Academic Leadership Case Study

University and college academic leaders face an imperative opportunity to use their power for good and not evil, in order to “facilitate relationships and bring the divergent needs of different parties together in support of institutional advancement” (Bolman & Gallos, 2011, p. 162). Leading is an import task to follow out and it is accompanied with its own set of risks. Academic leaders are carefully attending their relationships with powerful players and pursing goals and partnerships, in order to make things easier for their bosses. However, at some point an academic leader will fall and create an unequal share of challenges while tiring substantial amounts of time and responsive energy. Negative sources will begin to pull large amounts …show more content…
Creating an action plan will help keep leaders on track when dealing with all of these sources. In order to better understand bullies, academic leaders need to first asses their current situation and then ask them what they believe is really happening. In addition, leaders need to understand how they got to this point and if their university was careless in their hiring process to allow bully’s into the school. As for backstabber’s, academic leaders need to understand that they are more insidious than bullies and their attacks are harder to trace. They are difficult to identify, but like bullies, they are have clandestine …show more content…
If they have and are still running into discrepancies, they need to unhook the bully. They need to set clear boundaries for the bully and take their emotional feelings out of the situation; therefore allowing them the opportunity to respond to any damage the bully has caused. As for backstabbers, leaders need to keep and ear out for misinformation, their work, and their credibility. In order to handle backstabbers, leaders need to develop a strong offense by actively communicating the correct information to all pertinent parties involved and provoke help from their allies. Similar to backstabbers, academic leaders need to handle their issues with stakeholders by seeking out mutual gains ad provoking help from allies; in addition to staying alert to any system dynamics. Leaders need to also take new leadership stands. In regards to their bosses, leaders to begin giving their bosses solutions instead of problems; as well as, use their time wisely, avoid surprises, and keep their promises. Similar to dealing with bullies and backstabbers, leaders need to learn how to speak up when necessary and address concerns that negative sources are