?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

Are we headed in the right directions with leadership thought? This is another valid question. The recent barrage of scandals and unethical dealings by both governmental and business senior leaders has made us all skeptical about today?s leaders.

There is a trust factor that has been lost between leaders and followers due to economic factors such as technology advances and outsourcing. Some critics point to these factors as natural occurrences. We have seen similar issues from a historical perspective. What will happen next?

What we can tell you now is that leadership thought is heading in the right direction. Employees are looking for guidance. Organizations want more efficiency and greater profit. We can see the continual struggle between the scientific and behavior strategies in our organizations. We can also see the potential for man and machine to co-exist in organizations. Yes, we are headed in the right direction. We are making progress in leadership thought today.

There are nearly 600 leadership-development courses at American post-secondary institutions today, representing more than double the number a year ago. The study of leadership is an emerging field of study in the United States.

Today, there are more than 100 leadership-focused degree programs in the country. For example, institutions like Regent University (www.regent.edu) are assisting doctoral students so that they can make significant contributions to leadership thought as both scholars and practitioners.

As we enter another century, America is faced with similar challenges, such as global market changes, technology advances, and more immigration issues. Will America suffer the same consequences as past societies? By analyzing leadership thought from a historical perspective, we are better able to understand the current organizational issues in order to predict future changes .

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.

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