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Human Relations, Vol. 56, No. 12, 1435-1459 (2003)
DOI: 10.1177/00187267035612001

Managers Doing Leadership: The Extra-Ordinarization of the Mundane

Mats Alvesson

School of Economics and Management, Lund University Mats.Alvesson{at}fek.lu.se

Stefan Sveningsson

School of Economics and Management, Lund University Stefan.Sveningsson{at}fek.lu.se

Based on a case study of managers in a large, international knowledge-intensive company this article suggests a rethinking of leadership, taking the mundane, almost trivial, aspects of what managers/leaders actually do seriously. In the study, the managers interviewed emphasized the importance of listening and informal chatting. Managers listening to subordinates are assumed to have various positive effects, e.g. people feel more respected, visible and less anonymous, and included in teamwork. Rather than certain acts being significant in themselves, it is their being done by managers that gives them a special, emotional value beyond their everyday significance. Leadership is conceptualized as the extra-ordinarization of the mundane.

Key Words: extra-ordinarization • knowledge-intensive firm • leadership management • mundane


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