Inspiring Leadership

This session will explore some of the current developments in leadership thinking, specifically those emanating from such key thinkers as Robert Greenleaf, Ron Heifetz and Howard Gardiner. The session will look at the relevance of these approaches to leading and learning within the educational context, and will then move on to explore what this means in personal and professional development terms for educationalists.

The aim of the sesssion will be to provide some challenge and stimulation to participants to engender discussion about the role of the teacher as leader and the skills and abilities required. The session will look at issues such as authority, power and control, alongside such concepts as enabling and empowering leadership.

The session will also look at what this means for the developmen of educationalists, and their own learning experiences as leaders. The impact of programmes such as Columba 1400 and the deeopment of coaching models as part of the spectrum of deelopment opportunities.

Zoë Van Zwanenberg, Scottish Leadership Foundation

Zoë has been Chief Executive of this not-for-profit membership based organisation since its creation in 2001. The Foundation works on the development of leadership capacity and capability across all of Scotland’s public services. Prior to that her work has been centred in HR and Management leadership roles with wide range of public service organisations from Railways to the Environment Agency, the NHS to the Police. Whilst she has primarily worked in organisation development and human resource management, she has also been a Chief Executive and General manager and has led major change initiatives from mergers to downsizing, service re-design to the implementation of major new national policy initiatives. In addition to her work in public service, Zoë has taken an active role in the development of the arts and cultural sector as Non-Executive Director and professional advisor; she is currently Chair of Scottish Youth Dance and in 2004 was appointed Chair of Scottish Ballet.