Developing leadership capacity and capability in the community sector

Mā mua ka kite a muri, mā muri ka ora a mua.

Those who lead give sight to those who follow, those who follow give life to those who lead.

Community Leaders play a significant role in the health and well-being of people in Aotearoa. However, the pandemic has left many feeling burnt out at a time when Aotearoa faces significant challenges. Navigating complexity and meeting the increasing expectations of leaders has received little attention.

Foundation North sought to understand how to support and strengthen community leadership within Aotearoa, commissioning the Centre for Social Impact (CSI) to gather some insights. CSI’s findings are based on a review of the available literature and interviews with twelve community leaders. While it does not represent a complete view of the sector nor the only opportunities for supporting leadership. It provides an insight into community leadership in Aotearoa today and identifies opportunities for those interested in supporting leaders in the sector.

The key opportunities for supporting community leadership that were identified are:

• Resource individuals, organisations and leadership programmes. Those seeking to support community leadership must take a holistic view ensuring leaders can engage in development with hinengaro (mind), tinana (body), wairua (spirit), and whānau (family/relationships).
• Signposting. An opportunity exists to improve the signposting to available leadership programmes.
• Support leaders to develop within their context. Their iwi, culture, places, spaces, identities, and phases of their unique leadership journey are tightly entwined with their leadership development.
• Identify and enable emerging spheres of leadership. Identify individuals who prioritise addressing evolving challenges, innovative solutions, and question established norms. Support them to work within expansive systems that surpass conventional understanding and comfort zones will advance the impact of the community sector.
• Lean into indigenous approaches to leadership. Alternative world views support leaders to navigate beyond current conditions and short-term outcomes, moving their eyes towards the distant horizon. Māori leadership programmes are those that focus on mātauranga Māori.

Leadership development within community spaces is often ad hoc and many are based on corporate models. Leaders are hard-pressed to prioritise their development and the development of upcoming leaders in a world that seems to have relentlessly increasing expectations of them. When leaders do have an opportunity for development, it can be challenging to identify appropriate programmes, and there is a gap between those that act as an introduction to leadership and larger programmes that require a significant, often 12-month or greater, commitment to go deeper.

Leadership within community spaces has received less attention and investment than equivalent programmes in the corporate sector. People undertaking community leadership roles in a voluntary capacity are less likely to prioritise time or funding to participate in professional development. Low investment, low demand and the success of corporate models mean much of the community leadership professional development that has been available is formal in approach and has been adapted from corporate and business leadership programmes. Newer offerings, such as Leadership Lab and Leadership NZ, have begun to emerge as the nuance and importance of community leadership have become better understood.

Community leadership programmes available in Aotearoa and internationally vary greatly in approach and required commitment. Some general community organisations offer short, peer-based, and casual options. Intensive year-long and cohort-based courses are offered by organisations focused on leadership, and some universities offer graduate and post-graduate programmes. See the appendix to this report for a list of programmes identified. However, there is little to signpost leaders to these programmes and help them understand the depth and quality of the offerings.

Many of the shorter leadership options are styled as an introduction to leadership with deeper and more advanced training on leadership reserved for longer programmes requiring greater commitment. Leaders with some experience may be challenged to find programmes that help them to step up and adapt as needed. Similarly, formalised short-course options that focus on kaupapa Māori and Pasifika leadership are more limited.

Becoming a community leader is a unique and deeply personal journey for many with age, experience, crisis, and more informing the leadership role taken at any time. Structured leadership programmes have a place within this journey; however, significant value is also gained from networks, collaboration, peer support and mentoring. It is unlikely that one approach to developing community leadership can be found. Instead, an ecology of initiatives, opportunities, and support for aspiring leaders and leaders in situ is required.

Succession planning also presents a challenge to community leaders within their organisations. The assumption of an organisational hierarchy and one leader can make it difficult to model different types of leadership and can portray leadership as an all-consuming role. Overstretched leaders, unable to prioritise their professional development, may struggle to prioritise the mentoring and development of new leaders within their organisation. That this mentoring and development happens in some organisations is a testament to leaders' deep commitment to their kaupapa; however, this tends to be ad hoc and opportunity-based rather than a systematic approach to growing our next generation of leaders.

There are a range of opportunities to uplift community leadership within Aotearoa. Immediate action could focus on boosting the available leadership offerings and ensuring leaders can access them. The benefit of supporting leaders within their contexts came through strongly, indicating how new and existing leadership programmes should evolve. Focusing on indigenous approaches to leadership within development programmes and leadership programmes focused specifically on Māori and Pacific Peoples will benefit those leading in an increasingly complex world.

Our community leaders are often burnt out, underpaid, and with little ability to prioritise time and funds for professional development. Those seeking to support community leadership must take a holistic view covering not just the direct costs of leadership programmes but also ensuring leaders can engage hinengaro (mind), tinana (body), wairua (spirit), and whānau (family/relationships). For example, leaders should be adequately paid and ensure that there is a culture of well-being within their organisation. Inspiring future generations requires role models who are not required to make large, personal sacrifices to become community leaders.

A range of leadership programmes and other opportunities already exist within Aotearoa and beyond. However, finding these opportunities and understanding the benefits of each is not straightforward. An opportunity exists to improve the signposting to available leadership programmes. For example, identifying and supporting key community peak-bodies to maintain a list of available programmes on their websites. Those with knowledge of the available leadership programmes should proactively recommend options to aspiring and existing leaders.

Developing new leadership programmes and improving existing ones should focus on supporting leaders within their context, their iwi, culture, places, spaces, identities, and phases of their leadership journey. Most people's leadership evolves within and is tightly entwined with their context. There is no one-size-fits-all model for leadership programmes, and programmes that are peer-based, focused on networks, mentoring and coaching best support leaders on their journey. Those wanting to develop leadership beyond a few individuals may be interested in taking an ecosystem approach to leadership, such as supporting a variety of development opportunities or focusing on leaders with shared experiences, for example, rainbow community leaders.

Recognising emerging spheres of leadership involves identifying and supporting individuals who prioritise addressing evolving challenges, devising innovative solutions, and questioning established norms. These leaders can emerge outside traditional organisational structures, transcending conventional boundaries such as countries. For example, the leadership demonstrated by young individuals worldwide in tackling the complex issue of climate change. Developing leadership in response to the concerns of rangatahi requires the development of leaders to work within expansive systems that surpass our conventional understanding and comfort zones.

Indigenous approaches to leadership are being recognised globally for their suitability in responding to an increasingly complex society. Adoption of alternative world views into traditional programmes will support leaders to navigate beyond current conditions and short-term outcomes, lifting their eyes towards the distant horizon. This is particularly timely as the broader non-profit sector begins to shift to operate with intention under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Māori leadership programmes are those that focus on mātauranga Māori and are led by whānau, hapū and iwi for whānau, hapū and iwi. Programmes discuss and develop what it means to lead in te ao Māori. Similar programmes for Pacific Peoples and other populations will serve to progress other indigenous and non-Western understanding and experience of leadership.

A list of the leadership programmes found while preparing this report. The list is not exhaustive and was current at the time it was prepared (2023).

Indigenous leadership

• First Nations Futures Programme
• Indigenous Leadership Programme
• Mana Moana Leadership Experience (Pasifika)
• Atlantic Fellowship

Leadership programmes and networks

• Elevate Leadership Programme (Waikato)
• Leadership NZ
• Edmund Hillary Fellowship
• Creative Leadership Programme
• Leadership Lab (Canterbury)
• Leadership in Communities (LINC) Incubator
• Leadership Development Centre (Public Service Commission)
• Hoa Kaiwhakahaere, HuiE!
• Boma
• Tū Māia
• The Be. Leadership in Governance Programme, BeLab

Leadership research and capacity builders

• LEAD Centre for Not-for-Profit Social Leadership
• Community Research - Community and Voluntary Sector Research Centre
• Communication for Social Change Research Centre (AUT)
• Centre for Social Impact
• Centre for vision and leadership
• Inspiring Communities

Education

• Masters in Community and Social Leadership (University of Auckland)
• Wellington International Leadership Programme (University of Wellington)
• Master of Māori and Indigenous Leadership (University of Canterbury)
• Youth and Community Leadership BA (University of Canterbury)

Four examples of different ways to uplift leadership.