Presentation by:

Jeanette CauseyLisa CoyleCarole Horger

How to Grow Leaders:The Seven Key Principals of Effective

Leadership Development

by John Adair

Bibliographic information:

Adair, J. (2005). How to grow leaders: The seven key principles of effective leadership development. Sterling, VA: Kogan Page.

Photo from Amazon http://amazon.com

Biographical information

In 1979 Adair became the world’s first Professor of Leadership Studies at the University of Surrey.

Author of more than 40 books on leadership, the military, and history.

http://www.johnadair.co.uk/

QUALITIES APPROACH IS WHAT A LEADER HAS TO BE

SITUATIONAL APPROACH IS WHAT A LEADER HAS TO KNOW

FUNCTIONAL (GROUP) APPROACH IS WHAT A LEADER HAS TO DO (ADAIR, 2005, P. 5).

Organization of the Book into 2 PartsPart 1 – Exploring Leadership

Leaders need to be managers, and managers need to be leaders. They are not exclusive roles, as the U.S. tends to reflect corporately.

Action-Centred

Leadership Model

Task = the goal to be achieved

Team = the group working toward the goal

Individual = leader’s understanding of each member of the team’s needs

http://www.businessballs.com/action.htm

The Seven Principles

1 Training for Leadership2 Selection3 Line Managers as Leadership Mentors4 The Chance to Lead5 Education for Leadership6 A Strategy for Leadership Development7 The Chief Executive

Next are the principles most relevant to librarians.

Principles Most Relevant to Librarians – Principle 1 – The Need for Training

Adair stated that “most common error” is acting before thinking

Levels of leadership are not hierarchical, all have equal value.

Photo of Rodin’s The Thinker by CJ http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Thinker_close.jpg

Relevance of Principle 1 – The Need for Training

If the librarian does not take a thoughtful leadership role in the school, then someone who may not have the library’s interests in mind may step into that role.

Focus on thinking is at the heart of building critical thinking skills and so is a natural marriage of the librarian and leadership.

Principles Most Relevant to Librarians –Principle 3 – Line Managers as Leadership Mentors

A mentor is one who helps others grow in their role and responsibility--and we learn leadership on the job.

Apprenticeship involves leaders briefing, encouraging, sharing experience--helping the team grow.

Relevance of Principle 3 – Line Managers as Leadership Mentors

Learning from mentor librarians strengthens the field of librarianship.

As teacher-librarians we serve as mentors to our patrons and colleagues.

The best teachers are the also learners.

Principles Most Relevant to Librarians –Principle 6 – The Strategy for Leadership Development

"One of your key functions as a strategic leader is to balance the whole and the parts” (p. 142).

Strategic = dealing with the whole, long term, important; multi-component where parts work together to achieve the bigger goal

Responsibility grows leaders in your teams.

Review questions for strategy click here.

Relevance of Principle 6 – The Strategy for Leadership Development

Librarians need to think long-term and have a strategic plan.

The plan should be reviewed in a similar way to the Adair’s review.

The TL develops student leadership skills when working with cooperative groups.

Salient Points and Audience

Leadership style is directed toward corporate or military context from Adair’s background

The text contains many quotations and examples from military leaders and classical philosophers.

Best used to gain an understanding of basic leadership principles and get a firm background in leadership theory.

Possible Audience: a study group in leadership, or district level team.

Useful References in This Book

Page 19: Functions of Leadership – planning, initiating, controlling, supporting, informing, evaluating (for details click here)

Page 91-93: Leadership Abilities – categorized qualities of leadership abilities that can be developed (for details click here)

Page 126-127: How to Run a Meeting – a synopsis of the essential structure of an effective meeting (for details click here)

Page 141: Reviewing the Strategy – a list of questions to reflect on the elements and effectiveness of your strategy (for details click here)

Questions for You

1. Which of Adair’s meeting guidelines on the handout would you adopt for the meetings you are attending or running? What other guidelines would you add?

http://www.caclibrary.org/meeting_guidelines.htm

2. Give a specific example of how the teacher librarian can use the action-centered leadership model in their library.

Adair’s Action Centered Leadership Model of Needs /

Roles

•The need to achieve the task;•The need to work as group;•The needs individuals bring.

3. Adair says “If you are talking about leadership, you are talking about integrity—the quality that engenders trust. If a leader proves not to have integrity, then the word leader becomes inappropriate” (2005, p. 145).

Reflect on and discuss what thisstatement means to us as teacher librarians in schools.

References

Adair, J. (2005). How to grow leaders: The seven key principles of effective leadership development. Sterling, VA: Kogan Page.

Chapman, Alan. (2000-2009). Action centered leadership. Businessballs. Retrieved November 2, 2009 from http://www.businessballs.com/action.htm

John Adair: Biography. (n.d.) John Adair - leadership & management. Retrieved November 2, 2009 from http://www.johnadair.co.uk/