Duality Leadership at Atkinsrealis: From an Execution to Exploration and Growth Culture
Duality Leadership at Atkinsrealis: From an Execution to Exploration and Growth Culture

Summary/Abstract: Whilst there is a wide range of interests in the many facets of leadership promoting multiple models and frameworks, the majority continue to be concerned with diagnosis, analysis, traits, and behaviours. In contrast, the authors focus on an approach that seeks to design, deliver, and embed a significant shift in organizational culture and leadership behaviour. A new metatheory of leadership is offered, combined with a change management methodology which utilizes the reconciliation of competency dilemmas as the core process. The treatment to reconciling these organizational dilemmas are culturally defined. The premise is that, by thinking and acting to reconcile competing and seemingly irreconcilable dilemmas, leaders are better able to embed change, deliver performance and be more successful cross-culturally.This theoretical approach to culture change and the related leadership metatheory is then operationalized through a case study which is founded around the Canadian engineering giant AtkinsRéalis (ATRL)1. We explore the five “dualities” or dilemmas that AtkinsRéalis leaders faced whilst trying to bridge from execution to exploration using what the authors define and explain as ‘through-through thinking’ to build a new way of conceiving leadership that delivers.This cultural and leadership behavioural change practice was supported through the introduction of Servant Leadership training to underpin new leadership behaviour and competencies. Further, the authors set out the practical steps to prepare for, deliver, embed, and then measure such a cultural and behavioural change over a number of years, including the HR tools, an engagement survey and interventions from the world of musical performance

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