The contribution of crucible experiences to the development of leaders for crisis management

Abstract

Theory on leadership has emphasised the need for contributing towards leadership in extreme context. Give the rise in crisis, and the study aims to contribute by exploring how crucible moments can contribute towards leader’s development for crisis management. The objective of the study is to use the insights gained from the leader’s journey to develop a framework to contribute towards leadership development for crisis management. A narrative approach is used in this qualitative study and explores the themes identified from the leader's life journey. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 executives in manufacturing organisation within the automotive sector, in the eThekwini region in Kwa-Zulu Natal. The research found that crucible experiences have contributed towards developing leader’s identity through self-awareness and discovering their potential. They learned decision making and allowed for change to occur. Crucible experience is also related to transformational learning, as it provided a trigger for learning. Leaders developed their approach for crisis management through applied experience and stepping up in a crisis. This crucible experience has found to contribute towards the leader's approach to crisis management.