Challenging Anglo-Saxon perceptions of leadership
Leadership literature is dominated by the Anglo-Saxons.
This dominance reflects two trends:
- Dominance of English language as the language of business, which creates a bias towards native English speakers in publications.
- Size and strength of the US economy, gives the US models of business and leadership credibility.
This dominance is not healthy. We know that there are alternative models of business and of leadership which have, and will, challenge the current fashion for Anglo-Saxon received wisdom. The Japanese model flourished briefly in the 1980s, before their bubble burst: Indian and Chinese models are also likely to become much stronger.
The Leadership Partnership has entered into collaboration with Oxford University, supported by FIRST magazine, to challenge the Anglo-Saxon view of leadership. The initial pilot study will focus on France because:
- We believe a significant change in perspective occurs somewhere beneath the channel.
- France and the UK are sufficiently close in economic terms for different perspectives not to be driven by economic fundamentals
(India and China are at very different stages of evolution).
- The side by side comparison is viable and relevant.
Research goals
The initial pilot study will contrast British perspectives on leadership with those in France.
The UK perspectives will be based on the research conducted for How To Lead (Prentice Hall 2005), including both the quantitative analysis of what people expect of leaders, together with the qualitative analysis based on interviews with key leaders in the public, private and voluntary sectors.
The purpose of the pilot is to:
- Understand if there are significantly different models to the Anglo-Saxon view of leadership.
- Test and develop key hypotheses about the differences between Anglo-Saxon and other forms of leadership.
- Identify the strengths and benefits of the French system.
- Identify what further research is required to confirm or disprove the initial hypotheses.
If appropriate, the FBSA conference in Autumn 2006 will be used as a forum for discussing and progressing the research.
Research scope.
As a pilot programme the research will be relatively focused on a few key leaders who are most likely to have an alternative perspective on leadership: in practice the French public sector will provide a distinct contrast with the Anglo-Saxon perspective. The target is to interview up to 20 successful graduates of ENA who have risen to significant positions in public administration. We will also target a limited number of private sector leaders to understand how far any differences are driven by nationality (France versus UK) or by sector (public versus private).
Initial Hypotheses
- Networks are different in Anglo-Saxon and French models of leadership. Anglo-Saxon networks tend to be narrow and industry focused, until people reach the very top when their networks expand. In France, networks are more likely to cross public and private sectors and there is likely to be more collaboration across those sectors.
- Career trajectories differ. Anglo-Saxon career trajectories tend to be narrow and industry focused; French trajectories tend to expose emerging leaders to a wider variety of sectors and experiences.
- Decision making differs. Decision making in France is more top down, more direct and faster than in the UK.
- Leadership values differ: Expectations of what make a good leader are not the same in the UK and France.
Invitation to participate
If you are interested in participating, or know anyone who you would like to recommend, we would like to hear from you. There are several ways you can contribute:
