WHAT AND HOW LEADERS LEARN AS THEY TRANSFORM ORGANIZATIONS Archie Tinelli ...

435 Pages·2000·0.77 MB·English

LEADERS AND THEIR LEARNINGS: WHAT AND HOW LEADERS
LEARN AS THEY TRANSFORM ORGANIZATIONS
Archie Tinelli
Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy in
Adult Learning and Human Resource Development

Marcie Boucouvalas, Chair
Marilyn Lichtman
Linda Morris
Ron McKeen
Albert Wiswell
March 1, 2000
Blacksburg, VA
Key Words: Leaders, Learning, Organizational Transformation
Leaders and Their Learning: What and How Leaders
Learn as They Transform Organizations
Archie Tinelli
(Abstract)
This study sought to better understand the learning of
leaders who undertake the task of organizational
transformation.
This inquiry, designed as a qualitative case study of
two leaders and informed by a constructivist-interpretivist
paradigm, was guided by the following research question:
When leaders undertake the task of organizational
transformation, what can be discovered about what they learn
and the process of how they learn?
The leaders learned about themselves and about how to
transform their organizations. The leaders confirmed
knowledge they already had about themselves (what motivates
them) and they developed new understanding of themselves
(their leadership style). In addition, they developed new
strategies and tactics for transforming their organizations
(for example, ways to deal with troublesome staff members).
The study also found that the leaders operated from a
work-oriented mental model that dominated their thinking.
The leaders’ learning was embedded in and inextricably
ii
linked to their work; it was accidental, incidental, and
tacit.
The leaders’ learning was heavily influenced by four
factors: organizational context, the use of intuition to
generate options and solutions, the use of daily prayer by
both leaders (an unexpected finding), and consultation with
a network of professional colleagues.
The data were collected throughout one year in which
the leaders, who served as co-researchers, were observed six
full days each (distributed across the year) and interviewed
more than eight hours each. Interviews were also conducted
with several staff members from each leader’s organization.
The data were analyzed during several iterative stages
that included the researcher working independently as well
as collaborating with each of the two leaders. Further, one
long-time colleague of each leader from outside each of the
organizations provided an additional perspective on the
data.
This study also demonstrates the complex, rich, and
dynamic nature of qualitative research by distinctively
portraying the data, its analysis, and the research
experience. Parallel (side-by-side) columns simultaneously
present descriptions of the research experience and the
analysis of the data. In addition, there are two sets of
internal links encouraging the reader to alternate between
the research experience and the analysis (in Chapter Four)
and between the research method (in Chapter Three) and the
researcher’s reflections (in the Appendices).
iii
Practitioners and scholars may want to examine further
the extent to which the factors identified in this study
(the leaders’ mental model, organizational context, prayer,
intuition, and consultation with colleagues) influence
leaders transforming organizations.
iv
Dedications
This study would not have happened without the
encouragement, advice, and guidance of my sister, Linda
Tinelli Sheive. As older siblings are wont to do, she took
me under her wing and nurtured me until I succeeded. She
was always available when I got stuck. She provided
guidance and direction when I needed it without ever taking
over or having me do it her way.
She will forever be an inspiration to me and stand as
an example of what exceptional friends, teachers, and
siblings do.
My sons, Christopher William Tinelli and Joshua Samuel
Tinelli, are, and have been, my best teachers. They
surprise and challenge me regularly. They serve as
catalysts to reap lessons from and create meaning in my
life.
My wife, Judy Downs Tinelli, encouraged me throughout,
prodded me when needed, and forgave me the all-too-frequent
early morning departures from the house to work on this
document in a nearby coffee shop. Her love and support
created the emotional environment that enabled me to
persist.
v
Acknowledgements
Several people merit thanks for their contribution to
this study.
First and foremost are the two leaders who allowed me
into their lives and their organizations and who spent
innumerable hours sharing their stories, reflecting on their
work and their learning, and analyzing and helping to shape
the direction and outcome of this study. As co-researchers
they are as instrumental to the findings and conclusions of
this study as the researcher.
Bill LeClere and Linda Tinelli Shieve introduced me to
the two leaders and, as long-time colleagues of the leaders,
encouraged them to participate in the study. Without their
efforts to recruit the leaders, there would be no study. In
addition, they read and commented on the narratives, thereby
providing an additional measure of accuracy to those
sections.
Drs. Marcie Boucouvalas and Margaret Lichtman, as the
chair of my committee and researcher, respectively,
contributed invaluable insight and analysis to improve this
work. They were patient and supportive of a fledgling
academic.
vi
Table of Contents
Cover Page i
Abtract ii
Dedications v
Acknowledgements vi
Table of Contents vii
Table of Internal Links – Part I xi
Table of Internal Links – Part II xii
List of Tables xiv
List of Figures xv
Chapter One: Introduction and Background 1
Introduction 1
Background of the Study 2
Statement of the Problem 17
Purpose of Study 18
Significance 18
Research Questions 19
Definitions 20
Assumptions 25
Chapter Two: Literature Review 27
Introduction 27
The Historical Foundation 31
vii
The Conceptual/Theoretical Framework 43
Related Research 79
The Environment 79
Leaders and Their Learning 98
The Environment in which Leaders
Operate 111
Conclusions and Research Questions 120
Chapter Three: Method 122
Introduction 122
Sites and Subjects of Study 122
The Researcher 126
Interpretive Paradigms 134
Strategies of Inquiry 136
Methods of Collecting and Analyzing
Empirical data 141
Methods Used to Collect Data 145
Methods Used to Analyze Data 159
The Art of Interpretation 174
Chapter Four: Analysis and Narratives 180
Advice to the reader 180
Analysis 182
Introduction 182
A Distinctive Mental Model 184
viii
Organizational Context 188
Organizational Culture 193
The Leaders’ Mental Model 199
Factors Influencing How Leaders Work 201
Models for Organizational Transformation
and Problem Solving 212
Adult Education Concepts 282
What Leaders Learned 314
Summary 331
Narratives 182
Note to the reader 182
Narrative One: A Day with Her 184
Narrative Two: A Day with Him 253
Chapter Five: Summary, Conclusions and
Recommendations 336
Introduction 336
Summary of Findings 338
Conclusions 341
Adult Educators and Leaders’ Learning 350
Lessons Learned by the Researcher 355
Recommendations 360
Further Research 364
Conclusion 367
ix
References 370
Appendices 390
Reflection on Unending Story Writing 390
Reflection on Unanticipated Effects 393
Reflection on Finding Participants 396
Reflection on My Status as a Consultant 399
Reflection on Informants’ Value 402
Reflection on Leadership as a Topic 406
Reflection on Cultural Roadblocks 410
Reflection on the Researcher as Detective 413
Vita 415
End Notes 416
x