SHARING THE LOAD A further angle is put on questions of whether hierarchy is inevitable in a study of utopian communes – groups that voluntarily live together and share all their property. From a comparative study of historical and contemporary utopian communes, those communes that either had a highly dominant individual, or those linked communes that had a highly dominant central commune, tended to have a limited active lifespan. Strong hierarchy tended to work against their longevity. Rather, communes with less dominant leaders, or linked communes that worked more like a federation, tended to last longer. MANY OPTIONS What can be drawn from these studies of leadership alternatives? Firstly, it highlights that how leadership is thought about varies widely – some focus on leaders, others on the processes as to how collective consciousness, meaning, and action is developed and enacted. These different notions of leadership are also found in alternative groups, and the differing perceptions of what leadership is affects how leadership is enacted within them. Secondly, it highlights the great variety of forms of social organising that there are, and the multiple ways in which leadership is enacted. Thirdly, it draws attention to the tensions between forms of hierarchy and egalitarianism, and how, if social equality is to be taken seriously, there needs to be adequate means to prevent and reverse the overcentralisation of power, whether formal or informal. The studies imply that more stable forms of organising tend to regularise lines and directions of influence, as well as centralising power, knowledge, and other resources. This suggests that processes for rotating and distributing prestige and meaning-making as well as resources are necessary for enabling more egalitarian forms of organising. In short, there are many alternatives – in thinking about leadership, in organising social forms, and in the choices and values involved in developing and protecting them. FIFTY FOUR DEGREES | 29 Dr Dermot O’Reilly is a Senior Lecturer in Management Learning and Leadership in the Department of Organisation, Work and Technology. This article draws upon the book chapter Leadership within ‘alternatives’, co-authored with Dr Stephen Allen, of the University of Sheffield, published in the SAGE Handbook of Leadership (2023). d.oreilly@lancaster.ac.uk
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTI5NzM=