Keeping the Principal Happy Peter Malcolm Managing Director Proximities Consultancy in Organisational Learning &Partnership Working

Leadership Perspective Happy Principals make Good Decisions (evidenced by successful outcomes) Successful Principals are associated with a Chain of Evidence linking their Influence to Successful Outcomes

Leadership Perspective 2 Decisions left to the Principal are largely Path – Dependent - based on their past experiences Successful Leaders and Successful Decisions need Multiple Perspectives from Key Influencers and Key Actors –who are these Key People? IT Professionals are Guardians of the Data from which Information is provided Interpretation of this Information creates New Perspectives and New Realities Guardians of the Data must become Key Influencers and Key Actors

Philosophical Perspective Technical professionals tend towards Positivist solutions – believing that there are objective universal realities that can be defined, modelled and understood Opposing Interpretivist perspectives deny objective realities in favour of subjective constructs in the minds of observers and participants – no definitions, predictions or certainty; no collective view, just individual thinking

Philosophical Perspective 2 Some are more optimistic – we behave largely according to social norms and expectations – patterns can be identified and probable outcomes predicted A more useful, and normal philosophical perspective for both leaders and technical professionals, is that of the Critical Realist

Philosophical Perspective 3 A Critical Realist accepts that an objective reality exists, determined by powerful causal forces and is worthwhile investigating and understanding However, this reality is obscured by many different subjective perspectives: traditions, experiences, expectations, interests, and pressures, that are equally worthwhile in investigating and understanding on our way to a shared sense of reality

Philosophical Perspective 4 Critical Realists make good Key Influencers and Key Actors: They challenge the conventional view while seeking consensus on shared interests and outcomes, constructing a new perspective for discussion and investigation They provide and interpret evidence from any relevant source to explore perspectives of reality

Conclusion Principals’ need to be surrounded by Critical Realists who deconstruct and reconstruct data; providing evidence for analysis, interpretation and decision-making Data is safer from misuse in the hands of Critical Realists: determining data use before data selection and interpretation Am I Addressing the Principals and Chief Executives of the Future?