About JSL

The Journal of Strategic Leadership (JSL) provides a forum for leadership practitioners and students of strategic leadership around the world by publishing applied articles on topics that enhance knowledge and understanding of the phenomenon of strategic leadership at all levels within a variety of industries and organizations.

The JSL is published in electronic format and provides access to all issues free of charge. [subscribe]

Editor's Note

Over the past several years, we have been honored to highlight outstanding articles that foster growth in the ever-evolving field of leadership. As we move forward into the new academic year, JSL will merge with another School of Business & Leadership publication, Leadership Advance Online (LAO), to create an online leadership repository. The goal of this repository is to provide exceptional student, alumni and faculty work, research and resources to disseminate new ideas, spur discussion and advance the field of leadership research and practice. The leadership repository is currently being developed, so we will notify you as soon as a launch date has been confirmed.

We are so thankful for the leadership of JSL’s editor, Dr. Gary Oster, for our reviewers and staff who have devoted their time and efforts toward highlighting such outstanding articles and for our authors who submitted those outstanding articles. We also want to thank you, our readers, for your support, and we look forward to sharing the new leadership repository with you.

In this final issue of JSL, we offer six articles of great interest. The first article by Paul Dannar offers an alternate approach to organizational design to create synergy and value. Next, David Stehlik delves into effective organizational innovation and its dependence on the alignment of three key areas: culture, leadership, and organization design. Teresa Moon provides our third article as she takes a look at mentoring the next generation of innovators, which she calls “Millennovators.” Closely examining IBM and Enron, David Boiselle compares and contrasts their organizational cultures, structures and leader-follower relationships to reveal the importance of values leadership. Our fifth article is authored by William Bishop and considers organizational structure, its variations and importance in every organization. Michael Hoyes closes out this issue by highlighting six techniques for “seeing clearly” in order to unleash creativity.

Thank you, again, for your support of JSL. We look forward to continuing our relationship with you via the new leadership repository and hope that you will enjoy this final issue of JSL.

— Julia Mattera, Interim Editor

Please Note

Views and opinions expressed in the articles published in the Journal of Strategic Leadership (JSL) represent each author's research and viewpoint and do not necessarily represent JSL or its sponsors. JSL and its sponsors make no representations about the accuracy of the information contained in published manuscripts and disclaims any and all responsibility or liability resulting from the information contained in the JSL.

Using Organizational Design to Move Beyond the Explore/Exploit Conundrum
Paul R. Dannar

Today’s organizations face a dizzying array of complex global, technological, and strategy implementation obstacles often associated with dynamic increases in the pace of change. Thus, many experts suggest the role of organizational design is to facilitate the implementation of a strategy designed to cope with current operational dilemmas while simultaneously seeking ways to develop new capabilities. On the surface, this approach makes perfect sense and would most likely be regarded as a solid approach to organizational design. This article offers an alternate approach; one that argues the primary role of organization design is to release the creative energies of employees who facilitate strategy implementation by anticipating the needs of internal and external stakeholders. These types of designs create synergy by integrating compelling visions with the leadership philosophy that people build the identity of the organization and thus, are its greatest value creator.
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Ultimately Contingent: Leveraging the Power-Web of Culture, Leadership, & Organization Design for Effective Innovation
David Stehlik     

Today’s business world is fast-paced, and successful organizations must innovate, especially as technologies become ever more crucial to securing market success. Research in the fields of leadership and organization design illustrates that innovativeness is a competency advanced by particular kinds of leadership and through specific organization designs. Similarly, research displays how cultural differences play a role in the success of particular kinds of leadership, which also affects organization design. And, culture figures into the innovation equation directly, as some cultural characteristics are more conducive to innovation than others. The following article, therefore, argues that organization design and leadership, when combined and based upon studied cultural awareness, optimized for unique industry and environment alignment, leads to greater innovation effectiveness. Effective organizational innovation depends on the alignment of culture, leadership, and organization design.
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Mentoring the Next Generation for Innovation in Today’s Organization
Teresa M. Moon

In order to succeed, organizations must innovate. Innovators create in the context of interactions and relationships. Valuing every member of the organization and mentoring each one as a leader in an environment of leaders empowers innovators. Organizational cultures valuing people, along with their creativity and passions, will be innovation leaders. The next generation of innovators, the Millennials, find meaning in value creation. Thriving organizations of the future will value “Millennovators” - Millennial innovators. Millennovators arrive in today’s organizations with passion and creativity. These passions can cause creative friction. Mentoring relationships enculturate, guide, direct, and motivate millennial creativity. This paper seeks to better understand millennial innovators; explore mentoring as a means of converting creative friction into productive innovation; and proffer an inclusive mentoring model designed to strengthen relationships, build trust, and change perceptions.
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Big Blue vs. the Crooked E: Comparing and Contrasting IBM and Enron through the Lens of Values Leadership
David Boisselle    

At the turn of the millennium, IBM and Enron were iconic American corporations. IBM had risen from the ashes of a severe plunge in its computer mainframe sales and stock price. Enron was the seventh-largest corporation in America and its employees and shareholders were riding high. Yet, while IBM’s rebound was based on a firm foundation of values leadership, Enron was afflicted with a cancer of corrupted values that would lead to its astonishing demise in December 2001. This article examines the organizational cultures, structures, and leader-follower relationships within IBM and Enron to learn how critical values leadership can be to business success, especially during times of change. The nature of the values leadership of Jesus Christ will also be examined so as to inform the leadership of Christians in the marketplace.
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Structure? We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Structure!
William H. Bishop      

Structure is an integral component for any organization. It provides a foundation upon which to build and establishes the path of communication and the flow of information. Hierarchies have reigned supreme for decades but are not without their shortcomings. They interrupt the natural order of business and are often an impediment to communication. Hierarchies provide the unintended consequence of allowing employees to rise to their level of incompetence, better known as the Peter Principle. Globalization has caused many organizations to reduce the number of layers within their hierarchies and provided the impetus for the leveling of the hierarchical pyramid. Many organizations have gone a step further by removing any traces of a traditional structure in search of a more efficient design. The lack of conformity to an existing structure does not negate the presence of a structure, however. It validates the need for organizational structure regardless of whether or not it is wanted.
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Seeing Clearly – The First Tool for Leadership/Organizational Creativity
Michael B. Hoyes  

Leadership scholars and practitioners postulate that creativity is increasingly essential for survival. However, this paper proposes that before becoming creative, it is essential for leadership within an organization, and the organization as a whole, to “see clearly.” This paper exposes the reader to reasons why leaders need to see clearly and it provides six techniques for doing so: resolving to see; taking a holistic, system-level view; seeking contributions of the entire enterprise; varying perspective; remembering the “OODA Loop”; investing in employee training; and being proactive. Seeing clearly will assist leaders as they contemplate becoming more creative while remaining coordinated and concerted with their present efforts.
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