Leadership at Varying Levels: How Emerging, Mid and Senior-Level Leaders Lead in Higher Education

Transcription

1 Dr. Amy McGinnis & Dr. Misty Bennett MI ACE Women s Network Conference, 2015 Leadership at Varying Levels: How Emerging, Mid and Senior-Level Leaders Lead in Higher Education

2 Introduction Women in the workforce Women in education Pay inequality still exits Could there be a connection between advancement and leadership/communication/conflict? What do women in higher education leadership do to become successful? Became the focus of my own dissertation study

3 Four Key Points Deeper exploration of women in higher education at varying levels emerging, mid and senior Transformational leadership helps women be congruent with gender and leadership roles Organizational level is an important variable in the enactment of transformational leadership Clear connection between communication and conflict behaviors and transformational leadership

4 The Full Range Model of Leadership Laissez Faire Management by Exception Five I s

5 Your Transformational Leader So, who is/was this for you? Who has been a positive, transformational leader in your life? Who has motivated, inspired, and challenged you to become a better person? How did they transform you? What s your style? Handout.

6 What did I find in my research? Senior-Level Leaders PhD & >20 yrs exp 9% of respondents Asst/Assoc Dean, Dean, Asst/ Assoc VP, Provost President Emerging Leaders BA & < 10 yrs exp 32% of respondents Asst/Assoc Director, Coordinator, Specialist, Lecturer Mid-Level Leaders MA & <15 yrs exp 59% of respondents Manager, Director, Assoc/ Full Professor, Chairperson

7 Overall, how did female leaders rate their approach toward leadership? Female participants identified themselves as more transformational than transactional. Significant variation between emerging, mid or senior-level leaders in transformational leadership behaviors Data align with previous research on women and transformational leadership Passive Avoidant Transactional Transformational

8 Overall, how did female leaders rate their communication and conflict behaviors? Overall, female participants identified themselves as more solution-oriented, with an emphasis on collaboration. No variation between emerging, mid or senior-level leaders in communication/conflict behaviors Data consistent with conflict literature which cites women as collaborative and constructive Non- Confrontation Solution- Orientation Control Strategies

9 Your Conflict Style Think about the last time you were in a conflict with someone. What kind of approach did you take to solve the issue? How do you generally approach difficult conversations? What s your style? Handout.

10 Discussion Senior-level leaders reported more transformational leadership behaviors Reinforces the link between female leadership and transformational leadership Suggests that advancement linked to acting in transformational ways Relationship exists between communication/conflict behaviors and leadership behaviors The ways women approach conflicts are linked to the ways they see themselves as leaders in the academy Having women in leadership roles provides for more solution-oriented and collaborative environment

11 Implications Female leaders at all levels should not avoid conflict Emerging leaders should understand transformational leadership Mid-level leaders should capitalize on their experience and build transformational leadership skills Senior-level leaders should share conflict expertise and leadership findings Institutions of higher education should provide support for advancement pathways

12 CMU 360 Mentoring Program Emerging leaders find mentors at the mid and senior level to develop transformational leadership skills Emerging leaders find mentors at the mid and senior level to develop transformational leadership skills CMU is working on succession planning for leaders Spring 2014 CMU launched 360 Leadership Development Assessment with Denison Consulting Mentorship programs for administrative leaders could help emerging leaders rise to the top

13 What other implications are there for emerging leaders? What do you want from a mentoring experience? What would help develop your leadership skills? How can you develop your communication and conflict management skills?

14 We must carry forward the work of the women who came before us and ensure our daughters have no limits on their dreams, no obstacles to their achievements, and no remaining ceilings to shatter. -President Barack Obama