Conclusion 259
discipline. The claims that it advances and the goals that it sets require the syn-
thesis of information, concepts, and meanings that come in a variety of forms
from many sources.- Decision making. As a discipline of decision making, strategic leadership dis-
plays the peculiar integrative and sovereign power of decisions. They take place
as enactments that synthesize a wide range of factors. Rarely the consequence of
rational calculation or deductive logic alone, decisions carry the deep imprint of
culture, commitments, and political influences. - Systemic thinking. Not only is strategic decision making integrative at the
two levels of knowledge and of decision, it is also systemic. It understands that
insights and decisions in one domain of an organization are connected to others
as part of a system.
THE PROCESS OF STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
This recapitulation of strategic leadership as a discipline is enlarged, enriched,
and exemplified as we consider the organizational systems and processes that
enable and enact it. We have seen that strategic leadership as a process involves
a variety of mechanisms, methods, steps, and procedures.
- Collaboration. Reciprocal leadership and decision making require dialogue and
interaction between groups and individuals in order to interpret the meaning of
the organization’s context and mission. Many strategic insights and possibilities
are a collaborative achievement, often not available to individuals working in
isolation. - Governance. The process of strategic leadership requires effective mechanisms of
governance that overcome the complexity and fragmentation of decision making
in higher education. A strategy council or its equivalent has to be empowered to
recommend a coherent strategic agenda for the institution’s future. - Legitimacy. The mechanisms of strategic governance must not only be effective
but must also satisfy campus norms of collegial decision making. Ultimately it
falls to the governing board and the president to ensure that the mechanisms and
methods of strategic governance, strategic leadership, and strategic management
meet the canons of both legitimacy and effectiveness. - Design. The strategy process and its mechanisms must be carefully designed and
organized to ensure effectiveness. Persons who are assigned key roles should have
appropriate levels of interest, skill, and knowledge, and the president and other
top officers must be committed to the tasks of strategy. - Systemic methods. Both as a discipline and as a process, strategic leadership is
systemic and discerns the connectedness of the activities and programs of the
organization. As a result, it drives strategic management to be integrative and
seeks to build a momentum of accomplishment through continuing assessment
and improvements in quality as a learning organization. - Embedded process. The processes of strategic leadership develop relationships
that create trust and respect among participants and encourage confidence and