Leader Work: Using Insight, Intuition and Imagination to Develop Leadership Practice

Leader Work offers an accessible and engaging introduction to the power of reflection to support leaders in their development and professional practice. The book does not present a tick-box toolkit to being a better leader, instead it provides the prompts and deeper reflexive space for leaders to consider their own self-development.

Written by a leading management researcher and consultant, the book draws on reflexive practice, but goes beyond this method to guide the reader on how to consider both inward and outward work, and provides useful suggestions for application. The inward work involves developing our knowledge of ourselves, our capabilities and our limitations through self-examination and connecting with others, and so building up our capacity for judgment, and gaining confidence in using intuition and imagination thoughtfully in situations of complexity and uncertainty. The outward work involves learning to express a leader identity that is both true to ourselves and recognized by relevant groups and the organizations in which we work, so that we are trusted to help navigate and narrate a path through uncertainty.

This book has been written for leaders and would-be leaders looking to develop and shape their practice, as well as scholars studying and teaching leadership classes.

Paul Hibbert is Professor of Management at the University of Warwick, UK, where he leads the Organization and Work Group. His career also encompasses leadership roles at the University of St Andrews and professional associations, and working with a wide range of organizations in consultancy, training and professional development roles.