Examining the Transition of Contemporary Managers Becomes Senior Leaders and Eventually Moves On ()
1. Introduction
Anyone can be a manager or say a contemporary leader, but being a senior leader and eventually moving on is something else entirely. It has been found from local and international studies that 80% of employees who were dissatisfied with their managers were also disengaged. Being a manager can be a demanding job with a lot of responsibility. That makes bad managing an epidemic, and the potential explanation for underperforming staff in schools and other educational establishments today. Few managerial transitions are more difficult than making the move from leading a function to leading an entire school, university or educational system for the first time (Ebot Ashu, 2018, 2020). The scope and complexity of the job increase dramatically, in ways that can leave head teachers, principals and other educational leaders not well developed or feeling extremely unconscious.
For these reasons, Western, African, Asian and American educational researchers continue to tell us that there is a “crisis” in education senior leadership positions in both developing and developed countries (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Gronn, 1999; Ribbins, 2003; including Lenka & Vandana, 2015; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004; Homan & Youngman (2006); Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). This is a subject that has fascinated scholars for many years as the demands of the posts increase. At present, a number of “theoretical and conceptual frameworks” describing the career path of an educational leader are internationally recognized. British scholars have explored and described the career development of senior leaders does go through distinct life phases and sub-phases (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Gronn, 1999; Ribbins, 2003). Other western education researchers (Southworth, 1995; Gronn & Ribbins, 1996; Pascal & Ribbins, 1998; Ribbins & Rayner, 1999; Inman, 2007) have used phases and sub-phases of leadership to develop theoretical and conceptual frameworks of education leadership development within a “longitudinal framework” (Gronn, 1999: p. 22). African and Asian scholars like Lenka & Vandana (2015); Gupta & Krishnan (2004); Homan & Youngman (2006); including Swartz (2004) and Bourdieu & Wacquant (1992) used the role of agents of socialization are lifelong process during which we learn about social expectations and how to interact with other people and become a senior leader in a different discipline (Swartz, 2004; Bourdieu & Wacquant, 1992). American scholars like Watkins (2012) also found out the elements in a manager’s career that enable his or her transition successfully into senior leadership.
These scholars above have been able to paint a picture of the characteristics of effective school senior leaders and the qualities they need to fill the role of a manager or leader. Existing training for contemporary senior leaders uses these insights to prepare and develop senior leaders. In the light of this leadership “crisis”, it is deemed important to interview educational managers and senior leaders and ask if development occurs as a result of distinct life phases or sub-phases and circumstances) as described by western scholars (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Gronn, 1999; Ribbins, 2003). Interview educational leaders and ask about the role of agents of socialization that enhance our leadership development during different phases of our lives (Lenka & Vandana, 2015; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004; Homan & Youngman, 2006; Ebot Ashu, 2014; Swartz, 2004; Bourdieu & Wacquant, 1992; Ebot Ashu, Etongwe, & Fuaty, 2021). This study similarly incorporates (Watkins, 2012) seven seismic shifts a manager must make when he or she first becomes a Senior Leader. Nor is it properly understood how a contemporary leader becomes a senior leader and eventually moves on. There is much to investigate here and to contribute to existing knowledge on understanding the career development of contemporary senior leaders. This study will address the following research questions:
1) What are the links between Day and Bakioglu, Gronn, Ribbin’s “theoretical frameworks” of education leadership and the career development of a contemporary leader?
2) What is the role of agents of socialization in the transition of contemporary managers to senior leadership?
3) What are the experiences and perceptions of educational leaders on Watkins’ seven seismic shifts a manager must make when he or she first becomes a senior leader?
4) Which theoretical or conceptual framework will best explain the career life of a contemporary leader to a senior leader?
In this introduction, the study is firstly placed in context, providing a justification for the research. Secondly, the purpose, aims and research questions are presented and the theoretical conceptual frameworks the study has drawn into this research. What will follow is the wider literature review pertaining to the topic. Thirdly, the research methodology traditions are outlined and the ethical considerations. Fourthly, the analyses of the interview transcript are presented. Finally, the discussions of the data and conclusions are presented.
2. Literature Review
In this review there is a main and sub areas of investigation: the links between existing theoretical frameworks of education leadership and the career development of a senior leader; we also have conceptual framework that best explain the link between the career development of senior leadership and the different models. Figure 1 draws heavily on different theoretical frameworks. It would seem from Figure 1 that western scholars (British precisely) are in general agreement that the role of a senior leader, certainly within the education sector, does go through distinct life phases and sub phases.
2.1. Day and Bakioglu, Gronn, Ribbins Theoretical Frameworks of Educational Leadership Development
1) Peter Gronn’s model provides a model of the process by which leaders’ characters are shaped for leadership in different educational contexts. Gronn’s model comprises four sequential phases (formation, accession, incumbency, and divestiture) in the lives of leaders. Gronn (1999: p.32) and Ribbins (2003: p.63) termed the first phase of influence on a senior leader’s development as the “Formation” phase, which encompasses the period from “infancy to early adulthood”, identifying socialization agencies as family, schooling, local community; while reference groups as peers, mentors, consciousness-shaping media are important in providing the “scaffolding of a character structure” (p. 32).
The second phase, “Accession” (Gronn, 1999: p. 34; Ribbins, 2003: p.64), is the time of “grooming or anticipation” (Gronn, 1999: p. 34) where contemporary leaders experience a range of roles, equipping themselves with a variety of skills that entail a sense of personal efficacy and self-belief. Although this model does reveal a third phase of “Incumbency” where a senior leader is in his current role, it does not confirm the suggested characteristics of this phase as in Day and where Gronn’s (1999) model does differ significantly from Ribbins’ model, and Day and Bakioglu’s model, is in the divestiture phase. Gronn (1999) provides
compelling evidence that the “divestiture” phase implies a change of status and identity which may result from “ageing, illness, lack of fulfilment or incapacity” (p. 39).
2) Day & Bakioglu (1996) model, in their study of head teachers’ lives and careers, identify a series of developmental phases and sub phases undergone by heads which are compatible with Gronn’s (1999) framework. The model consists of: Initiation, Development, Autonomy and Disenchantment. “If indeed Day and Bakioglu’s notion of disenchantment does imply “a pattern of creeping negativism” (Ribbins & Rayner, 1999: p.7) then the same cannot be read into divestiture” (Gronn, 1999: p.41; Ribbins, 2003: p.66).
3) Ribbins’ (2003) model more recent study confirmed this broad pattern of career phases, incorporating both Gronn’s three phases and Day & Bakioglu’s (1996) sub three phases, to propose a modified framework which suggests “two ideal typical pathways or routes to and through headship” (Ribbins, 2003: p. 63). Ribbins (2003) labelled these phases and sub phases as: Formation, Accession, Incumbency (initiation, development, autonomy, advancement, enchantment) and moving on. Ribbins chose to describe a fourth and fifth phase as advancement or enchantment and suggested that, whilst some senior leaders do become disenchanted and divest themselves of the job, others manage to remain enchanted through a process of moving on at the last phase. During the “initiation” sub phase, the new senior leader is wrestling with the unfamiliarity of the position (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Ribbins, 2003). During the “development” sub phase, the senior leader has built up strong relationships and is able to drive forward new initiatives for school improvement (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Ribbins, 2003). The third sub phase (Southworth, 1995; Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Pascal & Ribbins, 1998, Ribbins, 2003) is depicted as “Autonomy”, when a senior leader is very confident and competent in his/her position.
The fourth sub phase Ribbins (2003) proposes is “advancement” or “enchantment”. In this phase, “some long serving heads do seem discouraged and disenchanted” (p. 67). An enthusiastic senior leader will be more confident and optimistic by saying “it’s all in place”, “the team’s works well”, “I can find other superior outlets outside the school”. The final phase (Ribbins, 2003), termed “moving on”, and focuses on living senior leadership. The “manner of this transition can depend on the way in which they experienced the final phase of incumbency” (p. 68).
2.2. Role of Agents of Socialization in the Transition of Contemporary Managers to Senior Leadership
Swartz (2004) and Bourdieu & Wacquant (1992) discuss about agents of socialization, or institutions that can impress social norms upon an individual, include the family, religion, peer groups, economic systems, legal systems, penal systems, social group, community, government, and the media (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Brody et al. 2010; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004).
1) Lenka & Vandana (2015) identified that family is usually considered to be the most important agent of socialization that develop our leadership competence and skills. Our parents, or those who play the parent role, are responsible for teaching us to function and care for ourselves. They, along with the rest of our family, also teach us about close relationships, group life, and how to share resources. Additionally, they provide us with our first system of values, norms, and beliefs that is usually a reflection of their own social status, religion, ethnic group, and more that are important ingredients for leadership development (Lenka & Vandana, 2015; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004).
2) Brody et al. (2010) explain that church has a significant role in organizing and directing social life of many leaders. Homan & Youngman (2006) believe religion is an ethnic or cultural category, making it less likely for the individuals to break from religious affiliations and be more socialized if given in any educational establishment setting. Old and modern churches have a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that relate humanity to spirituality and moral values that every educational leader needs (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004). In the early society, religion provided a bond of unity of the different members in the community and can be well applied to any educational establishment.
3) Homan & Youngman (2006) paper discuss about the official purpose of school is to transfer subject knowledge and teach life skills, such as following directions and meeting deadlines are important skills and attitudes for aspiring school leaders. But managers and senior leaders don’t just learn from the academic curriculum prepared by teachers and school administrators. In school, aspiring managers and senior leaders also learned social skills through our interactions with teachers, staff, and other students (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004). These authors are explaining that aspiring leaders learn the importance of obeying authority and that, to be successful, we must learn to be quiet, to wait and be patient, and sometimes to act interested even when we’re not.
4) Peer groups allow aspiring leaders to form relationships and learn without the direction of a manager or senior leader students (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Brody et al., 2010). However, our peers in learning work or community setting also give us a chance to develop many of the social skills we need as a manager or senior leader (Brody et al., 2010). For instance, a young person or adult will certainly experience moments when his friends’ behavior and/or values contradict the norms and values he obtained from his school, family or community. He has to learn to decide which norms and values to keep, reject, or use and follow in certain situations (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Brody et al., 2010; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004).
5) An interesting agent of socialization for leadership development for aspiring leaders is mass media, which includes television, internet, radio, movies, books and magazines, just to name a few teaches us lots about administration, management and leadership. As with leadership development, we often learn things through mass media that our peers, school, parents would probably rather we didn’t. Especially today, aspiring leaders are exposed to a wide variety of content, including violence and sex in most work place and which way deem inappropriate, mass media also seems to reinforce gender and other stereotypes (Gupta & Krishnan, 2004; Homan & Youngman, 2006).
6) Martiskainen (2017) article makes a contribution to previous literature by highlighting the important of community has a part to play in the development of leaders in schools and university. Educational leaders in a community have the capacity to collectively chart their future by creating, developing and building their community culture (Greenleaf, 2002; Maxwell, 1995; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). The most effective community development requires building relationships among people and society members, development of education programs are frequently sponsored by scholarships and giving students professional opportunities to enhance their careers (Greenleaf, 2002; Maxwell, 1995).
7) Caligiuri (2006) point out the important of leadership development in workplace happened as in-service training. Frequently, the lack of an effective leadership development and training program results from thinking only the “senior players” need to evolve in areas of leadership (Caligiuri, 2006; Ananthram & Chan, 2013; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). However, the best leadership development goals for any organization are an integral part of the strategic business plan which includes all employees and managers since that is where operational execution occurs at its core (Caligiuri, 2006; Ananthram & Chan, 2013; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020).
8) Ebot Ashu (2014, 2020) writes it’s the duty of the government train good leaders are indispensable resources for any organization, not only because they contribute to the firm’s growth but they also drive innovation, advance career of citizens, enrich community and promote prosperity and wellbeing. Leadership is crucial to drive policies that contribute to a strategic vision (Clarke & Wildy, 2013; Bogotch & Shields, 2014). Good government empowers citizens, allocate training to meet employment needs, provide flexible working conditions and offer rewards and incentives to motivate its citizens. There is freedom of expression as concern leadership development and upward and downward communication is essential to help develop perfect leaders in organizations (Clarke & Wildy, 2013; Bogotch & Shields, 2014; Ebot Ashu, 2014).
9) Leadership is the ability to organize a social group achieves a common purpose and an instrumental leader is a leader whose main focus is to achieve group goals and accomplish group tasks successfully (Sferra, 1958; Ebot Ashu, 2014). A leader is somebody who people follow, somebody who guides or directs others. Although the leader may or may not have any formal authority, the literature on group leadership have produced theories involving traits, situational interaction, function, behavior, power, vision and values, charisma, and intelligence, among others. Social group facilitates effectiveness of these kinds of leadership in terms of productivity, quality of work done, and social interaction of group members (Sferra, 1958; Ebot Ashu, 2014).
2.3. Watkins Seven Seismic Shifts a Manager Must Make When He or She First Becoming a Senior Leader
Watkins’ (2012) contributions to administration, management and leadership can be used to educate contemporary educational managers and senior leaders must navigate a tricky set of changes in their leadership focus and skills, which he call the seven seismic shifts.
1) Watkins (2012) complained about the challenges for most managers is shifting from a specialist head of department to generalist principal overseeing the full set of school as a generalist (Ebot Ashu, 2018, 2019). In his first couple of months, this shift left the senior leader feeling disoriented and less confident in his ability to make good judgments in his or her generalist duties (NCSL, 2004). It would be wonderful if newly appointed senior leaders were well trained managing any educational establishment successfully, but of course they never are in some developing countries like Cameroon (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). In some instances they have gained experience by rotating through their various administrative and management functions or working on cross-functional projects, which certainly helps principals or head teachers develop their experiences (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020).
2) The primary functional of a head teacher or principal work as an analyst or integrator recruit, develop, and train teachers who focus in analytical depth on specific educational needs (Ebot Ashu, 2018; NCSL, 2004). A principal or head teacher’s job is to manage and integrate the collective knowledge of those functional teams to solve important educational problems (Ebot Ashu, 2018, 2019). Once again, principal or head teacher need analytical skills and knowledge to integrate the various functions to resolve such competing issues, but that isn’t enough (Watkins, 2012; Ebot Ashu et al., 2021). The skills and knowledge required have less to do with analysis and more to do with understanding how to make turn things around and explain the rationale for those decisions.
3) Watkins (2012) considers the core part of an educational manager’s role was to operate as a tactician to strategist-in-chief for the school he manage and led teaching, learning or research activities (Ebot Ashu, 2020). Watkins’ study explains how dynamic managers learn to develop such a mind-set by cultivating three skills: level shifting, pattern recognition, and mental simulation (Ebot Ashu et al., 2021). Level shifting is the ability to move fluidly among levels of analysis—to know when to focus on the details, when to focus on the big picture, and how the two relate; Pattern recognition is the ability to discern important causal relationships and other significant patterns in a complex educational cycle and its environment—that is, to separate the signal from the noise; mental simulation is the ability to anticipate how outside parties (competitors, regulators, the media, and key members of the public educational ministries for example) will respond to what you do, to predict their actions and reactions in order to define the best course to take (Watkins, 2012; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020).
4) Watkins (2012) explains too often, visionary educational leaders dabble in the profession of an educational establishment design without a license—and end up committing malpractice (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). They come into their first leadership role itching as a bricklayer to make their mark as architect and then target elements of the learning institution that seem relatively easy to change, like strategy or structure, without completely understanding the effect their moves will have on the educational establishment as a whole (Ebot Ashu et al., 2021). A shift to Student Life-Cycle or staffs professional development focused approach would have required them to improve educational attainment and acquire huge amounts of new expertise (Watkins, 2012; Ebot Ashu, 2019). So while a move to stakeholders focused structure had potential benefits, certain trade-offs needed to be evaluated (NCSL, 2004).
5) Many teachers, bursars are promoted to headship or head of departments or disciple masters are promoted as principals on the strength of their ability to solve problems (Watkins, 2012). When they become senior leaders, however, they must focus less on solving problems and more on defining which problems the educational establishment should be tackling (Ebot Ashu, 2014; NCSL, 2004). A good principal or head teacher perceive the full range of opportunities and threats facing his or her educational establishment, and focus the attention of his team on only the most important ones. The educational leader also had to identify issues such as cultural diversity, inequality and social justice matters that are not in place (Ebot Ashu, 2020; Ebot Ashu et al., 2021).
6) Educational administrators and managers work primarily as warriors to diplomat on rationalizing the stakeholders to defeat the competition, influencing a host of internal and external communities including regulators, the media, investors, and NGOs (Watkins, 2012). Most popular educators are bombarded with requests for his or her time: could he participate in government forums or meeting discussing about educational matters? Would he or she be willing to sit for an interview with an editor from a leading educational publication? Could he meet with a key group of institutional investors? Some of these groups an educational leader has to be familiar with; others not at all (Ebot Ashu, 2014; NCSL, 2004). But what is important for educational establishment leaders was his or her responsibility not just to interact with various stakeholders but also to proactively address their concerns in ways that meshed with the organization’s interests (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2018, 2019).
7) Watkins (2012) finally explained that becoming a senior leader means supporting cast members to lead role (Watkins, 2012) at the center stage under bright lights. The intensity of the attention and the almost constant need to keep up on guard to resolve policy matters, research and development matters, curriculum mattes, employment issues, teaching and learning matters (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020; NCSL, 2004). Educational administrators and managers at all levels are role models to some degree. But at senior level, their influence is magnified, as everyone looks to them for vision, inspiration, innovation, and cues about the “right” behaviors and attitudes (Ebot Ashu, 2020). For good or ill, the distributional, transformational or charismatic leadership styles and quirks of senior leaders are infectious, whether they are observed directly by employees and stakeholders or indirectly transmitted from their reports to the level below and on down through the educational system establishment (Ebot Ashu, 2018, 2021).
These study provided examples of different theoretical and conceptual frameworks of leadership development models which describe the career development of mangers and senior leaders. In the next section, the research design is considered in more detail, allowing a critical review of their appropriateness for the study.
3. Research Design
The aim of this section is to locate and justify the research approach used in this study. This will then justify my underlying conceptualization of the research strategy chosen for this research. Finally, I will clarify my research methodology and method and give details of how I analyzed the interview transcript, taking into account issues such as validity and ethics.
3.1. Research Approach
This study utilizes the humanistic knowledge domain as identified by Ribbins & Gunter (2003). According to them, the humanistic approach seeks to gather and theorise from the experiences of those who are leaders. In this study, the experiences of principals, head teachers, educational managers and senior leaders are sought to re-interpret on the existing theoretical and conceptual frameworks and to propose new emerging models. Within the interpretive paradigm, the researchers adopted a case study methodological approach to analyze the career development of educational managers and senior leaders (Denscombe, 2003). Such an approach emphasizes subjectivity, description, interpretation and agency, detailing the career development of senior leaders.
3.2. Methodology
This study subscribed to a descriptive case study where the researchers depict the relevant experience of different educational leaders “in a way that is faithful to the original as possible” (Denscombe, 2003: p. 101). The first stage of the research was an extensive literature review on the subject from provided literature, which was then substituted after on electronic search. In addition, several discussions with educational leaders were also conducted to extract valuable information in order to construct a framework for this research. This study enables the researchers to gain a holistic view of a certain phenomenon or series of events in managers and senior leader’s career development. This study provided a variety of data sources, including review of research materials and transcribed interview record as a case study was used. The conclusions reached in the absence of quantifiable data, although subjective in nature, will be based on clear evidence emerging from the interviews with educational managers and senior leaders.
3.3. Methods
This study employs semi-structured interviews as a method to collect data from 3 primary head teachers, 3 secondary school principals and 3 school managers (1 Bursar and 2 discipline masters). The semi-structured interviews were flexible in terms of the order in which the topics in the interview schedule are considered and, perhaps more significantly, to allow managers and senior leaders to “develop ideas and speak more widely on the issues raised” (Denscombe, 2003: p. 167). The semi-structured interview schedule was piloted to head teachers and principals to assess the appropriateness of the interview questions and meanings attributed to the lives and career development of educational managers and senior leaders. The nine school leaders were selected on the basis of the researcher’s individual judgement, where permitted, on the grounds that the manager or senior leader could provide the necessary information needed for the research.
The interview was carried out by the lead researcher and Master in Educational Leadership students studying senior leadership development on a one-to-one basis at the different informant’s place of work. The interview room of each respondent provided a conducive environment to self-disclosure rather than in a group situation, because recalling one’s career life history is a very personal and sometimes sensitive exercise, which a manager or senior leader may not likely, want to share with strangers in a one-to-one situation. The interview was tape-recorded on an audio PHILIPS VOICETRACER 7880 and it took over 18 hours to transcribe the 270 min audio voice recorded data on Microsoft Word.
3.4. Analysis of the Data
The general analytic strategy that the researchers used for data analysis is the technique of relying on theoretical and conceptual propositions. The different theoretical and conceptual frameworks that followed from the reviewed literature and the overall research questions, led to this case study derived from the interviews with educational leaders. To develop internal validity and external validity, the researchers followed the specific analytical technique of pattern coding (Miles & Huberman, 1994). When all collected data is available in textual format, data can be methodologically analyzed (Miles & Huberman, 1994). In pattern coding, the managers (M) and senior leaders’ (SL) as a descriptor for where the interviews were collected; respondents were not referred to using their real names but were assigned an alpha-numerical code based on their numerical number (e.g., SAM1MLine 20-25, SBSL2MLine 6-12 and SDM4Line 30-34) identified by Ebot Ashu (2014, 2018). The first code SAM1MLine 20-25 identifies as School A (SA), Manager 1 (M1) and Meeting (M), Line 20-25 or the second code SBSL2MLine 6-12 refers to interview analysis from School B (SB), Senior Leader 2 (SL2), the Meeting (M) took place which the quote was taken and Line 6-12 and the third code SDM4Line 30-34 identifies as School D (SD), Senior Leader 1, Meeting4 (M4) and Line 30-34 in the interview transcript. Pattern coding has four important functions (Miles & Huberman, 1994). First, it reduces large amounts of data into a smaller number of analytical units. Second, the researcher becomes involved with analysis during data collection, so that later fieldwork can be more focused. Third, it helps the researcher elaborate a cognitive map for understanding interactions. Fourth, it lays the groundwork for cross-case analysis by surfacing common themes as identified in the findings below.
This study was done with the highest ethical consideration. International guidelines were adhered to in order to ensure respect for the person, knowledge, democratic values, the quality of educational research and academic freedom.
4. Results
The findings from the transcribed interviews as case study with educational leaders are broken down into themes relating to the research questions and are supported by quotations from managers and senior leaders.
4.1. Day and Bakioglu; Gronn; Ribbins “Theoretical Frameworks” and the Career Development of a Contemporary Leader to Senior Leadership?
The findings tested Day and Bakioglu, Gronn and Ribbins theoretical framework provides leaders with effective leadership frameworks’ describing the career path of an educational leader are internationally recognised.
4.1.1. Formation
The findings in this study point towards the existence of the formation stage in a senior leader’s career life. Most senior leaders and some managers utilizes their personal qualities which, taken as a whole, shape them to become a senior leader (SAM1MLine 20-25). The study acknowledged that “a senior leader’s parents were very loving and gave him a work ethics, but they were not influential in his early formation (SBSL2MLine 6-12)”.
Senior leaders loved school from an early age; and attended nursery, primary and secondary school and left school with ordinary and Advance levels. Senior leader explained why he “went directly into employment, as higher education held no value at the time, an attitude which was reflected among his friends and within the technical education community in his city (SDM4Line 30-34)”.
The senior leaders’ wife “was always supportive” (SASL1MLline 95) because she helped him take a mixture of distant learning courses and qualifications and to speak to people who were undertaking very similar roles. He also benefited from “good mentors” who helped him move into the senior leadership part of the job (SCSL3MLline 98).
It “wasn’t until 1991 that I suddenly got interested again in education (SBM1MLine 16)”. “He gained a certificate in management while he did A level in different art subjects (SBM1MLine 18-20)”. The senior leader further attended university and gained honour degree in law. He was also awarded an MA in Education by the Open University and a doctorate in Leaders and Leadership in Education by Birmingham University (SBM2MLine 4-5).
4.1.2. Accession
The accession stage was recognized in the career of both managers and senior leaders. A bursar started of his managerial duties in the classroom as a teacher in order to seek a range of experiences in a secondary school, where he experienced leadership as a “discipline master” (SBM2MLine 69). He moved to the same school as the “the principal” (SBM2Line 72) within a short while since he was leading the school as the bursar.
A senior leader was attracted into education in his thirties and started off “as a part-time teacher, teaching law, and management studies (SASL1MLine 25)” in a renowned private high school. He became a full-time Lecturer, during which he spent just under a year teaching mainly senior students ranging from business studies to law, travel and tourism; within a year he was promoted and became a curriculum leader, during which he “started to manage courses and manage people (SCSL3MLine 45)”. The senior leader is convinced that “without having some influence from the industrial sector in which I worked, I’m not sure I would have progressed as quickly as I did (SGSL7Mline 9-10)”.
Specific memories of a senior leader’s development were mentioned, for example: I was then appointed again as the Dean of Social and Management Science (SHM8MLine 98 line 110-111). At this phase of his career, he “started to teach some of the Masters and PHD courses” even thou as a principal of a secondary school (SDM4MLline 112-113). He was then “promoted again to a Deputy Vice Chancellor of a university (SASL1MLline 116)”.
Within this accession phase, the education managers and senior leaders suggested some development methods for contemporary senior leaders: “I actually think everyone who wants to become a leader should actually go and shadow somebody for a period and see what the job is like (SBM2MLine 13-14)”.
“Get yourself a good mentor (SBM2MLine 16)” because “I have been lucky in that throughout my career have always worked with very experienced mentors coming towards the end of their careers; they have been very happy to share their experiences and knowledge and to help you settle into the role (SBM2MLine 187-189)”.
The senior leader’s development had been informally gained on the job. “The Master qualification helped, but the doctorate in education and experience added more weight to support appointments as a senior leader (SFSL6MLline 106)”.
4.1.3. Initiation
The initiation phase was identified in that most managers had mastered their roles and negotiated successfully from becoming “senior managers” (SBM2MLine 68) to “senior leaders” (SCSL3MLline116) of a successful school. The senior leader identifies some of the difficulties he experienced were in “dealing with people, personnel issues as well as aspects related to budgets, systems and procedures, policies procedures and resources, which were given the highest priority for development (SISL9MLline 118-119)”.
4.1.4. Development
This phase identified that some principals and head teachers are responsible for “800 and 900 full time students” (SEM5MLine 119). In some local schools, succession planning is well developed, and school leaders are spending “money mentoring contemporary leaders and they get basic skills should the need arrive (SAM1MLine 138-139)”.
4.1.5. Autonomy
This phase identified that the senior leader is confident and experienced as an educational administrator. He manages people and money, looks after statistics and supporting students development in different ways (SFSL6MLine 68-69).
4.1.6. Advancement
The advancement phase was hardly recognized, as senior leader teams are providing effective fund-raising strategies and also developing executive talent for sustainable development within their learning institutions (SAL1MLine 40-42). Most senior leaders are “confident that their quality of education and Master and Doctorate Degree in education could help with other senior leadership roles (SGSL7MLine 33-35)”.
4.1.7. Enchantment
The enchantment phase is also hardly recognized, as some senior leaders suggested may one day retrain as an: “administrator with the educational system, manage government projects, something like that (SBSL3MLine 120-124)”.
4.1.8. Moving On: Reinvention
This study recognized reinventing at the advancement and enchantment phase. In the light of this phase, the senior leader is beginning to think of downsizing, either in the form of retirement or just simply to have more time to pursue interests outside of work (SDSL4MLine 112-113). Working with the United Nation (UN) or other international organizations is an interesting option (SCSL3 MLine 134-135). A senior leader said “I am not going to touch education, I am going to spend my retirement in the garden and travel the world as I like”.
The findings demonstrates that Day and Bakioglu, Gronn and Ribbins theoretical framework explored and described the career development of senior leaders does go through distinct life phases and sub phases.
4.2. Role of Agents of Socialization in the Transition of Contemporary Managers to Senior Leadership
This study explores and describes how agents of socialization impact the transition of a contemporary manager to senior leadership.
1) A principal supports that “Family leadership depends upon parents supporting their sons and daughters to find their own identity, develop moral attitude, make decisions, make choices, feel comfortable with support, and have aspirations for their future and to make and keep friendships (SCSM3MLine 20-24)”. The family is the bed-rock for the well-being and development of the child leadership skill (SCM3MLine 160). Family leadership similarly emerges when “family and community leaders gain the knowledge and skills from family members needed to succeed in leadership roles that help shape the future of children, youth, and families (SDSL4MLine 120-123)”.
2) A secondary school manager is in her opinion that “developing leaders is discussed at nearly every church in the world, helping people discover and use the extraordinary gifts, talents and wisdom God has placed inside of them should be an important mission for each Christian house (SDSL4MLine 60)”. “It’s the duty of the church to help your leaders develop servant, transformational and distributional leadership styles at both the individual and team level (SASL1MLine 40-42)”. It’s the duties of a church to teach their members about “life, love, honor, obedient and yes humbleness and honesty are important leadership traits (SBSM2MLine 32-33)”. In short, churches have developed many educational leaders “from ordinary to extraordinary school head teachers and principals (SESL5MLine 80-82)”.
3) Schools build or strengthen the capacity of “aspiring and practicing leaders to lead high-performing schools (SASL1MLine 32)”. The following traits are common among the most successful school leaders: “learnt from their training institutions to develop a vision, understand the importance of building community; they empower teachers and cultivate leadership skills; utilize data and resources in planning organizational development; have a vision and a plan to achieve organizational goals; they create collaborative, inclusively learning environments and communities (SCSL3MLine 84-88)”.
4) Most school leaders agreed that peer coaching programme is a continual process where managers for example meet to “collaborate and learn from each other, build new skills, share ideas, teach each other and even share their developmental experiences with senior leaders (SFSL7MLine 84-87)”. “In peer coaching young leaders identify gaps and blind spots through their peers; they build self-awareness; increase confidence and resilience; strengthen critical leadership skills through their peers (SDSL4MLine 33-35)”. A young principal support that “peer coaching enables today’s leadership development in different ways: one another improve their practice of management, enhance soft skills, and collectively improve their social and leadership skills (SFSL5MLine 62-64)”.
5) Most leaders accepted that “mass media is communication—whether written, broadcast, or spoken has been very important in shaping and transforming the roles of managers and leaders (SGSL7MLine 120-122)”. “Communication skills are critical to being an effective leader, whether it’s presenting in front of the team, creating and writing a business strategy (SCSL3MLine 64-66)”. “Mass Media messages promote not only products, but moods, attitudes, and a sense of what or how good leaders behave and perform their duties and responsibilities (SBSL2MLine 50-52)”. A discipline master added “to lead effectively in the age of social media, leaders need to develop and strengthen their managerial and leadership skills”. Managers and leaders can “learn through social media on how to lead, persuade, and Influence stakeholders to be lifelong learners” (SFSM6MLine 84-86). Many educational leaders use the “media in a pro-active way to build their organization’s image (SFSL6MLine 135-136)”. Society as a whole is the major factor in nurturing a sort of dominant behaviour among its members of any given community exhibited in social media (SHSL8MLine 140-142). “The political, economic, social and cultural interactions exhibited among components of a society are the determinant factors that help shape societal culture and norms and the development of its leaders (SASL1MLine 45-48)”. The findings summarized that social media is more than collaboration and marketing tool; it also can be a tool to understand the career development of leaders.
6) Some school leaders commented about “the role of community in leadership development allow each and every one to have long-term impact on the social, political, and social, economic and environmental well-being of their society (SFSM6MLine 80-83)”. It is wonderful when the “community assists in the development of leaders, identify results and indicators, and cause real change that improves lives of its inhabitants (SBSL2MLine 68-69)”. “Modern communities’ uses real-life community data to help support its inhabitants develop leadership skills, and this ‘turn the Curve’ process to help community leaders achieve measurable community results (SCSL3MLine 55-57)”.
7) As we engage in conversations with educational leaders about developing talent and leaders in the workplace, they often reply, “we already have in-service training of administrators covered” when in fact, they don’t. Frequently, some school leaders will say “the lack of an effective leadership development and training program results from thinking only the “senior players” need to evolve in areas of leadership (SCSL3MLine 40043)”. “Developing leadership skills in workplace is essential, owing to the many values it provides for any educational leader, including: developing and implementing vision, motivation of stakeholders, collaboration, and influencing stakeholders achieve organizational goals (SBSM2ML 67-69)”. Strong leadership in workplace includes being able to communicate, motivate, organize and plan effectively (SISL9MLine 170-172). The results of “effective leadership in workplace includes a stronger team and increased productivity (SASL1ML 42-43)”. Education leaders in this study explained how “workplace help in the development of leadership behaviours and style brings positive and significant effect on employee performance (SASL1 MLine 169-171)”. Through intellectual stimulation, the “leaders in different schools cultivate their employees” creativity when different aspects of culture are instilled by a leader in a workplace; the workforce becomes more engaged and produces positive results (SBSL-2MLine 190-192).
8) Two head teachers are saying that the duty of the government to enable develop programs designed to advance career, enrich your community, and contribute to the professional fulfillment of its citizens (SBSL2ML 72-73). “Good government organizations arrange education and training facilities for the workers which will help them in developing leadership skills that involve inspiring others to participate in developing, achieving, articulating, and embodying a shared set of values, shared sense of purpose, and shared vision of the desired community outcome (SCSL3ML 77-81)”.
9) “Leadership is the capacity to work creatively, constructively, and effectively with individuals, families, social groups, community members and society at large (SDSL4ML 132-135)”. In understanding this leadership model presented here, it is necessary to assume “leadership development in a ‘social group setting’ has been formed to enable leaders fostering concern for social justice, self-reliance, partnership and involvement (SFSL6MLine 145-148)”. Grassroots innovations are usually driven by social groups with sustainability motives, and developed by civil society groups (SESM5ML122-123). Based on a social group approach will contribute to “people, families and communities experiencing positive and enabling support that improves their life opportunities and wellbeing (SFSL6ML 144-146)”.
4.3. Watkins Seven Seismic Shifts A manager Must Make When He or She First Becoming a Senior Leader
1) The findings asked educational leaders in interviews how Watkins seven seismic shifts affect their transition manager must make when he or she first becoming a senior leader. A principal explained how a “new appointed managers working as specialist must have generalist knowledge about their area of specialty to enable them creates and implement visions that are good for their educational establishment as a whole, Evaluate the talent on their teams to improve teaching and learning (SFSL6MLine 143-146)”. Effective school leaders “understand the different ways that professionals in finance, marketing, operations, human resources and research and development approach educational problems, and the various tools (succession planning, educational tool that connects teachers and students, and is assimilated into a social network, tools to organize, innovate & manage educational resources, etc.) that each discipline applies (SFSL6MLine 135-139)”. Educational leaders must be able to “speak the language of all the functions and translate for them when necessary. And critically, educational leaders must know the right questions to ask and the right metrics for evaluating and recruiting people to manage areas in which they themselves are not experts” (SISL9MLine 154-158).
2) The first responsibility of an educational leader is to ensure that “staffs have sufficient in-depth analytical knowledge of their subject areas are encourage to manage teaching and learning activities as integrators” (SGSM7MLine 65-67). Educational leaders, in contrast, “manage cross-functional teams and must apply these teams’ collective knowledge to solve important organizational problems (SCSM3MLine 40-43)”. Many school leaders in this study have to “learn how to manage integrative decision-making and problem solving and, critically, how to make appropriate trade-offs that benefits the different educational stakeholders (SBSL2MLine 75-77)”. This transition from analyst to integrator is the second of Watkins’ seismic shifts school leaders experience moving from manager to senior leadership.
3) Many school leaders described a tactician chips away at the kind of “goals that don’t threaten the status quo, or require them to build new networks or learn new skills as strategist (SESL4MLine 36-38)”. “Educational strategist understands the nature of a long term goal and learns to invent innovative plan to achieve organizational goals” (SHSL8MLine 129-131). A secondary principal explained how “a tactician is skilled at responding to situations as they arise and developing sound plans to win but is not useful for long term planning (SCSM3MLine 66-68)”. Essence is captured in what we call leadership character are develop when “educational leader develop and implement sound strategic plans that give positive results that benefit society (SBSL2MLine 36-38)”. “These survival skills are primarily found in the tactician as school manager roles, given must learn to develop and implement strategic objectives that strengthen the development of learners, staffs and the educational community (SBSL2MLine 39-41)”.
4) The bricklayer to architect analogy “I believe evolved from a Bursar (manager) become a strategic advisor (head teacher or principal) understand how to analyze and design educational systems so that strategy, structure, operating models, and skill bases fit together effectively and efficiently, and harness this understanding to make needed organizational changes (SFSL6MLine 123-126)”. When perceived as leaders, “managers are more likely to have positive evaluations, build constructive relationships with followers, and access more funding to develop educational activities (SCSL3MLine 38-40)”. Most educational leaders in this study “built their careers as brick-by-brick (Manager) to architecture (Leader) together as one. Anyone can be a leader and a manager, the trick is you will have to be both a leader and a manager in your work; choosing when to switch roles is the trick (SCSM3MLine 77-79)”.
5) Problem Solver to Agenda Setter analyzed that educational leaders exhibited their “problem-solving competency is one of the major competencies most school leaders participate in fixing problems to defining which problems the organization should be tackling (SCSM3MLine 160-163)”. This switch “from ‘problem-solver’ to ‘agenda-setter’ is the fifth of the seismic school leaders have a good understanding of problem solving and the processes that take place during that process of becoming an Agenda setter (SFSL6MLine 102-105)”. Good educational leaders “solve problems taking proactive measures to avoid conflicts and they usually follow policy or program will work at their organization and to demonstrate its effectiveness (SESL5MLine 79-82)”.
6) Warrior to Diplomat analogy in this study speaks about the criticality of leaders transitioning from a “competitive mindset (Warrior) to a collaborative mind-set (Diplomate) where they focus on building alliances and identify opportunities for cross-educational development opportunities through collaboration, often even reaching out to rivals to co-create opportunities for the organization (SFSL6MLine 172-175)”. From warrior to diplomat effective educational leaders “see the benefits in actively shaping the external environment and managing critical relationships (SBSL2MLine 104-106)”. Effective school leaders “use the tools of diplomacy—negotiation, persuasion, conflict management, and alliance building— to shape external educational environment to support their strategic objectives (SCSL3MLine 189-192)”. Some educational leaders found themselves “devoting a surprising amount of time to influencing a host of external constituencies, including educational authorities, the media, investors, and NGOs to engage in the academic activities (S5L1MLine 65-68)”. School leaders seem to “support staffs and were bombarded with requests for his time and others participated in industry or government forums sponsored by the government affairs department simply for the good of their learning institutions (SCSL3MLine 195-198)”.
7) A principal discussed about the shift from “Cast Member to Lead Role is about having a much greater impact as a role model influence is magnified, as everyone looks to them for vision, inspiration, and cues about the ‘right’ behaviors and attitudes (SCSL3MLine 136-138)”. “On the right are the core leader competencies you’ll need to know how leading, developing, and achieving organizational goals” (SASL1MLine 7-9). “The lead role of a senior leader encompasses initiative, organizational merits, and uses them to guide performance, conduct, and decisions making is an interesting task in every activities” (SBSM2 MLine 25-26). According to these leaders around the world supports Walkins leadership qualities are centered around soft skills and emotional intelligent are exceptional outcomes and their ability to model and support others in producing good outcomes for their organization and society.
The finding of this study explains how the career of a contemporary leader links up with existing Day and Bakioglu; Gronn; Ribbins theoretical frameworks of educational leader’s development. Conceptual frameworks about the role of agents of socialization in the transition of contemporary managers to senior leadership has been discussed and how Watkins seven seismic shifts a manager must make when he or she first becoming a senior leader. The next section will theorize and best explain the career life of a contemporary leader to a senior leader using these models?
5. Discussions of the Findings
Having summarized the themes and described the evidence in response to our research question, the researchers now are able to relate these findings to the literature reviewed and to theorise the impact of these findings to the contribution of knowledge in identifying how a contemporary leader becomes a senior leader and eventually moves on. This will enable the researchers to develop different framework of the factors which influence the career development of contemporary senior leaders.
5.1. Day and Bakioglu; Gronn; Ribbins “Theoretical Frameworks” and the Career Development of a Contemporary Leader to Senior Leadership?
1) The findings, however, do point to some alternative views from the literature in suggesting, at the formation phase, that our personal qualities are assets. The reference groups (family, community, peers and colleagues) identified by Gronn (1999) and Ribbins (2003) are important in providing the scaffolding of a character structure.
2) The findings in this study suggested three phases within the “Accession stage” to closely align the model with the experiences of head teachers, principals as school leaders. Also confirmed in the study, based on achieving senior leadership, was the broad pattern of senior leaders experiencing career progression and academic achievement encompassed in this phase as identified by Gronn (1999) and Ribbins (2003).
a) This study recognized the development phase as the most productive time for senior leaders as identified by Day & Bakioglu (1996) and Ribbins (2003). According to Coleman (2001), some induction and mentoring into the role was identified as training priorities for improving practice and gaining cognitive skills, technical skills, management and administrative skills and emotional intelligence are very important for a school leader professional development.
b) The findings identified the negotiation phase that managers and senior leaders are viewed as possessing listening and negotiating skills for superior senior leadership roles. It could also be suggested that it is within this “accession” phase that a contemporary senior leaders develops a preferred leadership styles and set of leadership values as identified by Gronn (1999) and Ribbins (2003).
3) The study identified the dynamics within the incumbency sub phases as suggested by Day & Bakioglu (1996) and Ribbins (2003). The researchers, therefore, proposed five sub phases which are more compatible with the senior leader’s career development in this study.
a) During this initiation phase, which can last up to three years, Pascal & Ribbins (1998) suggest senior leaders familiarized with the organizational and workplace norms, and the new roles they are expected to play.
b) In the autonomy phase, some of the senior leaders still has self-confidence and should be helping to move their learning institution forward as identified (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Ribbins, 2003).
4) The new model addresses moving on or say reinvention is the gap in Ribbins’ (2003) model, pertaining to the advancement or enchantment phase, whereby the “rebounce” or “rejuvenation” of senior leaders, who remain in the post and don’t want to retire, are enchanted or reinventing to other areas of interest like working with the United Nation or other international organization supporting educational establishment nationally or internationally.
5.2. Role of Agents of Socialization in the Transition of Contemporary Managers to Senior Leadership
1) The findings of this study agreed with Lenka & Vandana (2015) that family is usually considered to be the most important agent of socialization that develop our cooperating skills, encouraging and acceptance of others are essential qualities of an effective leader. The role of parents or family members as school leaders empowered some managers with the necessary system of values, norms, and beliefs that is usually a reflection of their own social status, religion belief to become a principal (Lenka & Vandana, 2015). It is wonderful when family members who are leaders support aspirant transition, respects and strengthens young leaders in the exercise of their basic human right to become a manager or senior leaders they choose to be (Lenka & Vandana, 2015; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004).
2) School or say educational establishment trained well-educated managers or senior leaders focus on system improvement and training and development complement the comparative work by supporting education leaders to become agents of change in their local communities as explained by Homan & Youngman (2006). Well-schooled leaders from refined learning institutions impact all facets of education: students, teachers, administrators, community member’s reform program, which includes school development planning and improvement (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004). Trained leaders bring Innovation can create transformative changes in schools, vocational training institutes and universities (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004).
3) Both the findings and literature explained church has a significant role in organizing and directing social life of many leaders to be humble and caring citizens. Homan & Youngman (2006) believe religion is an ethnic or cultural category, making it less likely for the individuals to break from religious affiliations and be more socialized if given in any educational establishment setting. Old and modern churches have a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that relate humanity to spirituality and moral values that every educational leader needs (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004). Both the literature and finding similarly agreed that in the early society, religion provided a bond of unity of the different members in the community and can be well applied to any educational establishment.
4) The finding and the literature remark that peer leaders help aspiring leaders build relationships with senior leaders in order to help them learn the ropes of leadership life, academically and culturally (Homan & Youngman, 2006). A peer leader programme in a school or university or working environment is a kind of mentorship arrangement to facilitate the development of aspiring leaders (Homan & Youngman, 2006). A mentor is a senior leader who assists someone with making an important transition, learning new skill, or facing unknown challenges in the leadership role. Peer leadership development programs are believed to enable aspiring leaders develop confidence, increase competence and expand their capacity to overcome problems (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004). In a peer leadership program, aspiring head teachers or principals are given the opportunity to develop skills so they can make positive change and be better able to influence peer attitudes (Homan & Youngman, 2006; Brody et al., 2010; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004).
5) The literature and findings accepted that social-media revolution has created a new reality that offers great power and potential for boosting corporate performance: wikis enable more efficient virtual collaboration; facebook, internal blogs, discussion boards, and YouTube channels encourage global conversations and knowledge sharing; sophisticated viral media campaigns engage learners administrators, managers and leaders create loyalty; next-generation products are co-developed in open-innovation processes; cross-boundary tools transform supply-chain dynamics, and more (Gupta & Krishnan, 2004; Homan & Youngman, 2006). There’s a mismatch between the logic of participatory media and the still-reigning 20th-century emphasis on linear processes and vertical control. Social media encourages horizontal collaboration and unscripted conversations that short-circuit established power dynamics and the traditional lines of communication (Gupta & Krishnan, 2004; Homan & Youngman, 2006).
6) Good community bring about measurable change that improves life for its citizen ensuring that: citizens who enter teacher training or university institutions are ready to learn, complete their education further their educational or gain employment; An organize community manage well its environment—air or water—improves the wellbeing of its members and reduce poverty (Greenleaf, 2002; Maxwell, 1995; Ebot Ashu, 2014; Martiskainen, 2017). Both the findings and literature describe successful community leadership development programs through which governments, social purpose organizations and communities can help build the leadership capacity of educational leaders (Greenleaf, 2002; Maxwell, 1995; Ebot Ashu, 2014; Martiskainen, 2017). Participants must be encouraged to design and implement a community project that allows them to build on what they have learnt during the program (Greenleaf, 2002; Maxwell, 1995; Ebot Ashu, 2014; 2020).
7) Leadership development in workplace encourage leaders deal with rapid changes brought about by new technologies, globalization, politics, environmental concerns and war, transforming the basic values, beliefs and attitudes of followers to build organizational capacity for positive change (Caligiuri, 2006; Ananthram & Chan, 2013; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). Caligiuri (2006) and Ebot Ashu (2014, 2020) research identified with the findings that school leaders view leadership development as a major human capital challenge now and in the foreseeable future. In addition, executives would like to see stronger leadership qualities among the ranks of educational professionals themselves (Ebot Ashu et al., 2021). Another interesting remark in the 21st century, globalization is key, therefore, assessing and developing global leadership competencies is an important topic in educational leadership development as explained in the findings and literature (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020).
8) Both the findings and the literature agreed that the government of every country can play a great role in leadership development. So here we discuss some major role of government in leadership development of its citizens can be significantly enhanced resources to improve the quality of life for its citizens (Clarke & Wildy, 2013; Bogotch & Shields, 2014). The quality of leadership found in any government keep us safe, provide vital services and improve the health, cultural, political, social wellbeing of its citizens (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). The findings agreed with (Clarke & Wildy, 2013; Bogotch & Shields, 2014; Ebot Ashu, 2014) suggestions that good government of most developing countries should learn to empower citizens, allocate training to meet employment needs, provide flexible working conditions and offer rewards and incentives to motivate its citizens. There is freedom of expression as concern leadership development and upward and downward communication is essential to help develop perfect leaders in the organization.
9) Social group leadership is the process of providing focus and direction to a specific group of people. Leadership of this type often involves facilitating and guiding the actions of group participants as well as accepting responsibility for the outcome of the group’s efforts and explained (Sferra, 1958; Ebot Ashu, 2014). Both the literature and findings resonate with a number of different approaches to group leadership, with varying styles used in different settings. This includes the transformational, democratic style, autocratic, laissez faire and cooperate group leadership approach. There are three main leadership styles: Laissez-faire, democratic, transformational, servant and authoritarian popularly used in some developing countries (Sferra, 1958; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2021). It is the group leader’s job to unite group members in working toward a common goal, keep them motivated, diffuse conflict, and ultimately deliver success. Excellent communication can be the key to successful group work. While there is still a key decision-maker, that person acts as a facilitator, actively soliciting the thoughts and ideas of the group members (Sferra, 1958; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2021). However, once the decision has been made, all group members are expected to abide by the outcome, including the group leader.
5.3. Watkins Seven Seismic Shifts a Manager Must Make When He or She First Becoming a Senior Leader?
1) Successful senior leaders are those who shift their expertise from specialist to generalist understanding of the core business of their learning institution and such people understand different specialism, but have also acquired a wider set of skills (Watkins, 2012; Ebot Ashu, 2021). Generalist leaders are concerned with the act and process of leadership focus on the technical, business skills (task oriented leaders) or on the technical + people skills (people oriented leaders) (Watkins, 2012; Ebot Ashu, 2020). They must learn to move from specialist to generalist, analyst to integrator, tactician to holistic leaders must recognize that their role is much more than delivering results semester after semester (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). These holistic educational leaders must be able to speak the language of all the functions and translate for them when necessary. And holistic, educational leaders must know the right questions to ask and the right metrics for evaluating and recruiting people to manage areas in which they themselves are not experts (Ebot Ashu, 2020, 2021).
2) This study interviewed bursars or principals can be trained as analyst to integrators as discussed by (Watkins, 2012). In some examples of successful educational administration or management services integration, mergers, curriculum, health, security, informational technology priorities; demonstrate capability in assessment integrator or forecaster are made easier by able leaders (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020; Ebot Ashu et al., 2021). In global educational establishment, the integration of people from different backgrounds requires exceptional analysis and synthesis skills, problem-solving skills, and decision-making skills (Ebot Ashu, 2018, 2021; NCSL, 2004). These educational leaders, in contrast, manage cross-functional teams and must apply these teams’ collective knowledge to solve important organizational problems (Ebot Ashu, 2018, 2019). For example, if you need to be more business-centric, adapt a mindset that calls for better forecasting skills is important.
3) The findings of this study agreed with Watkins (2012) explains high-potential educational leaders can be train as tactician to strategic educational leaders able to develop more-experienced team, and enable staffs to take his or her leadership skills from tactician to strategist (Ebot Ashu et al., 2021). In general terms, an able strategist educator is someone who can develop and implement policy matters for any educational establishment (Ebot Ashu et al, 2021). For example, oftentimes, an educational leader may have a team of people helping to achieve organizational goals come into fruition, and they need to meet certain qualifications (Watkins, 2012; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). Today’s visionary educational leaders need to be both strategist and have the leadership skills and character to translate policy matters to action (Watkins, 2012; Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). Some educational policies highlight key competencies for developing great policy leaders at all levels (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). The Visionary role of policy makers focuses on setting direction by translating strategy into work group (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020).
4) The findings of this study agreed with Watkins (2012) insists managers must learn to move as bricklayers to architect through each of these shifts, which involve learning new skills and cultivating new mind-sets to move from bricklayer to architect leadership. From bricklayer to architect require educational leaders should be able to analyze and design their organizations with original ideas so that strategy, structure, operating models and capabilities fit together effectively (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2019; 2020). Nevertheless, the whole educational establishment model should be original, dynamic and adapted to changing strategy and/or environment (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020; NCSL, 2004).
5) Educational leaders can rise through the ranks on the strength of their problem-solving skills to agenda setters as explained by Watkins. But once at the top as mover and shakers in any educational establishment needs to focus less on fixing problems that require knowledge, skills, abilities or other behaviors critical to success in a job role as a senior leader (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2019, 2020). An educational mover and shaker ensures aspiring educational leaders grasp the purpose and benefits of curriculum, information technology research matters to resolve educational problems or crises (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020). Head teacher or principal must honed as mover and shakers include: mastery of teaching and learning strategies, sales and marketing tools and techniques, the ability to mobilize talent and promote teamwork—were not enough, identify problems his/her team should focus on—that is, to set the agenda—learn and understand his environment than he was used to; learn to communicate priorities in ways his or her stakeholders could respond to effectively (Ebot Ashu, 2014; NCSL, 2004). An excellent mover and shaker learn and understand his or her organization’s annual planning process, which provided a structure for defining key goals for his unit.
6) Moving from a warrior to a diplomat is crucial to the success of any educational senior leader transition as functional leadership to enterprise leadership. At this level good educational leaders operating as diplomats set goal of integrating the collective knowledge and using it to solve important organizational problems (Ebot Ashu, 2014; NCSL, 2004). Diplomatic skills come into play in every learning institution work, whether it is developing teachers and manager’s competence, trustworthiness, energy in dealing with teaching and learning or assessment matters. Educational leaders operating as ambassadors can avoid the fragility that results from blindly working as administrators and managers must be prepared for these challenges of being a corporate diplomat (Ebot Ashu, 2014; NCSL, 2004). Watkins (2012) teaches that effective corporate diplomats use the tools of diplomacy in negotiation, persuasion, conflict management, and alliance building—to shape the external business environment to support their strategic objectives (NCSL, 2004). In the process they often find themselves collaborating with stakeholders with whom they compete aggressively in the market every day (Ebot Ashu, 2014; 2018, 2019; NCSL, 2004).
7) Watkins explained that supporting cast member to lead role is an attributes that most educational leaders possess as explained in both the findings and literature. Managers with integrity prioritize the consistency of their character to lead a team effectively; you must prove your trustworthiness to your educational community (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020; NCSL, 2004). Ebot Ashu (2014) supports how today educational leaders require global leadership competencies to support the development of leaders and it is important to consider the most important leadership skills for the future. Include emotional “actor”—learning how to express emotions appropriately (Ebot Ashu et al., 2021). This is a “higher order” interpersonal skill that involves helping the young to grow. One of the core competencies for leaders is the ability to make good decisions or lead a good decision-making process (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2020; NCSL, 2004). Educational leaders can make it less inadvertent by cultivating more self-awareness and taking the time to develop empathy with subordinates’ viewpoints. In educational management and leadership there is the question of what it means, practically speaking, to lead large groups of people, defining a compelling vision and share it in an inspiring way (Ebot Ashu, 2014, 2021). An educational manager or leader must be a strong communicator able to market his or her educational establishment successfully, especially when stakeholders are scattered around the globe.
6. Conclusion
This study explored the career life of educational leaders and identified factors which influence becoming a senior leader and the process of moving on. The study agrees with the general principles of Ribbins’ (2003) model rather than the previous work of Day & Bakioglu (1996) and Gronn (1999), who suggest disenchantment and divestiture as inevitable final phases in the career lives of senior leaders. This study argues that Ribbins’ theoretical framework of education leadership can be useful in interpreting the link between the career developments of contemporary senior leaders. However, this research also reveals conceptual frameworks of agents of socialization that enhance the career of managers to senior leaders and Watkins’ (2012) seven seismic that enhance our leadership development during that phase of our lives as senior leaders (Lenka & Vandana, 2015; Gupta & Krishnan, 2004; Homan & Youngman, 2006). This study has confirmed the broad pattern of how a contemporary leader becomes senior leaders and eventually moves on, as encompassed in the first three phases of Gronn’s (1999) and Ribbins’ (2003) models, with exceptional three new sub-phases within the accession phase. The incumbency phase consists of the first and third sub-phases of Day & Bakioglu’s (1996) and Ribbins’ (2003) developmental phases within the incumbency phase. The study agrees with Ribbins’ last phase. A significant conceptual framework as identified in the study is a variation of this approach, which attempts to develop an integrative conceptual framework to explain the challenging thinking about the different journeys to senior leadership. In doing so, the researchers have proposed a model (Figure 2) based on various models (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Gronn, 1999; Ribbins, 2003).
This study concludes that socialization occurs throughout our life, but some of the most important socialization occurs during that phase of our lives was the families, schools, peers, churches, mass medium, communities, workplaces and social groups. Watkins’ (2012) contributions to administration, management and leadership can be used to educate contemporary educational managers and senior leaders must navigate a tricky set of changes in their leadership focus and skills, which he called the seven seismic shifts. These studies provide detailed concepts explaining how the different socialization agents impact managers transitioning to senior management and how the Watkins’ model impacts senior leadership.
6.1. The Contributions of Knowledge and Suggestions for Further Research
The findings from this research will help to further our understanding regarding:
Ribbins (2003) theoretical framework of the stages and phases on how a contemporary leader becomes a senior leader and eventually moves on.
6.2. Theoretical Framework of the Stages and Phases on How a Contemporary Leader Becomes a Senior Leader and Eventually Moves On
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Figure 2. A summary of the phases and sub phases on how a contemporary leader becomes a senior leader and eventually moves on.
How the Contribution Can Be Applied
Figure 2 represents a restructuring of models (Day & Bakioglu, 1996; Gronn, 1999; Ribbins, 2003) to one more closely aligned to the experiences of school leaders found in this study. It recognizes that the school leaders do go through phases and sub phases in his career development. School leaders transition from the formation, accession phase goes through three sub phases (experience, development and negotiation), and in the incumbency phase the school leaders passes through the different sub phases (initiation, development, autonomy, advancement, enchantment). In the Incumbency Phase comes with two sub phases (its usually divestiture or reinvention). This model helps in providing timely and appropriate development interventions to be made by any school leader. The western theoretical models from different British scholars suggested that there has been a sense of movement within the different frameworks, but with slight differences surrounding the incumbency phases and divestiture phase is well considered in the moving on phase. All three theoretical frameworks of education leadership development have continued to support the notion that senior leaders’ careers have a natural history and follow a developmental pattern.
6.3. Role of Agents of Socialization in the Transition of Contemporary Managers to Senior Leadership
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Table 1. Agents of socialization that supports the transition of contemporary managers to becomes senior leaders and eventually moves on.
How the Contribution Can Be Applied
Table 1 represents how the researchers had conceptualized the different agents of socialization as a lifelong process during which we learn about social expectations and how to interact with other people. Nearly all of the behavior that we consider to be “human nature” is actually learned through socialization. And it is during socialization that we learn how to walk, talk, and feed ourselves, about behavioral norms, values and belief systems gathered from family, church, school, peers, media, workplace, community, government and social group that help us fit into our society, and so much becoming a senior leader and eventually moves on.
6.4. Watkins’ Seven Seismic Shifts a Manager Must Make When He or She First Becoming a Senior Leader
How the Contributions Can Be Applied
Table 2 represents how the researchers have conceptualized Watkins’s seven seismic shifts a manager must make when first becoming a senior leader involving learning new skills, experience and receiving mentorship from a conscious soulful senior leader. Watkins’s (2012) and the other researchers’ seven seismic teaches that educational leaders must learn to move from specialist to generalist to holistic leader, analyst to the integrator to the forecaster, tactician to strategist to policy-maker, bricklayer to the architect to the originator, problem solver to agenda setter to mover and shaker, warrior to diplomat to the ambassador, and supporting cast members in leading roles to pathfinder.
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Table 2. Seven seismic shifts a manager must make when he or she first becoming a senior leader?
7. Recommendations
It would be interesting to attempt to develop these proposed frameworks and explore with different senior leaders in many schools, particularly when developing a leadership development strategy within a school or educational system context. What emerges from this study with primary head teachers and secondary school principals displayed the importance of our personal qualities, the reference group, leadership experience and how managers and senior leaders career evolves before and after senior leadership in order to develop a theoretical and conceptual framework of education leadership development for contemporary leaders.
A gap has been identified in this research of meaningful professional development at various stages in the career development of educational managers and senior leaders. The challenge is to bring informal processes of learning gained throughout a leader’s life history into meaningful development initiatives. This includes establishing formal mentoring systems, encouraging the formation of meaningful networks and providing guided induction on practice. There is also the need to recognize and respond to specific needs at particular stages and phases in their careers in order to ascertain professional development.