1. The Grand Challenge(s) for Social Work
John Devaney PhD
Centenary Professor of Social Work

6. Popular Myths About Leadership
Everyone can be a leader
Leaders are born, not made
Leaders deliver better results
People who get to the top are leaders
Leaders are great coaches

7. Leadership How can you lead effectively?
What role do vision, energy, authority and strategic direction play?
What personal qualities and attributes can support the leadership role?

9. Authenticity
Self Awareness: An ongoing process of reflection and re-examination by the leader of his or her own strength, weaknesses, and values
Relational Transparency: Open sharing by the leader of his or her own thoughts and beliefs, balanced by a minimization of inappropriate emotions
Balanced Processing: Solicitation by the leader of opposing viewpoints and fair-minded consideration of those viewpoints
Internalized Moral Perspective: A positive ethical foundation adhered to by the leader in his or her relationships and decisions that is resistant to outside pressures
Goffee and Jones (2006)

10. How do leaders demonstrate authenticity?
Three critical elements:
Consistency between words and deeds
Coherence in role performance (real self) is displayed in different roles to different audiences at different times
Leaders have a ‘comfort’ with self – have a clear sense of who they are and where they come from

11. Achieving Coherence in Leadership
Know and show yourself – skilful self-disclosure
What works for you (e.g. voice, accent, clothes, special skills) – Tony Blair used a casual dress & informal style of business
Avoid being cut off from your followers
‘Quiet leadership’ - modest leaders can achieve great things
‘Listen to learn’ - try things out and get feedback

12. Caring to Change - How compassionate leadership can stimulate innovation in health care
Inspiring Vision and Strategy
Positive Inclusion and Participation
Enthusiastic Team and Cross-Boundary Working
Support and Autonomy for Staff to Innovate
West, Eckert, Collins and Chowla (2017)

13. Compassion
Attending - paying attention to the other and noticing their suffering
Understanding - what is causing the other’s distress, by making an appraisal of the cause
Empathising - having an empathic response, a felt relation with the other’s distress
Helping - taking intelligent (thoughtful and appropriate) action to help relieve the other’s suffering

14. Compassion
Attending
Understanding
Empathising
Helping

15. Collective Leadership
The arguments above imply a collective approach to leadership, which means leadership of all, by all, for all:
everyone taking responsibility for ensuring that there is high-quality, continually improving and compassionate care
shared rather than dominating leadership in teams
continual development of teamworking
interdependent leadership with leaders working together across boundaries, prioritising patient care overall, not only in their area of responsibility
a consistent approach to leadership across organisations, characterised by authenticity, openness, curiosity, kindness, appreciativeness and, above all, compassion.

18. The 12 Challenges Ensure healthy development for all youth
Close the health gap
Stop family violence
Advance long and productive lives
Eradicate social isolation
End homelessness
Create social responses to a changing environment
Harness technology for social good
Promote smart decarceration
Reduce extreme income inequality
Build financial capability for all
Achieve equal opportunity and justice

20. Emerging Questions
What are the implications of the Grand Challenges for educating future social workers and preparing emerging social work scholars?
What strategies will be effective in translating Grand Challenges aspirations into real-world action and impact?
How do we use the Grand Challenges to better communicate the value and importance of social work in a challenging economic and political environment?
Who will be our allies and what alliances should we form?

21. J.Devaney@ed.ac.uk @JDev65

22. Key References
Baron, S. (2017) Grand challenges for social work. Critical and Radical Social Work, 5(2), Denis, J. L., Langley, A. and Sergi, V. (2012). Leadership in the plural. Academy of Management Annals, 6(1), Devaney, J. and Spratt, T. (2009). Child abuse as a complex and wicked problem: Reflecting on policy developments in the United Kingdom in working with children and families with multiple problems. Children and Youth Services Review, 31(6), Goffee, R. and Jones, G. (2006) Why should anyone be led by you?: What it takes to be an authentic leader. Harvard Business Press. West, M., Eckert, R., Collins, B. and Chowla, R. (2017) Caring to change – How compassionate leadership can stimulate innovation in health. London, The Kings Fund.