?Wealth in the new regime flows directly from innovation, not optimization; that is, wealth is not gained by perfecting the known, but by imperfectly seizing the unknown.?

Kevin Kelly

Who are the key founders in modern day leadership theory? During this article, we will take a stroll down memory lane and view these great heroes. Through this process, we will reach two objectives, which are to learn how leadership thought developed and transitioned and to discover how it influenced the prevailing leadership thoughts of today. Let?s take this journey. The following are the major contributors of leadership thought in the 20th century and beyond:

James MacGregor Burns (1918- ), a Pulitzer Prize-winning presidential biographer, is a pioneer in the study of leadership. His theory of transformational and transactional leadership has been the basis of more than 400 doctoral dissertations. At this period, Burns challenged scholars to abandon the leader-focused model and concentrate leadership studies on mutual goals held by leaders and followers. His research still challenges leadership concepts in the academic community as well as corporate America.

Peter Drucker (1909 -2005), a renowned consultant, gained international recognition in the business community as well as academia during the second half of the 20th Century. In the 1960s, he developed a concept called ?Management by Objectives.? Drucker was an advocate for teamwork and highly critical of corporate leaders. Drucker?s ?in your face? approach challenged the corporate headship to rethink their approach to leading their organizations.

Gary Hamel, chairman of Strategos and director of the Woodside Institute, is one of the most influential thinkers in the Western world and provides management teams with rule-breaking strategies that give a competitive advantage. Currently, he is working with renowned thought leaders through his institute to solve the world?s toughest business problems.

Peter Senge, an MIT Senior Lecturer, has provided insight within the business and academic community by introducing the theory of learning organizations. His areas of interest focus on decentralizing the role of leadership in organizations to enhance the capacity of employees to work more efficiently. Today, his management approaches are applied nationally and internationally.

In conclusion, these 20th century legends were unselfish in providing their contributions to society and the advancements of leadership thought. We owe them much thanks in this endeavor.

References:

Bass, B. (1999). Bass & stogdill?s handbook of leadership. New York, NY: The Free Press.

Northouse, P. (2004). Leadership theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Wikipedia. (2006). Received on February 16, 2006 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page.

Wren, D. (2005). The evolution of management thought. Hooboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Wren, D. & Greenwood, R. (2005). Management innovators. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

? 2006 by Daryl D. Green