Leading Generously: Tools for Transformation

From the author of Generous Thinking: A Radical Approach to Saving the University comes a compelling guide to the art of collaborative leadership.

In a world increasingly defined by crisis, public service institutions like colleges, universities, and nonprofit organizations require capable, dynamic, and trustworthy leadership―yet stories of leadership failures there abound. The problem, Kathleen Fitzpatrick argues in Leading Generously, is a fundamental mismatch between the communal purposes that leaders must serve and the individualistic structures under which they operate.

Transforming institutions so they can be resilient in the face of uncertain futures will require a similar transformation in leadership practices, turning hierarchies into collective and collaborative spaces designed for the common good. Doing so, however, requires a willingness to reimagine the idea of leadership itself. In this concise, approachable book, Fitzpatrick explores not just the problems with the institutional status quo but also the tools to transform it. Her wide-ranging research brings together key theories of leadership with the experiences of successful leaders whose stories demonstrate innovative possibilities for collaboration in the service of institutional transformation.

Building on her previous book Generous Thinking, this guide lays out a road map for how leaders can transform their institutions to truly align with their missions and can build more generous communities for the common good.

Kathleen Fitzpatrick is the director of Digital Humanities and a professor of English at Michigan State University, where she also leads MESH Research, a lab focused on the future of scholarly communication. She is the author of Generous Thinking: A Radical Approach to Saving the University.