In their leadership development journey (aspirant), leaders gain many similar experiences. How come one leader feels comfortable in a leadership role, and the other does not? “The extent to which they give meaning to life experiences is one of the most determining factors in building a leader identity”, says Sonja Zaar, who recently obtained her doctorate on this topic.
Dr Sonja Zaar is researcher in the field of organisational behaviour and educational sciences and lecturer at Maastricht University, UMIO and the Executive Development Programme. For her research, she interviewed CEOs and senior managers from different industry sectors; men and women with extensive experience and at least 10 years in a leadership role. Sonja: “In the conversations, we asked them to describe their ‘life narrative’ using objects that represented a key moment related to leadership for them. We had them place the objects (at least 5) in a timeline. We weren’t especially interested in the objects and the events they represented but the meaning these leaders gave to these events. Interviewing people this way yields richer stories with more details because the objects bring memories back to life. The objective was to discover how people in a formal leadership role shape and develop a leader identity. Based on the patterns we found in the interviews and literature, we discovered some interesting aspects of leader identity development.”
Experiences as learning opportunities
“We found that almost all leaders had started their leadership career with a somewhat traditional view on leadership; a leader tells other people what they should do”, Sonja continues. “Over time this narrow image broadened due to how the leaders engaged in meaning-making of the experiences they gained. The leaders learned that leadership can take many forms in different contexts. They were able to adapt because they gave new meaning to an experience. An experience can be anything; the birth of child, a training, a reorganisation, a conversation with a friend, you name it. Giving meaning implies that people do something with the experience. They don’t consider it negative or positive per se but see it as a learning opportunity. They are able to let go of their own beliefs and have an open mind. Second, original leaders have the guts to experiment based on their observations. They welcome feedback and use that to change their behaviour. We call this deliberate practice; bringing observation, experimentation and integration of new beliefs and behaviour together. The third, and maybe most important, aspect is that original leaders consciously reflect (regular reflective practice). They have people in their environment with whom they spar. This can be a friend, a partner or a coach or mentor.”
Leadership threat
On the other hand, leaders who are not able to give new meaning to experiences and who do not have sparring partners in their environment do not develop in their leader identity. Sonja: “An experience that does not fit with your current perspective may be considered a threat. It can then be perceived as an identity threat or identity rejection, and it affects men and women equally. If you have a leader’s role, but don’t feel like a leader, your environment may consider you as less effective. This may lead to stress, burnout or even destructive behaviour.”
Healthier impact
Sonja explains the value of her research. “It offers companies and (aspirant) leaders insights into how to develop a leader identity. If leaders feel more comfortable and confident as leaders and in their roles, they feel physically and mentally healthier and can have a healthier impact on their organisation and environment. Giving meaning and reflecting can start as a simple routine, similar to daily brushing your teeth. This routine helps building a pattern that supports learning and development. Companies can encourage their leaders by offering them a challenging learning environment, supported by a coach/mentor and by offering time to build in reflection moments.”
Enhancement of classroom experiences
In another research, Sonja studied how classroom experiences in an educational environment contribute to the development of leadership identity. “For this study, we included about 450 participants and asked them to describe a classroom experience from which they had learnt something. They had to write down the details of this experience, the learnings, and their feelings and emotions related to it in a narrative report. 450 people is a big sample and makes us rather unique. The results of this study show that classroom experiences that are designed and delivered in a specific way generate leadership development opportunities.”
Sonja names some elements that designers of classroom education at universities and business schools, such as Maastricht University School of Business and Economics and its executive education at UMIO, could take into account. “Efficiency and learning return increase considerably when classroom sessions combine deep thinking with purposeful acting. Meaning: an interactive session in which theory is combined with active elements like experiments, debates, et cetera. Furthermore, the learning environment should be a safe place where everyone feels free to contribute (constructive challenge) and in which all participants are equal and treated with respect. There should also be support to make things happen.” Sonja realises that this is easier said than done. “Designing classroom education to serve as a platform for leadership development demands a different approach and role from the teacher. As such, the results from our study are shared with teaching staff to create this awareness and to show how a classroom can be designed if they want to develop leadership identities of their students.”
Sonja Zaar teaches in UMIO’s Executive MBA programmes. You can find out more about our MaastrichtMBA here or here. Are you intrigued by Sonja’s research? Download her dissertation here.
