“The vision thing”

“The first basic ingredient of leadership is a guiding vision. The leader has a clear idea of what he or she wants to do—professionally and personally—and the strength to persist in the face of setbacks, even failures.”

Warren Bennis

“A vision is a portrait of the future that grabs.”

Warren BennisEssential role of vision: “vision is an image of the future- it is

where we are heading”1. Mission Statement2. Long-term goals3. Core values4. Vivid description

What is a Vision?

1. Mission StatementA statement expressing the person’s or organization’s underlying reason for being.

Vision in Education

Our vision expresses values and beliefs about what our school community considers to be of real importance in education

Vision is important part of effectiveschool leadership

Reason :Vision clarifies purpose and direction and is

therefore a source of motivation and energy

And this: powerfully shaped practice within a school

community

Charles Handy (1992) set five conditions if visionary leadership

is to effectiveThe vision has to be different.The vision must make sense to others.It must be understandable and capable of sticking in

people’s mind.The leader must be exemplify the vision by his/her

own behavior.The leader must remember that if the vision is to be

implemented it must be one that is shared.

2. Long Term Goals“Ambitious, concrete, and meaningful goals for 1-30 years down the line.”

Participatory:Vision needs to be drawn from the views of what matters of people in that community and what sort of future community they want to create.It is participation that provides a sense of ownership that fosters commitment to an agreed vision

Seeking Change

The notion if change is at heart of education.

All school’s provides an image of the sort of direction in which that change might happen.

School seek to change the way pupils think,feel and perceive the social and the natural world and their place in it.

“Become the dominant player in commercial aircraft and bring the world into the jet age.” (1950)

3.Core values

“An organization’s or person's most fundamental and inviolable codes of action”

Collins argues, is simply a combination of three basic elements:

An organization’s fundamental reason for existence beyond just making money.

Its timeless,unchange core values Huge and audacious-but ultimately achievable –

aspirations for its own future.

4. Vivid Description“Bringing the vision to life using words that create images.”

“Think of it as translating the vision from words into pictures, or creating an image that people can carry around in their heads.”

Collins & Porras

3.Action Must Follow Words“Unless a vision is sustained by action, it quickly turns to ashes.”

Noel Tichy

“Leaders articulate and embody the ideals toward which the organization strives.”

Warren Bennis

“In dreams begins responsibility.”William Butler Yeats

Anita Roddick's view about leaders vision statement

The leader has to have a mortal agenda . If the leader is only saying we want to the biggest

company in the world, forget it. when you do that there’s no leadership . There is nothing more to aspire to. but if your

aspirations come from the values of your culture or church or temple or mosque, you have something beyond your own livelihood creation.

It’s not just about compassion ,its about meaning accomplishment.

Action Speaks Louder than Words

“What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”Mahatma Gandhi

Myth : Companies become visionaries through “vision statements.”

Reality : Writing the vision is only a small step; visionary companies walk the talk, their focus is on expressing the vision.

Westley and Mintzberg’s (1989) different styles of visionary

leadership

1. The creator

2. The proselytiser

3. The idealist

4. The bricoleurs

5. The Diviner

The creator; This type of visionary characterized by two

qualities:1.orginality and the sudden 2.holistic quality of the vision.e.g. Edwin land, inventor of the Polaroid

camera .however it would seem to fit as entrepreneur category.

Cont…

Cont…..

Proselytier:In this type of leadership we try to promote that

thing which does exist but by the passage of time that required to being polished.

The idealist:westley point out that this type of visionary leader is

rarely found in business. The idealist is one who “dream of the perfection

minimizes or ignore the flaws and contradiction of the real”

Cont….

The bricoleur: The term bricoleur refers to one who frequents junkyards and collects bits and pieces which he put together to make new objects.

The Diviner:By Jan carlzon the Diviners key quality is

insight into such processes as how to build an organization.