Open Source Leadership (PDF)

DR. LESLIE GADMAN teaches Strategic Management and Organisational Behaviour, at London South Bank University and is a Visiting Fellow at Imperial College London and the University Of Nottingham School Of Business. He gained his PhD at Lancaster University. Gadman has served as a consultant to private companies and public agencies in the areas of strategy formulation and implementation, change leadership and knowledge management. His research interests are centered on the impact of the Internet on business performance and culture. He has published in journals such as the Asian Journal on Quality, MIT's Sloan Management Review, and the Journal of Management Science. Gadman is also the author of 'Power Partnering: A Strategy for Excellence in the 21st Century.'


CARY L. COOPER is Professor of Organizational Psychology and Health, Lancaster University Management School, UK and Pro Vice Chancellor (External Relations) at Lancaster University. He is the author of over 100 books (on occupational stress, women at work and industrial and organizational psychology), has written over 400 scholarly articles for academic journals, and is a frequent contributor to national newspapers, TV and radio. He is currently Founding Editor of the Journal of Organizational Behavior and Co-Editor of the medical journal Stress& Health (formerly Stress Medicine). He is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society, The Royal Society of Arts, The Royal Society of Medicine, The Royal Society of Health, British Academy of Management and an Academician of the Academy for the Social Sciences. Professor Cooper is the immediate past President of the British Academy of Management, is a Companion of the Chartered Management Institute and one of the first UK based Fellows of the (American) Academy of Management. In 2001, Cary was awarded a CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List for his contribution to organizational health. He holds Honorary Doctorates from Aston University (DSc), Heriot-Watt

'Why do we have so many theories of leadership? Because none of them work very well all of the time. For 70 years we have spewed out content leadership theories. In the new digital world of the twenty-first century we need a new leadership theory. This is it! Open Source Leadership is a process theory ruled by attention, awareness, intention and, yes, structure. Open Source Leadership is by invitation, not by imposition. This important book invites each of us into the leadership process, drawing on the gifts, talents, and resources within us. The book poses the important questions without offering the final answers. YOU are the answer.' - Professor James Campbell Quick, John and Judy Goolsby Distinguished Professor, Goolsby Leadership Academy, The University of Texas at Arlington

'This book contains a big idea. The leadership model is changing. Leadership can come from anywhere, not just the top. Intriguingly the best leadership comes from the user of the product the customer. They can shape the future direction of the enterprise.' - Sir Terry Leahy, Chief Executive, Tesco

'Gadman and Cooper have done an excellent job in empowering the reader to reflectively challenge their own perceptions and understandings of what it takes to be a successful contemporary leader. They provide easily readable chapters that spell out the skills required to take advantage of the open source revolution. Today, leaders cannot allow themselves to be prisoners of out of date or inadequate ways of thinking, or even see problems in isolation. Open Source Leadership explains how individuals can seize the advantage by better understanding how the power and collective energy and focus of people can overcome intractable problems. Finally, Open Source Leadership provides a guide for leaders on how inspiration and creativity can have a positive impact on their people and organisations.' - Professor Iain Densten, Professor of Leadership and Director of the Lancaster Leadership