JourneyOnline
CRS Publishing,2006
RRP $19.95
Reviewed by Karyl Davison.
Leadership is a critical issue in the church today.
An oft heard cry is, “We need more leadership!” We don’t just need any leadership;we need leadership that is effective in leading the church to growth and change.
We need leadership that is transformative.
But the church like needs more than good leaders.
In this book, Mr Keys suggests that only about 20 per cent of change is due to leadership.
The rest is brought about by followers.
So just like any other organisation, the church also depends on leaders empowering exemplary followers, who in turn become leaders.
Mr Keys argues that any lasting future in an organisation depends on succession, which in turn depends on the leadership’s ability to identify, develop and retain talented leaders in the organisation.
That is, transformational leaders invest time and energy in empowering people to be better than themselves.
The third in Keys’ series on leadership, Growing Future Leaders sets out the characteristics of both charismatic and transformational leadership, identifying the advantages and shadow sides of both styles.
Also identified are different kinds of followers and how to shift people towards being exemplary followers.
Mr Keys uses many examples from scripture and history to illustrate his points and clarify the effects he speaks about.
Growing Future Leaders is an excellent tool for understanding the dynamics of effective leadership and includes a study guide for use by leaders and with leadership teams.
It also contains an excellent bibliography for further reading.
