The Power of Invisible Leadership: How a Compelling Common Purpose Inspires Exceptional Leadership - Paperback

by Gill Robinson Hickman (Author), Georgia J. Sorenson (Author)

A powerful force draws people to leadership in countless businesses, nonprofits, government agencies, and social movements--we call it invisible leadership. Invisible leadership embodies situations in which dedication to a compelling and deeply held common purpose is the motivating force for leadership. Common purpose is more than a mission statement. It is a profound sense of common destiny, a life course or calling, aligned with a mission that resonates profoundly with our values and our sense of ourselves and others.

This readable, research-based book shows readers how invisible leadership exists in the space between leaders and followers, artists and subjects, and purposes and people. Rather than reinforcing the idea that leadership is embodied in celebrity leaders or in gifted and charismatic individuals, the well known and highly admired authors of this insightful new book identify "charisma of purpose" as the motivating force for invisible leadership. A brief discussion of how invisible leadership impacts businesses, nonprofits, government agencies, and social movements guides the reader toward an understanding of the antecedents and possibilities of this way of thinking.

Author Biography

Dr. Georgia Sorenson envisioned and launched the James MacGregor Burns Academy of Leadership at the University of Maryland--the first academic program devoted to public leadership--more than twenty years ago. She is a board member of the Leadership Learning Community, the Kellogg Fellows Leadership Alliance, the Academy for Educational Development′s New Voices, the Asian Pacific American Women′s Leadership Institute, and many other leadership organizations in the United States and abroad. Sorenson is the author of several books, including Dead Center: Clinton-Gore Leadership and the Perils of Moderation with James MacGregor Burns, published in 1999 by Scribner. Sorenson is co-editor, with George R. Goethals and James MacGregor Burns, of the four-volume Encyclopedia of Leadership, published by SAGE in 2004. She has published in professional journals, such as the Harvard Educational Review, Signs, and Psychology of Women Quarterly, and is a frequent contributor and commentator on leadership and social issues in the popular media. Sorenson′s experience has led to numerous international consultancies and teaching appointments. She is adjunct professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, Korea, serves as professor and advisor to China′s National School of Administration, and is on the international board of the Tokyo Jogakkan College in Japan. Previously she served on the advisory board of the Thierry Graduate School of Leadership. Before launching her career in academia, Sorenson was a senior policy analyst for employment issues in the Carter White House and later worked as a consultant to the Executive Office of the President. During her White House tenure, she served on the White House Productivity Council and on Vice-President Mondale′s Youth Employment Council. She continues to be politically active and has served as a speechwriter or consultant to three presidential campaigns.
Dr. Gill Robinson Hickman is currently a professor of leadership studies in the Jepson School of Leadership Studies at the University of Richmond. At California State University, Dominguez Hills, she served in several capacities, including as founding dean of the School of Health, dean of Faculty Affairs, director of staff personnel, and professor of public administration. She has also served as interim associate dean of the School of Community and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University, director of personnel for the Ontario-Montclair School District, personnel analyst for the California State University system, and administrative assistant for the city of Inglewood, California. Hickman has published two books, Leading Organizations: Perspectives for a New Era in 1998 for SAGE Publications and Managing Personnel in the Public Sector: A Shared Responsibility with Dalton Lee in 2001 for Harcourt College Publishers. In addition, she has published a number of articles and book chapters on leadership studies, including articles on invisible leadership and transformistic theory for the Encyclopedia of Leadership.