To contextualize the writer of Ecclesiastes, “of making many [leadership] books, there is no end.” Yet every once-in-a-while, someone develops a new idea. Jean Lipman-Blumen’s Connective Leadership is one such leadership model.

For Lipman-Blumen, there have been three major eras that have impacted the conditions of human leadership. Stage one was the physical era where physical boundaries formed barriers. Leaders in this era needed to guide people through barriers—oceans, mountain ranges, etc. Stage two is the geopolitical era when ideologies and alliances form the barriers. Leaders in this era use their power to guard their kingdoms. We are on the cusp of the third stage, the connective area, when “connections among concepts, people, and the environment are tightening” (8). The stage three requires connective leaders who can navigate this new reality.

Classic American leadership styles are not suited for a stage three world. There is a tension between diversity rooted in the individualism of culture, and interdependence—the reality of stage three life. This calls for leaders with a leader toolbox full of diverse “achieving styles” (113) to match the context at hand. The nine achieving styles, clustered into three meta-categories, are the heart of Lipman-Blumen’s model.

1. The Direct meta-category consists of intrinsic, competitive, and power achieving styles. This is the bread-and-butter of stage 2 leaders.
2. The Relational meta-category consists of collaborative, contributory, and vicarious achieving styles. These styles characterize leaders who are team-oriented.
3. The Instrumental meta-category consists of entrusting, social, and personal achieving styles. These styles can be considered as a go-between the Direct and Relational styles, providing a way for the tension between diversity and interdependence to be managed.

While leaders typically have a few go-to or stress-styles, true connective leaders will understand their context and use the achieving style that will be effective in any given situation.

This model is rooted in significant empirical research and has various assessment tools associated with it. Even if you’re not interested in committing wholesale to a new leadership model, the chapters on the nine achieving styles are well worth the consideration of any leader seeking to be effective in a stage three world.

In short, the role of the leader exists and has always existed to meet the complex pressing needs of the human condition. If leaders didn’t exist, we would create them. (332)

Lipman-Blumen, Jean. Connective Leadership: Managing in a Changing World. Oxford UP, 2000.