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9 NOVEMBER 2009

NO 1511

Leadership

In the light of the present debate in our discussion list, we thought it would be apt to include the whole of this column from Garth Goodwin published in a recent issue of Relational Child and Youth Care Practice.

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Leadership is on my mind this quarter, executive leadership. A recent government audit confirmed over a million dollars in questionable spending on bonuses, foreign and tropical travel, entertainment and improvements to personal property in an agency which cared for vulnerable adults, youth and children. Fortunately for the profession, it is rare for such public scandals to emerge as, in most instances, responsible parties discover the imbalances and change of the executive takes place in an orderly way. Executive leadership in the Child and Youth Care profession is an unexplored area in our field. Over the years, I have known or worked under leaders who have demonstrated qualities ranging from those of total despots to those of saints. Fortunately, most have been notable for the respect they commanded by sharing in the work and finding solutions much like everyone else in the agency. Curiously, executive or management content goes begging in the programs of national and international Child and Youth Care conferences. Executive leadership is central to the level of performance for any agency and this article will explore some of the unique factors which impact executive leadership in the Child and Youth Care profession.

First and perhaps most important is that executive leadership in the Child and Youth Care profession may be, by definition, unconventional, in the same way much of the profession itself is. There is no generally agreed business model for Child and Youth Care. Rather there is an array of approaches ranging from private practice for profit, to public, board overseen non-profits, to individual practice through to departmental intervening teams within larger medical, educational or public service organizations. Whichever way the work is approached, its outcomes remain a subject of much debate. In the wider world, most executives have the luxury of defining their goal and setting about reaching it, be it a product to be manufactured or a service delivered for profit. While some attempts are being made to define outcomes in Child and Youth Care, essentially it is the kind of work where the conditions which promote comfort and change can be put in place, while the ‘product’, the youth in care, retains the choice to accept or reject their efforts. At the financial level, the system is typically a closed one wherein all the constituent parts of the system clamber after scarce dollars to improve their specific areas of service, often or almost always falling short of their expectations. The net result is an intricate executive task of balancing set dollars to realize optimal performance out of a staff complement to realize a minimal set of standards for a service over which there will never be absolute control. The conventional business measures (numbers of widgets produced or levels of quality achieved) do not apply. Certainly, there are attempts through data outcomes to attempt some form of measurement. Still, for the most part, a nebulous mix of factors that add up to a reputation, which promotes the value, health and well-being of all, is the best one can achieve.

Another unconventional factor that faces executives in Child and Youth Care is that of the personnel, the staff. Schools of business have produced all manner of models regarding staff composition and development. All become seriously challenged in relation to Child and Youth Care practitioners. Some executives continue to treat staff as workers who should perform set tasks, who are replaceable and who can be subject to insensitive treatment. Others realize staff are a professional and precious asset, who are responsible for a continuum of tasks ranging from mundane home-making and caretaking, to investing intimately in young people to accept, fortify, challenge and nurture them from a place of incredible horrors through to a healthy world view; staff who need constant encouragement, training and self- discipline to invest and grow into professionals and be valued as such. The profession demands energy, flexibility and empathy and Child and Youth Care staff look for these qualities in their leaders – with skills that promote integrity and congruence across all levels of an organization. Successful Child and Youth Care executives are usually energetic and empathic, they demand as much of themselves as they do of others, continually quest after higher standards, and are often charismatic people. Essentially, they need to be seen and experienced as sharing in the common purpose of the agency in all its complexity and balance. Prior Child and Youth Care experience does not guarantee but would contribute an understanding of the culture of the profession and its agencies. Long-serving agencies may have substantial informal networks and ways of doing things that can challenge the new executive until he or she can establish the relationships with staff that can promote trust and change.

The usual perks of executive status do not often apply in the Child and Youth Care profession. An executive who claims or is paid remuneration disproportionate to that of the other employees or to accepted standards invites attention and often undermines morale. Perceived imbalances in the distribution of the agency’s capital are often noted by staff, and especially so when they have been instructed, as they usually are, to practise fiscal prudence. Transparency becomes important so that all share a general understanding of how things are going. If one unit gets a new van, for example, the other units may well be expecting theirs to be coming along soon. Beyond the tools and conditions of the physical plant being in working order, Child and Youth Care practitioners generally put less value in the outward appearance of things. For them, relationship is important, and most often an open door and non-judgemental and empathic ear are more important than much else. The executive perk, if there is one, is to be known by one’s first name.

It will be obvious to the reader that if this article had a thesis, it would be that leaders in Child and Youth Care need to offer to those who work with them the same treatment that the profession expects for the children and youth. While youth can be resistant until their vulnerability is protected, staff also can be resistant until they see the mission statement advanced in a genuine way by an executive.

Relationship and reputation are at the heart of the profession and the experience and perception of both are constantly on the minds of all who practise Child and Youth Care, be it at the individual, unit/team or agency level. To take short cuts, indulge in pay offs or insensitive treatment is to undermine both of these values and to threaten the welfare of clients. To nurture and understand while maintaining the essential balance over resources can unleash incredible power and performance to the benefit of all.

GARTH GOODWIN

Goodwin, G. (2004). Executive Care (it’s all in the name). Relational Child and Youth Care Practice, 17, 3. pp. 22-23


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