There will be those who tell you that the way to get on is not to question the way things are done and don’t upset the higher ups. The maverick gets the job done, earns the respect of their colleagues and is useful to senior management but they are overlooked when it comes to promotion. Their tendency to ignore procedures, to act first and seek permission afterwards, coupled with their barely suppressed distaste for the politics of the job means senior management don’t trust them to say and do the right thing. A maverick is a one off unlike the cookie cutter leader. The cookie cutter leader plays it safe, follows procedures, and is in offensive yet one of the boys (irrespective of gender). A little bit boring, not particularly inspiring but never the less a safe pair of hands. Of course there is a middle way but that tends to lead to middle management and not beyond.Leadership in the public sector is changing. It has to, the transformation of the NHS, the civil service reform, the massive cuts to local authority budgets all of which require things to be done very differently. A safe pair of hands, a preference for the tried and tested and desire to avoid controversy just won’t deliver. What’s needed is people prepared to challenge, people with different experiences who bring a different perspective.We don’t want all managers to be the same we need greater diversity. This brings its own challenge. A senior management team made up of opinionated and abrasive individuals could quickly become dysfunctional. An autocratic leadership style from the top might suppress the dissent but it will also stifle the creativity and lead to top down solutions that can’t be made to work at the front line. So leadership in a public sector that is changing needs to encourage challenge at every level whilst promoting cooperation, team work and mutual respect.We need to be a little more tolerant of the mavericks. The era of the cookie cutter leader is coming to an end now is the time of the maverick. Blair McPherson author of UnLearning management published by Russell House www.blairmcpherson.co.uk
