The Next Next Common Sense
Leadership as a network function
In complex environments, leadership emerges as a network function rather than an individual capability. Different situations call for different leadership, with formal roles often less important than contextual exper- tise and influence. Healthcare company Cleveland Clinic demonstrates this approach through its “Caregiver Leadership” model. Rather than defining leader- ship exclusively through formal positions, Cleveland Clinic recognizes leadership as a function that emerges in different network locations based on patient needs. A nurse might lead in one situation, a physician in an- other, and an administrator in a third, with leadership flowing to where expertise and context make it most effective. Leadership as a network function manifests in several organizational practices: Situational activation. Organizations create mechanisms for appro- priate leadership to emerge based on context. When professional services firm IDEO tackles complex design challenges, leadership shifts based on project phase and technical requirements, with different team members moving into and out of leadership roles as the situation demands. Influence mapping. Organizations explicitly identify influence pat- terns that don’t match formal authority. When consumer goods com- pany Unilever implemented its sustainability transformation, leadership mapped informal influence networks to identify individuals whose sup- port would catalyze change regardless of their formal positions. Resource allocation decentralization. Organizations distribute resource control rather than centralizing it in formal leadership roles. When technology company Haier reorganized into micro-enterprises, it gave these small teams control over their own resources, enabling lead- ership to emerge locally rather than flowing exclusively from corporate headquarters.
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