Leadership for Turbulent Times

Leonard R. Sayles

Jan 1995 · Center for Creative Leadership

About this ebook

This report is a personal account of insights yielded by a conference hosted in 1994 by the Center for Creative Leadership, "New Demands for Leadership: Responding to Turbulence." It explores ideas expressed by participants--behavioral science researchers, leadership trainers, corporate executives, and consultants--who attempted to clarify the critical new challenges executives are facing, identify skills and perspectives they need to meet these challenges successfully, and determine the implications for the selection and development of these new skills and perspectives. The framework for the report is the eight themes used to organize conference activities: teamwork and organizational stewardship among senior managers; leading beyond the organization's boundaries; rethinking the boss-subordinate, employer-employee relationship; senior executives as exemplars of values; operating excellence--making technology contribute; maintaining strategic focus to grow the business; senior managers who continue to learn; and the impact of U.S. culture on management. For each theme, personal impressions on the topic are given, based on preconference interviews and conference discussions. These are augmented with examples drawn from personal experience and reading. The book concludes with a selection of comments by executives in interviews and during the conference that illustrate the evolution in management thinking that has taken place since the demise of the "comfort years." Contains 35 references. (YLB)