Collaborative leadership in Action

Collaborative Leadership In Action 

Nehemiah 3:1-3 NKJV

[1] Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. They built as far as the Tower of the Hundred, and consecrated it, then as far as the Tower of Hananel. [2] Next to Eliashib the men of Jericho built. And next to them Zaccur the son of Imri built. [3] Also the sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and hung its doors with its bolts and bars. 

     

     Nehemiah understood the state they were in. He knew he had to get the cooperation of the people before anything could be accomplished. Having resources was not enough. He had to get the people to buy into his vision of getting the walls rebuilt. The result of that meeting was action from the people.

     My Ai describes Collaborative leadership as a style where leaders encourage and facilitate teamwork and shared decision-making. It moves away from a traditional top-down approach where leaders make decisions alone, and instead, involves diverse perspectives and insights to reach better outcomes. Nehemiah had no Ai. He had Divine wisdom. His talk was so powerful that the Priests started first. They worked between the Sheep gate and the Tower of Hananel. After that it was free for all. Even the Priests had their share of the work. In normal set ups, they probably wouldn't have been bothered, but this was emergency. 

     In 2013, Change Matrix developed  what they called the 4 Cs coaching model to eliminate disparity in behavioral health.They outlined:  Culture, Change, Conflict and Communication as the components of collaboration . Participants reported gains in: Increased understanding of the value and process of collaboration for themselves and their organizations. They identified and understoond conflict, culture and change as a part of collaboration. They had increased awareness and application of a framework for cross cultural dialogue. Nehemiah's team did not write down their learnings, but it wouldn't have been too different from that. 

    When the project is very big, apply collaborative leadership. Cut up the work into manageable pieces and see your people prosper. You can do it. Nothing  is impossible. Good morning.