centrilea
You can find the full article from the Deutscher Führungskräfteverband newsletter at https://www.ula.de/gastbeitrag-fuehrung-braucht-sowohl-als-auch-sicht/
In recent years, various versions of a "both-and leadership approach" have been developed. These are intended to help leaders navigate increasingly complex challenges. This article presents the basic idea and one variation of this approach.
The demands on leaders are becoming more diverse. It is no longer sufficient to develop a specific leadership style and apply it consistently. Leaders must also find answers to challenges such as the growing demand for flexible work arrangements and flatter hierarchies, the motivational characteristics of younger generations, and increasing heterogeneity—not only demographically but also in terms of attitudes and values. Are there leadership research approaches that can help structure these diverse challenges conceptually to develop effective solutions?
An approach that is gradually gaining recognition in academic literature is the concept of both-and thinking. Examples include ambidextrous leadership and paradoxical leadership. The core idea is that seemingly contradictory but ultimately complementary elements should be combined. One variation of this core idea is as follows: To successfully lead teams and larger organizational units, leaders should foster both centripetal and centrifugal forces equally.
To work well together, a team needs centripetal forces that promote convergence, coordination, and a shared direction. To strengthen these forces, leaders can, for example, emphasize a common vision and shared goals and provide clear guidelines. They can ensure that teams are assembled with commonalities among members to foster constructive collaboration. Additionally, they can promote a strong sense of "we"—through special events as well as regular in-person collaboration. Leaders can also ensure that all team members benefit from collective successes.
The desired effect of centripetal forces is that everyone pulls in the same direction, with harmony and consensus shaping collaboration. These forces enable decision-making and efficiency in the team’s actions. However, centripetal forces can also have undesirable effects. If everyone thinks alike and no one offers a different perspective or constructive criticism, redundancy, stagnation, and conformity can quickly arise.
How can a team benefit from centripetal forces—through efficient coordination and a shared direction—without accepting the unwanted side effects of redundancy, stagnation, and conformity? By combining centripetal forces with their opposite but ultimately complementary counterpart: centrifugal forces.
To be successful, a team needs not only centripetal but also centrifugal forces that foster divergence, autonomy, diversity, and individuality. These forces can be strengthened through empowering leadership, promoting diversity (in terms of demographic characteristics, backgrounds, and knowledge bases), and encouraging different perspectives. Leaders can also implement work-life balance initiatives tailored to individual needs, such as remote work and general flexibility in work arrangements. Additionally, introducing constructive competition and giving special recognition to top performers can enhance centrifugal forces. Leaders should also ensure that team members are always willing to provide constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement.
The desired effect of centrifugal forces is an expanded range of ideas, perspectives, and solutions. These forces encourage creativity, agility, and adaptability. However, centrifugal forces can also have undesirable effects—such as when empowered team members pull in different directions, when there are more differences than commonalities among team members, or when individual members prioritize their own interests over team cohesion. This can easily lead to chaos, confusion, and dysfunctional conflicts.
How can a team benefit from centrifugal forces—through more ideas, perspectives, and solutions—without accepting the unwanted side effects of chaos, confusion, and conflict? By combining centrifugal forces with their opposite but ultimately complementary centripetal forces. Each force has its own specific advantages, and together, they allow the benefits of the opposing force to emerge. This approach of combining opposing yet complementary forces can be directly applied to many key leadership topics. There is a broad spectrum of measures to strengthen both centripetal and centrifugal forces. However, the core idea remains the same: For a team to be sustainably successful, both forces must be strongly present.
The link umfragenup.uni-potsdam.de/centrifugal_centripetal leads to a test that allows you to assess the balance of these complementary forces in your own team. High scores in all dimensions are desirable. The individual questions already provide insights into areas where action may be needed.