IBS Lunchtime Research Seminar - Off the beaten track: Understanding how strategic leaders with unconventional backgrounds construct inclusivity, through discourse analysis of autobiographies

You are cordially invited to attend an International Business and Strategy Departmental Research Meeting, during which there will be a presentation by Ananya Sengupta - PhD Student - Henley Business School. A reminder that attendance for IBS (full time, research oriented) staff and full-time students is compulsory, and where possible, must be in person. Individuals unable to attend in person, due to legitimate reasons will be provided a Teams link on request. Non-IBS staff are welcome to attend, but must register prior to the event. If you have not received the email invite please email Angie Clark

Please join us in Room 108, Henley Business School, if you would like to attend, please register using the link below:

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Please make sure you let me know in advance if you intend to attend in person so that the correct amount of catering is booked.

Date: Wednesday 27th November 2024, HBS Room 108

Time: 13.00 - 14.15pm

Abstract:

In the current business environment Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) (sometimes referred to more broadly as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion or DEI / EDI) is an important consideration for CEOs of multinationals and other organisations for a number of reasons. Research has shown the positive impact of diversity on team and organisational performance. At the same time research suggests that diversity on its own is not sufficient, a culture of inclusivity is essential to harness the power and benefits of diversity. Inclusive leadership behaviours have been shown to increase productivity and innovation in diverse teams. Within the field of strategic leadership, research into broad-based diversity, beyond surface characteristics (such as age, race and gender), demographic and educational factors, at the upper echelons level is limited. On the one hand, relatively little is known about how successful strategic leaders with unconventional or atypical backgrounds, such as those with gaps in their resumes, a history of crime, addiction, mental health problems, neurodiversity etc., transcend adverse circumstances and overcome potentially crippling odds; whether or not their diverse experiences results in an increased propensity towards inclusivity and other effective qualities and the impact that this in turn has on the organisations and teams that they lead. On the other hand, beyond the organisational level, in an environment where society at large is grappling with grand challenges such as the need to reduce rates of incarceration and recidivism, improve social justice as well as increasing prosperity and general well-being of the wider population, a study of successful strategic leaders with such unconventional backgrounds could offer new and important insights into these aspects. With this in mind, this paper brings together broad-based diversity, inclusive leadership and strategic leadership into the concept of Inclusive Strategic Leadership (ISL) as a framework to explore this gap. We use thematic discourse analysis of autobiographies of four strategic leaders with criminal and substance abuse backgrounds to explore how these leaders socially construct inclusivity. From the study we theorise that strategic leaders who have successfully overcome challenges that arose due to their unconventional backgrounds tend to develop a range of effective leadership qualities; this includes a propensity for purposeful ISL behaviours which positively impacts their teams and organisations. With this we contribute towards both strategic leadership and DEI theory. Additionally, it furthers our understanding of post traumatic growth and strengthens the case for harnessing a largely untapped talent pool by mainstreaming broad-based diversity and inclusion policies within organisations.