Among the early of studies of leadership styles at the dawn of the 20th century, lists of preferred leadership traits included masculinity. Indeed, some authors have pointed out that common understandings of the concept of leadership continue to lack critique from a feminist perspective (Ford, 2005). Furthermore, subsequent explorations of transformational leadership attributed many of its characteristics to the male gender.
However, a recent meta-analysis of 45 studies of transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles found women leaders to exhibit more transformational at- tributes. Men were found to be more likely transactional or laissez-faire leaders (Eagly, Johannesen-Schmidt, & van Engen, 2003). Ford (2005) asserted that there is a need throughout the healthcare industry for increased awareness of gender in leader- ship, and the adoption of more culturally sensitive and locally based approaches that account for personal experience, identity, and power relations that allow for the entire range of masculine and feminine leadership styles and behaviors. There will always be differences.
Currently, women are more likely to move in and out of employment across their lives (Hewlett & Luce, 2005). In ranked order, the top five reasons women leave the workforce are (1) for family time, (2) to earn a degree or other training, (3) because work was not sat- isfying, (4) to relocate residence, and (5) to change careers. Whereas the rank order of the top five reasons men leave the workforce are (1) to change careers, (2) to earn a degree or other training, (3) because work was not satisfying, (4) loss of interest in the field, asnd (5) for family time. Because of the broad range of losses both to companies and to individu- als when a person leaves the workforce, and because of the difficulties of reentry, several organizations have begun special initiatives to retain workers, especially women leaders (Hewlett & Luce, 2005). Women also continue to carry the greater portion of parenting and household responsibilities. Indeed, 92% of women employed outside the home still manage all household tasks (Barsh, Cranston, & Craske, 2008).
Some biobehavioral research of the last decade has demonstrated other distinct differ- ences between men and women, such as brain activity. Women are more likely to think in integrated matrices, moving more “gracefully from intellect to intuition and from linear to nonlinear thought” than men do (Maraldo, 2008, p. 252), and are thus more facile at multitasking, while men tend to be more focused and linear. Thus, women may be generally suited to become transformational leaders in current and future en-
vironments of chaos and complexity. Furthermore, women in healthcare or nursing leadership are likely to exhibit the same characteristics of personal integrity, ethical standards, trustworthiness, and credibility as do women leaders in other disciplines (Carroll, 2005).
Although many more women than men enter healthcare professions, relatively few women reach the highest leadership positions. The McKinsey Leadership Project was an initiative to uncover what drives and sustains successful women leaders (Barsh et al., 2008, p. 35). From the project emerged a model of “five broad and interrelated dimen- sions” that likely pertain to men as well as women:
(1) meaning, or finding your strengths and putting them to work in the service of an inspiring purpose; (2) managing energy, or knowing where your energy comes from, where it goes, and what you can do to manage it; (3) positive framing, or adopting a more constructive way to view your world, expand your horizons, and gain the resilience to move ahead even when bad things happen; (4) connecting, or identifying who can help you grow, building stronger relationships, and increasing your sense of belonging; and (5) engaging, or finding your voice, becoming self- reliant and confident by accepting opportunities and the inherent risks they bring, and col- laborating with others.
In reality, whether man or woman, no leader has all the characteristics needed to do the whole job of leadership, regardless of the position. Ancona, Malone, Orlikowski, and Senge (2007, p. 92) suggested that we “end the myth of the complete leader.” Instead, with confidence and humility, recognizing personal strengths and challenges, the leader must engage the talents and perspectives of others. Indeed, more than a decade ago, Bolman and Deal (1992) demonstrated little or no support for stereotypical expectations of differences between men and women as leaders. They found that, generally, men and women in comparable positions were more alike than different. The larger issue was that women were less likely to be represented at the highest levels of leadership. Ancona et al.
suggested that the following four capabilities are critical and can be shared regardless of gender: (1) sensemaking, which is understanding and interpreting the environment, its culture, and complexities; (2) relating, or trusting and engaging others; (3) visioning, or developing and sharing a compelling image of the future; and (4) inventing, or finding new approaches for mission accomplishment and “to bring the vision to life.”
Furthermore, there is no single, magic formula, gender, style, or list of traits for effective transformational leadership. One nurse leader voiced concern that our current focus on per- sonality and charisma substitute for skills (Christmas, 2009). Collins (2001) warned that lead- ing by charisma alone is dangerous, that a strong self-focused personality may insulate a leader from the truth. We have all had at least one starched, old-school, autocratic leader under whom we thrived by his or her sheer organization and commitment—just as we have grown from the warm, dynamic, shared-vision leader who inspired us. Which leader will you be? What are your best characteristics? What will be your legacy?
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Cultivating the Habits of a Transformational Leader
While many people believe that transforming organizations . . . is the most difficult, the truth is that transforming ourselves is the hardest job. And if we transform ourselves, we transform our world.
— Dag Hammarskjold