Systemic Leadership: Enriching the Meaning of our Work.(Review)

Systemic Leadership: Enriching the Meaning of our Work Kathleen E. Allen & Cynthia Cherrey The University Press of America 2000 152 Pages, Cloth $54.00, Paper $24.50 Soft and Hard Cover

If we adopt a different perspective of our job and role in organizations, the meaning of our work will be enhanced. This is the underlying premise adopted by the authors, both of whom are professionals in educational leadership and experienced in student affairs administration. And, while this book is scribed primarily for those seeking to influence others in institutions of higher education, Allen and Cherrey contend the book's applicability and generalizability is broad-based since we all face similar struggles.

The book is divided into three sections, the first of which describes "Waves of Change." In this section, the authors describe two major environmental shifts: (1) increased global connectivity and integration resulting in an explosion of data generation (and correspondingly, information overload due to expanded media and accelerating amounts of information); and (2) a maturation from an industrial model (in which the resources most valued were human, capital and material) to a knowledge-based model (in which data and information are the primary resources).

This first section also distinguishes between the traditional-fragmented-hierarchical paradigm and the evolving-network paradigm. The former is characterized using an interesting automobile analogy in which independent parts (such as the ignition switch, brake pads, and fuel pump) can interfere with functioning is defective, but can also be easily removed and replaced to get the system back in forward motion. In contrast, the latter paradigm requires a true integrated systems perspective. To understand such a system the authors argue one would have to be elevated from the proverbial dance floor to a balcony above to witness and understand the interconnectivity and dynamics.

The Internet is described to illustrate differences in operating procedures between the old and the new models. As an example, the issue of control is discussed to indicate how no single entity controls the Internet, as such control is not only impossible because of structural characteristics, but also because the network is actively resistant to forced change. Allen and Cherrey liken the Internet to wet sand, made up of silicone and saline, which resists the imprint of a foot when we slap it down. However, when we place a foot in the wet sand and wait, the sand allows it to sink and make an imprint. In this evolving world, the authors argue, influence and not control is the operative change mechanism.

Part two delineates "Four New Ways of Working," which include alterations in the manner in which effective leaders must relate, influence change, learn, and lead. New ways of relating involve: (1) the capacity to build and maintain effective cooperative relationships across the boundaries of an organization and between the organization and community, (2) the ability to think relationally, and ($) the development of emotional intelligence.

New ways of influencing change demand implementing organic strategies that take into account the non-linear dynamics of interconnected systems and understanding points of leverage in these dynamic systems. In ...