Educational leadership

Abstract

Effective leadership and management of educational organizations and activities are vital for the continued success and development of the processes by which existing and future doctors are educated. Poor leadership and weak management are two of the greatest contributors to organizational decline. It is essential to consider leadership and management somewhat separately. Although the two are interrelated and effective organizations need both, the specific skill sets involved in leadership and management are quite different. The chapter explores leadership and management theories, their chronology and how these theories relate to medical education. Taking an international perspective, the chapter will consider some of the skills, qualities, competences, perspectives and approaches that enable medical educators to lead and manage organizations and teams more effectively. Leadership is a hotly contested and ever-evolving concept, but it is when the theories translate into practical realities that educators can best use the vast range of guidance. Much of the literature derives from the business context, although there is an emerging body of research and writing on clinical and educational leadership in the medical and wider healthcare context. The literature relating to medical education focuses on both the clinical and the educational contexts, and this chapter draws on relevant theory and examples throughout. Finally, it is important to note that the literature on leadership has its academic roots in the social, behavioural, and management sciences. The evidence that is provided, the research methods utilized and the way in which leadership is discussed and conceptualized is different from that of some other educational topics, which draw more strongly from the natural sciences and positivist traditions.