development framework incorporating the different learning strategies to develop future leaders. / Lieutenant Colonel, Australian Army

Formal mentoring programs in the financial insurance business are essential for developing important leadership business skills and for providing support for important decisions and business contacts. Business leaders lack adequate knowledge about the strategies that comprise an effective mentoring program. With the conceptual theories of Super's career development and Quinn's competing values framework, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies within a formal mentoring program to prepare new business leaders in the financial insurance business. Nine leaders from the financial insurance business were recruited for participation in the study; these leaders were also mentees in the formal mentorship program. The research question addressed the strategies of successful mentorship programs that the leaders used to prepare new business leaders in the financial insurance business. Data were collected via semistructured telephone interviews, face-to-face interviews, and document analyses. Transcribed data were validated via response validation and then coded into 8 interlinking themes related to strategies used in the mentorship program: empowerment of knowledge, leadership competency, level of experience, networking, gender, retention, structure, and strategies for the future. Leaders of financial insurance businesses could benefit from this study by integrating and implementing recommendations on developing a mentoring program for future leaders. Effective formal mentoring programs within organizations can thus improve leadership competencies and can develop socially responsible leaders who contribute to the economic well-being of businesses and communities and capitalize on growth and financial education opportunities. Strategies for Formal Mentoring Future Business Leaders

Organizations are seeking ways to become more innovative as a response to increased global competitiveness. While innovation is clearly important, many strategies have been attempted with this goal but no clear method has proved successful. This study shows that firms who are considered to have innovation as one of their core competencies utilize mentoring to facilitate and cultivate innovation. Utilizing a qualitative, case study approach, interviews were conducted with key stakeholders at four major U.S. companies considered to be among the most innovative in the world. The transcripts, archival data, and popular magazine and newspaper articles were included in the content analysis. Findings support that mentoring is a key aspect of creating and sustaining a culture of innovation at large U.S. corporations.

The purpose of this case study is to describe the way power, as individual agency, works in the space of institutionalization of a new teacher mentoring program. The space of institutionalization is thought of as a space in which the design of the mentoring program and the actions of participants interact as the program undergoes changes. The participants in this study tell about the way each goes about mentoring in response to the program changes. Their stories are analyzed through critical discourse analysis for workings of power. Two kinds of power or agency emerge through the analysis. Instrumental agency is the physical activities, perceptions, and spoken words of the mentors limited by their subject and structural positionality. Instrumental agency in the space of institutionalization worked to instill differentiation as plurality and normalization as objectification into the mentoring program. When instrumental agency is the dominant power in the space of institutionalization, the legitimacy of the mentoring program is rationalized as legitimization. Legitimization of the program results in an ecology of the space of institutionalization open to vagaries of political expediency. The second kind of power or agency to emerge is operative agency. Operative agency originates in sensings and feelings as expressed in wondering and uncertainty about mentoring roles and the mentoring program. When engaging operative agency as power, differentiation and normalization in the space of institutionalization can be questioned.

The purpose of this case study is to describe the way power, as individual agency, works in the space of institutionalization of a new teacher mentoring program. The space of institutionalization is thought of as a space in which the design of the mentoring program and the actions of participants interact as the program undergoes changes. The participants in this study tell about the way each goes about mentoring in response to the program changes. Their stories are analyzed through critical discourse analysis for workings of power. Two kinds of power or agency emerge through the analysis. Instrumental agency is the physical activities, perceptions, and spoken words of the mentors limited by their subject and structural positionality. Instrumental agency in the space of institutionalization worked to instill differentiation as plurality and normalization as objectification into the mentoring program. When instrumental agency is the dominant power in the space of institutionalization, the legitimacy of the mentoring program is rationalized as legitimization. Legitimization of the program results in an ecology of the space of institutionalization open to vagaries of political expediency. The second kind of power or agency to emerge is operative agency. Operative agency originates in sensings and feelings as expressed in wondering and uncertainty about mentoring roles and the mentoring program. When engaging operative agency as power, differentiation and normalization in the space of institutionalization can be questioned.

Although research on mentoring dates back to the early 1980’s, there is little research available which examines the influence of past mentoring experiences on relationships in which female school executives, in turn, serve as the mentors. This interpretive qualitative case study, based on data collected from conversational interviews with three selected female school executives, was designed to explore and investigate the past and present mentoring relationships of these female school executives to understand more clearly the influence of their past mentoring experiences. Four distinct strands of mentoring interactions emerged from the key findings of this study. The four strands include: Strand I: Career Development and Psychosocial Functions, Strand II: Attributes of Successful Mentoring Relationships, Strand III: Values of Successful Mentoring Relationships, and Strand IV: Mutual Attraction, Reciprocity, and Interpersonal Comfort. After studying the various data that were collected, it became evident that the degree of influence of past mentoring experiences is interdependent and mutually connected to the mentoring interactions of Strand IV: Mutual Attraction, Reciprocity, and Interpersonal Comfort. In these specified relationships, there appeared to be a greater degree of emotional connectivity and intimacy which served as an avenue to support the influence of past mentoring experiences in relationships where these females, in turn, mentored others. Studies, such as this, add to the literature base regarding the importance of mentoring for females and thus affect mentoring practices, policies, and guidelines and serve to address the gap which sometimes exits between theory and practice. Since research has shown females remain historically underrepresented in educational leadership positions and mentoring is critical to the success of females who do occupy these positions, it is females who should gain the most benefit from studies of this nature.

The research literature is replete with information about the teacher shortage. The connection between teacher shortages and teacher classroom effectiveness with student achievement substantiates the need for interventions. Research has identified the potential of developmental mentoring and supervision programs for increasing teacher effectiveness, teacher retention, and student achievement. The purpose of this study was to develop and to analyze the psychometric properties of the Conceptual Level Teacher Behavior Observation Tool (CLTBOT). The purpose of this study was important because the development of the CLTBOT filled a void in the literature for an observation tool that would evaluate teacher behaviors in the conceptual domain. The potential use for these data is tied to mentoring or supervisory practices designed specifically for the teacher’s current need for structure, as well as for showing evidence of growth resulting from program activities. This study was organized into three steps. Step one focused on the development of the CLTBOT. Step two, of this study, explored the validity of the first draft of the CLTBOT in a pilot study. The pilot study indicated a moderate association between an adapted version of Hunt’s Paragraph Completion Method (PCM), the established measure for conceptual development, and the CLTBOT, the focal instrument of this study. The pilot proved an essential step in the process of developing and analyzing the CLTBOT as revisions were made following the results. Step three was the research study designed to answer the research questions. Research question one required an item by item analysis of the CLTBOT. Cohen’s kappa coefficients of between .699 and .867 demonstrated that the two raters’ scores were consistent. Research question two was answered with evaluations of the CLTBOT by two experts who awarded high ratings for the items based on relevance and clarity. A Cramer’s V coefficient of .56 revealed a strong relationship between the CLTBOT and the PCM, establishing evidence for concurrent validity and answering research question three. The results provided preliminary validity and reliability evidence for the use of the Conceptual Level Teacher Behavior Observation Tool (CLTBOT).

Thesis (EdD)--Open University. BLDSC no. DX219786.