Digitalisation and the phenomenon of digital transformation is rapidly and fundamentally changing existing businesses and organisations alike (Collin, 2015). Although considered a prime challenge for leaders of complex and changing organisations, research in the combined field of digitalisation and leadership however still remain scarce. As executives are tasked with the leading of digital transformation, this study aims to understand how digitalisation effects top management leadership. To achieve this, the study takes a two-folded approach by (1) outlining six characteristics of digitalisation and (2) analysing how these characteristics effect three contemporary forms of leadership: values-based, transformative and authentic leadership. Through a broad literature survey and 13 in-depth interviews with executives and organisational leaders, the study found that the six identified characteristics of digitalisation all effected the three forms of contemporary leadership. The different characteristics did not only change how the leaders practiced each of their leadership styles, but also how their leadership manifested itself through the use of various digital tools, methods and processes in order to enhance and empower their leadership. Even the sub-features of each leadership form were subject to this fundamental digital change. What was also found were three complementary perspectives when leading complex and changing organisations: the perspective of holism, virtuality and networked-based hubs. Each of these perspectives were premiered aspects to be considered as a contemporary leader.

This study explores partnership working as a mechanism for effective public service delivery. It investigates into how Public-Social Enterprise Partnerships (P-SEPs) can utilise innovative models of user involvement and Service Innovation (SI) in the co-design and co-delivery of user-led socially-oriented services to young adults (18-24) in East England. It identifies the inability of P-SEPs to conceptually explore innovative models of user involvement and SI when engaging young-adult end users in the co-design and co-delivery of user-led solutions to `wicked` issues like `rough sleeping` as a gap in knowledge which I will explore three interrelated research questions in filling. This study draws conceptual inspiration from the network theory, the Pragmatic research paradigm and the inductive-deductive research strategy in exploring the Concurrent Mixed Method underpinned by Likert-scale questionnaires and semi-structure interviews as my data gathering instruments. The emergent conceptual framework from my data analyses posits that high users` perception of their involvement in the co-design and co-delivery of user-led public services can engineer satisfaction, transformational outcomes and high service quality. A fieldtrip provided the conceptual opportunity for me to explore three multiple-case studies in gathering qualitative data through semi-structured interviews administered to staff as these were coded, thematised and analysed using NVivo. Quantitative data from questionnaires administered to end users were analysed using Excel. Evidence gleaned from both strands was integrated and triangulated in complementing and enhancing my research findings. This study challenges misconceptions and dominant ideologies which underpin user involvement while making three interconnected contributions to knowledge. First, it extends the frontiers of knowledge in the discipline by creating new insights and articulating four innovative models of user involvement. Second, at the practical level, it contributes to the ongoing debate on conceptualising, modernising and delivering more effective userengineered public services by informing professional practice and policymaking. And third, at the theoretical level, it contributes towards the development of a theory on user involvement. It thus underlines the factual conclusion that high users` perception of their involvement in the co-design and co-delivery of user-led outcomes can engineer high user satisfaction, high service quality and transformational outcomes. It successfully re-positions the debates on user involvement on new conceptual and empirical grounds.

This dissertation purposes to answer the question of whether or not the verb system of Black English in Dallas has the same features as those that characterize Black English in other sections of the country. Specifically, it describes in detail the use of the verb "be" within the speech of blacks in the Dallas metropolitan area and accounts for these usages formally within the framework of a transformational-generative grammar of the type proposed by Noam Chomsky.

Abstract MAKING LEADERS: EXAMINING HOW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING OF LEADERSHIP AND SHOW EMERGING LEADERSHIP TENDENCIES By Sarah E. Evans, Ph.D. A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2014 Director: Whitney Sherman Newcomb, Ph.D. Professor, Educational Leadership The purpose of this study was to understand how young children develop skills and concepts of leadership, when nurtured in a developmentally appropriate manner. Leadership was defined as a process that people use to bring out the best in themselves and others, while working towards a common purpose. This study examined a leadership curriculum, The Leader in Me, as it was being taught in an elementary school, grades K-5. The researcher used a qualitative lens to understand parents’ and teachers’ perceptions of the program, and the study findings indicated that The Leader in Me was used as both a way to teach leadership and for behavior modification. Teachers reported teaching leadership through direct instruction, informal instruction, curriculum materials, and practice. In addition, the children’s leadership behaviors were analyzed through the transformational leadership model to find The Leader in Me resulted in attempting to make transformational leaders. The children showed signs of transformational leadership through the behaviors of the 4 I’s: idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. The data further showed positive gains in school culture, leadership development, and personal growth. Standardized testing pass rates were examined, but the researcher found the leadership program had no discernable impact on student achievement. This study found that there is merit in looking to our nation’s educational system to support the intentional process of developing leaders in schools. Keywords: leaders, leadership, leadership development in children, The Leader in Me, 7 Habits, transformational leadership

This study explored how avid users of Second Life (SL) experience and make meaning of informal learning activities in virtual art museums and similar cultural spaces through their avatars. While recent literature has laid the groundwork for studying student engagement and formal learning, the lacuna of research bound by the historical traditions of qualitative research design has done little to ease the skepticism surrounding the value of virtual worlds for learning. Within the context of museological discourse, virtual museum learning experiences have the potential to shift viewing practices as well as how meaning is generated, interpreted, and disseminated. Technical, conceptual, and methodological barriers to studying virtual worlds remain. Another goal of this study was to demonstrate the potential of hermeneutic phenomenology, particularly my conceptualization of virtual hermeneutics, to study virtual worlds. Hermeneutic phenomenology has the potential to make practical understanding of the informal learning process in SL explicit by providing an interpretation of this process. The challenge lies in applying the philosophy behind the methodology to the changing reality of virtual worlds. It is only by studying these experiences in context and situated within virtual spaces that we can expand our understanding of the avatar-mediated informal learning process. Findings from this study show that in-world informal learning experiences can, in fact, be studied on their own terms. Furthermore, rich textural data can not only be extracted from exclusively in-world interaction, but collaborative relationships can also develop with no actual world contact. These experiences and interactions can lead to experiential learning, but also transformational learning where the avatar-identity can affect users' actual world viewing practices and meaning making. It is not so much the technology per se that can affect change, but rather identity exploration, diegesis, and relationship building afforded by the technology. Albeit some learning outcomes were observed, affective outcomes and cognitive strategies, including metacognitive skills, were more frequently described by participants. Due to the complexity of assessing such outcomes and the present obsession with quantitatively measurable outcomes in formal education, it is unlikely that SL can or will be used outside the scope of informal learning in the near future unless formal education undergoes social reform.

Background: Women in senior positions have been, for a long time, discredited. We wanted to study their current situation and understand how they assert themselves in their companies. We thought it would be interesting to see their link to management and leadership. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to understand the position of female managers in organizations through the exploration of gender roles, characteristics and stereotypes. Method: We conducted our research by reviewing literature about leadership theories, management versus leadership and gender influences over leadership. Then, we conducted a qualitative study with a comparison analysis between the banking, consulting and agri-food industries in France to update the current knowledge regarding female managers, to understand how they assert themselves. Conclusion: The results suggest that it is still hard for women to assert themselves and reach manager or leader positions. However, this is mostly due to their own perceptions of themselves. Women tend to lack self-confidence, which is unfortunate because female managers generally use a transformational leadership style which is considered as one of the best, which means they have all the keys to become both successful managers and leaders, using androgynous characteristics. They also endure the maternity leave and tend to sacrifice their professional career for the benefit of their family life. Women simply need to be more confident and keep asserting themselves.

No description available.

A gestão da qualidade configura-se em um dos conceitos mais importantes da gestão moderna. Frequentemente, divide-se suas dimensões em dois grupos, o primeiro composto por aspectos objetivos, as dimensões hard, e o segundo, composto por aspectos subjetivos, as dimensões soft. Dentre as dimensões soft, a liderança é uma das apontadas como mais relevantes para o estabelecimento de um ambiente de qualidade nas organizações. No entanto, embora a relação entre gestão de qualidade e liderança seja clara, há ainda diversas lacunas de pesquisa a serem exploradas, especialmente sobre a relação entre estilos de liderança específicos e a gestão da qualidade. Deste modo, o objetivo do presente estudo foi de explorar esta relação, utilizando-se, para tanto, do modelo de liderança transformacional-transacional, e do modelo Competing Values Framework. Participaram do estudo 47 gestores de qualidade, em sua maioria (74%) da região Sudeste do país, que foram contatados através de e-mail e mensagem na rede social LinkedIn,. Para a análise dos dados, utilizou-se correlação de Pearson, com o uso do software SPSS. Os dados encontrados confirmam achados da literatura que apontam que tanto a liderança transformacional, quanto a transacional apresentam relação com elementos da gestão da qualidade, com vantagem do primeiro estilo de liderança. A respeito dos estilos de liderança do Competing Values Framework, observou-se que os perfis associados a um estilo diretivo e de curto prazo demonstraram tendência a apresentar coeficientes de correlação mais altos, em detrimento dos perfis de estilo colaborativo e longo prazo. Sugere-se, em estudos futuros, estabelecer as mesmas correlações para diferentes participantes, especialmente gestores da alta administração. / Quality management is one of the most popular concepts in modern magament. Often, the quality management dimensions are divided into two groups, one of objective aspects, or hard dimensions, and other of subjective aspects, or soft dimensions. Among soft dimensions, leadership is one of the most relevant for establishing a quality environment in organizations. However, although the relationship between quality management and leadership is clear, there are still several research gaps to be exploited, especially on the relationship between specific leadership styles and quality management. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore this relationship, using, therefore, the transformational-transactional leadership model, and the Competing Values Framework model. The study included 47 quality managers, mostly (74%) of the country\'s southeastern region, who were contacted through e-mail and message on the social network LinkedIn. For data analysis, it was used Pearson correlation, and software SPSS. It was confirmed that transformational and transactional leadership are related with quality management elements, but the transformational leadership has some advantage. About Competing Values Framework leadership styles, it was observed that the profiles associated with a directive style and short-term demonstrated tendency to have higher correlation coefficients, instead of long-term and collaborative style profiles. We suggest, in future studies, establishing the same correlations for different participants, especially managers of top management.

This dissertation examines factors with influence on the organizational cultural competence of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) systems. The purpose of this study was to draw on theories of representative bureaucracy and transformational leadership to assess cultural competence in Emergency Medical Services systems from the perspective of EMS leadership, within careful consideration of the external environment in which EMS systems operate. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2015 / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The aims of this research are to identify the elements of leader sensemaking which both promote and hinder mindset change. I Use a qualitative, ethnographic active participant research approach in three organisations and semi-structured interviews with leaders from other organisations. My research identifies the inter-related elements of leader sensemaking of an organisational change methodology which is influenced in its approach by postmodern thinking and which challenges current mindsets about leadership and organisation. By identifying and establishing the interrelationship between nine key elements of leader sensemaking my research provides academics and practitioners with a basis for facilitating leader mindset change. I also identify further research opportunities around issues of sustaining individual mindset change and embedding this in organisational culture, which I have identified as a result of my research. Nine key elements of sensemaking are identified and used to understand the sensemaking process of leaders. I identify the relationship between the elements and the impact they can have in both promoting and inhibiting mindset change. My research finds that current leader thinking about organisations, leadership and organisational change is largely modernist in perspective. When presented with a methodology that is influenced by a postmodern perspective all the elements shape and influence the sense the leaders make of the challenge to their mindset and their decision on whether or not to engage with the methodology. These elements are inter-related, each is essential but insufficient in isolation, and each influences, and is influenced by, all the others. My research explores the relationship between the sensemaking elements in a range of practical organisational settings. In so doing it provides insight into how those wishing to influence the mindsets of others can understand and recognise the dynamic of sensemaking, whilst highlighting that changing leader mindsets is not something that has easy ‘how to’ answers or which can be achieved by following simplistic cause and effect step models that are prevalent in the current literature which many practitioners are familiar with.