Origins
After the corporate scandals of the early 2000s (e.g. Enron) there was a growing demand for credible, ethical leadership. Bill George, former CEO of Medtronic, in Authentic Leadership (2003) described leaders guided by a clear sense of purpose, values, relationships, self-discipline and heart. In parallel, Bruce Avolio, William Gardner and Fred Walumbwa developed a scientific theory of authentic leadership.
Four components (Walumbwa et al., 2008)
| Component | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Self-awareness | knowing one's values, strengths, weaknesses and impact on others |
| Relational transparency | sharing thoughts and feelings honestly, without games or masks |
| Internalised moral perspective | acting on one's values despite external pressure |
| Balanced processing | weighing different views, including critical ones, before deciding |
These components are measured by the ALQ questionnaire.
Assessment
The concept meets a need for credibility and connects well with transformational and servant leadership. Critics, however, point to the vagueness of “authenticity”: is being true to oneself enough if one's values are wrong? Herminia Ibarra (The Authenticity Paradox, HBR 2015) also warns that misunderstood authenticity (“that's just who I am”) can block growth.
A Christian perspective
In the Christian tradition authenticity does not mean fidelity to any “self”, but consistency of life with truth and a conscience formed in the light of the Gospel. Jesus criticised hypocrisy - the gap between words and deeds (Matt 23). Closely related entries are integrity and the leader's character. Self-awareness grows through examination of conscience, feedback and the Johari window.
Sources
B. George, Authentic Leadership, Jossey-Bass 2003 B. J. Avolio, W. L. Gardner, Authentic leadership development: Getting to the root of positive forms of leadership, The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) F. O. Walumbwa et al., Authentic leadership: Development and validation of a theory-based measure, Journal of Management 34 (2008) H. Ibarra, The Authenticity Paradox, Harvard Business Review 2015 Matt 23