Sustaining distributed leadership

This section outlines a reflective approach to the outcomes of the evaluation of the practice of distributed leadership. The use of such reflections should enable the benefits of using distributed leadership to be sustained.

The sustaining phase of using distribtued leadership is designed to reveal the extent to which an integrated, holistic approach to distributed leadership has been implemented. This reflection becomes the basis upon which future action is designed. This phase acknowledges that distributed leadership is a dynamic process that is most effective when accompanied by action reflection to scaffold action through cycles of change. In this process emergent issues are able to be discussed and adjustments made as a process of continuous change and improvement. This sets a basis upon which collective engagement in long-term change can be sustained.

The reflective phase uses a Participative Action Research approach that enables flexible adjustment as contexts, cultures and change requirements emerge. It also enables an appreciative approach to self-evaluation as an aid to self-improvement.

To implement a Participative Action Research approach it is suggested that a workshop be organised to identify the lessons learnt from the first cycle of action using the reflection tool here. In a workshop it is suggested that participants are arranged into collaborative groups to share narratives upon the experiences of the first phase of activity, to identify critical success factors and lessons learnt from previous action. From the outcome of a workshop the next step is to plan changes to processes carried out in the first cycle of using distributed leadership.