Adaptive Leadership

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Why it works

Leadership research (notably Heifetz) distinguishes technical problems (clear, solvable with existing knowledge and authority) from adaptive challenges (ambiguous, requiring people to learn, change beliefs or behavior, and adapt, with no ready answer). Many of the deepest challenges in schools, changing practice, shifting culture, improving outcomes, are adaptive, and applying technical fixes to them fails. Adaptive leadership means diagnosing which kind of challenge you face, mobilizing people to do the adaptive work (not solving it for them), managing the discomfort of change, and leading learning rather than dictating answers.

The research: Adaptive leadership (Heifetz); research on leading change.

The run-of-show

Choose your slot. The agenda, timings, and length update to match.

The core activity: lead the adaptive work

Leaders leave having diagnosed a challenge and planned the adaptive work.

Take a challenge you face.
Diagnose whether it is technical (known fix) or adaptive (requires people to learn and change).
For adaptive challenges, plan to mobilize people to do the work, not solve it for them.
Manage the discomfort and lead learning.

Adaptive challenges need learning, not fixesMany hard challenges have no technical solution. Diagnose the type, mobilize people to do the adaptive work, and lead learning, rather than applying a fix that will fail.

Facilitator notes

Diagnose technical vs adaptive.
Mobilize people to do adaptive work, and manage discomfort.
Lead learning, not dictate.

Applying technical fixes to adaptive challenges failsMandating a solution to a problem that needs people to learn and change does not work. Diagnose the challenge and lead the adaptive work.

Adapt it

All leaders: the same.
All settings: diagnose, mobilize, manage discomfort, lead learning.

Participant handout

One page for every teacher. Print it, or save it as a PDF.

K12 Academics · Professional Learning

Adaptive Leadership: learning, not fixes

Diagnose the challenge: for adaptive challenges, mobilize people to do the work and lead learning, not apply a fix.

The challenge I face:
Whether it is technical or adaptive:
How I mobilize people to do the adaptive work:
How I manage the discomfort of change:
How I lead learning instead of dictating:

Make it stick

Learning, not fixes:

Diagnose the challenge type.
Lead adaptive work.
Bring an adaptive challenge to the leadership team.

Common questions

What's the difference between technical and adaptive challenges?

Technical problems have clear, known solutions you can apply with authority. Adaptive challenges are ambiguous and require people to learn, change, and adapt, there is no ready answer. The deepest school challenges are usually adaptive.

Why do technical fixes fail on adaptive challenges?

Because the problem requires people to change beliefs or behavior, not just apply a solution. A new program or mandate (a technical fix) cannot solve a challenge that needs learning and adaptation.

How do I lead adaptive work?

Diagnose the challenge type, mobilize people to do the adaptive work rather than solving it for them, manage the discomfort of change, and lead learning, not dictate answers.