Leaders are coming under pressure from many directions – new technology, geopolitical risk, extreme weather events, health crises and cyber-attacks.

Are the leaders in your organization equipped to deal with these unpredictable and rapidly changing conditions?

In the face of such uncertain futures, should you be examining your organization’s leadership to confront these challenges?

Distributed leadership

Taken together, strong winds of change encourage an approach of distributed, or shared leadership.

The concept was first identified about two decades ago but is of highly practical value today.

Distributed leadership is a collaborative approach where leadership is not solely the domain of top-level executives.

Instead, it is shared among individuals at various levels of the organization.

This empowers employees to take ownership of their work, make decisions, and contribute to the overall success of the company.

It is a fundamental break with the familiar, traditional hierarchical approach to leadership.

Is everyone now a leader?

In this approach, leadership roles are shared.

Anyone can become a leader – but only if they have the experience, skills, and knowledge required in a given problem or crisis.

Hierarchy is replaced by a network of formal and informal leaders.

Team members are empowered to take decisions, show initiative and drive innovation.

Leadership becomes a collective responsibility; success is collectively owned.

Distributed leadership has some interesting features.  First, it can be a spontaneous, naturally occurring phenomenon.

Research during the COVID-19 pandemic identified ‘pop-up leaders’ – individuals and teams who identified problems and developed solutions on their own initiative without waiting for management instructions.

Second, distributed leadership relies on concertive action (also called the circulation of initiative).

This means that one person’s actions are taken up and developed further by others who don’t have to be told what to do.

A third feature is the circulation of influence, which involves persuading others where necessary of the need to act.

The benefits of distributed leadership

Distributed leadership has an impressive list of benefits.

Importantly, those who are close to the action can make better decisions than remote managers and there is broader, more inclusive participation in decision-making.

Decisions can be acted on rapidly, without having to wait for permission and therefore the response to sudden crises is enhanced (through pop-up leaders, for example).

Distributed leadership can thus strengthen an organization’s overall agility and capability, in normal operations, and in response to the unexpected.

Examples of distributed leadership

A CIPD podcast discussed how the internet bank First Direct fosters a collaborative environment by encouraging employees to take ownership, share ideas, and make decisions.

It also explored how Dumfries and Galloway NHS Board enhanced its agility and problem-solving with a distributed leadership approach, using an improvement program which empowers the various levels of management to make decisions and collaborate across teams.

In contrast to stereotyping, the mission command system used by the British Army involves letting troops on the ground make their own decisions in the context of overall mission objectives.

They are best placed to decide how to deal with the conditions facing them. Waiting for orders could be fatal.

Are there any problems?

While distributed leadership offers many benefits, it is important to address potential concerns.

Some managers may be reluctant to give up control over their teams. It is important to emphasize that distributed leadership does not mean a complete loss of control, but rather a shift in how leadership is exercised.

Without clear guidelines and expectations, distributed leadership can lead to confusion and inefficiency. It is essential to provide clear roles and responsibilities.

When leadership is shared, there may be power struggles between individuals or teams. It is important to foster a culture of collaboration and respect.

Putting distributed leadership into practice

It is difficult to mandate or adopt a rigid template for a distributed leadership approach, like one would adopt, say, zero-based budgeting.

It can, however, be encouraged given the right conditions.

• There has to be consistent signaling of aims and priorities by top management. This sounds simple and obvious, but this consistency can be rare.
• Autonomy and empowerment at all levels need to be organizational norms, and not exceptions. This involves formal leadership relaxing their decision rights.
• The organization must have a ‘let’s get on with it’ culture, which means not waiting for instruction when it’s clear what needs to be done.
• Risk taking must be encouraged and rewarded. This means ensuring psychological safety which permits ‘praiseworthy failures’ – mistakes made in good faith.
• Line management and supervisory roles need to shift emphasis from directing to facilitating, supporting, and coaching.

The top management role is to set these conditions, and then get out of the way.

The role of HR professionals

HR professionals can play a crucial role in encouraging distributed leadership.

Here are some practical steps they can take:

Encourage a supportive culture: Foster a culture that values collaboration, innovation, and empowerment.

Provide training and development: Offer training programs to equip employees with the skills needed to be effective leaders, wherever they sit in the organization.

Recognize and reward leadership: Acknowledge and reward employees who demonstrate leadership qualities, regardless of their position.

Facilitate collaboration: Create opportunities for employees to work together and share ideas.

Measure and evaluate: Track the effectiveness of distributed leadership initiatives and make adjustments as needed.

Meeting today’s needs

Distributed leadership is a straightforward and powerful approach. It is an effective way of dealing with the complexities and pace of change in today’s organizations.

It fits well with wider social and cultural trends, which reject hierarchy and directive management.

Importantly, it is a good fit for leading through the complexities and pace of change in today’s organizations.

Does your leadership development match the profile of facing today’s needs?