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Introduction
Globalization has caused organizations to look for ways to compete more effectively on a worldwide scale. Outdated business models, archaic leadership practices and traditional thinking will not propel growth in an ever-changing and highly perplexing transnational marketplace. According to Waddock and McIntosh (2009), "Too much action in today's fast-paced globalized economy is action without thinking, with a ready-aim-fire kind of mentality" (p. 312). Leaders have become overwhelmed by the increased demands of globalization and are struggling because "business as usual" is no longer effective. Thus, a principled and thoughtful approach to making meaningful change is needed so that leaders can think about the long-term consequences of their actions and decisions.
Reflective leadership offers a viable solution and is gaining momentum as organizations strive to better understand the cultures and values of the people and the markets they serve. Reflective leadership is the consistent practice of reflection, which involves conscious awareness of behaviours, situations and consequences with the goal of improving organizational performance. Reflective practice helps leaders make sense of uncertain, unique or conflicted situations (De Dea Roglio and Light, 2009). Reflection also promotes clarity with respect to one's values, identity, emotions, motives and goals (Gardner et al. , 2005) and leads to improved thinking, information collection, goal setting and visualization of success with enhanced leadership behaviour and results (McDaniel and DiBella-McCarthy, 2012). By visualizing varying outcomes, new insights can be revealed. Thus, the act of reflection makes possible the determination of an organization's best course of action before the execution of a potentially flawed plan.
This paper delves into the history of reflective leadership, providing insights into its core ideas and development over time. The theory and characteristics of reflective leadership are described, as are the hurdles and potential benefits of its implementation. As a result of reviewing the current literature available, this paper identifies six components which constitute reflective leadership. Each of these components is outlined, offering supportive literature from many of the proponents of reflective leadership. And finally, a framework for the practical implementation of reflective leadership is presented with the goal of assisting leaders in practicing reflection in order to improve organizational performance.
The underpinnings of reflective practice
Jack Mezirow (1978) introduced the concept of transformative learning to the field of...