1: Introduction

Many unique, personal, and contextual factors contribute to your ability to lead and, while there may also be factors at play that you cannot control, the quality of your leadership has a significant impact on the outcomes of your organization. There are also independent processes, such as your followers and group dynamics, and the larger social systems, that jointly influence company performance.¹ As a result, leadership development that takes account of these intertwined processes, and specifically the volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) context currently prevailing, is of relevance to leaders in any organization.

The way in which organizations are led is largely determined by the social, cultural, and material conditions of their time (Cartoon 1.1).