Author(s): Andriana Eliadis
This study aimed to highlight the behavioral traits that can enable exceptional leadership capabilities, which can help a leader navigate an organization through a crisis. Therefore, this research, via phenomenological interviews, depicted seven major human behavior traits that played a role in the ability of women leaders to navigate crises in their organizations. A She leadership model was introduced through the research and literature review of this study which may be an essential tool for leaders’ worldwide navigating turbulent times and crises in their organizations. The model is a systemic synthesis of leadership where positive leadership, coaching as a leadership style, and Neuro-leadership create a holistic web of effective relationships based on the seven major behavior themes that the research revealed. The She model introduces a different way of leadership which is more about nurturing the organizational relationships and being compassionate to the concerns of the people. The She model puts in the forefront a leadership methodology flexible enough to be utilized in different kinds of cultures and different kinds of crises. The She leader differentiates from the past and even modern male-oriented leadership theories where male leadership is predominantly a top-down approach, whereas the She leadership model emphasizes the circular leadership schema where the She leader is in the middle of the circular shape. This circular leadership schema is crucial when leading during an organizational crisis. This study highlighted the broad areas of women leadership and Neuro-leadership but still it has several limitations which can be considered by future studies. First, only nine participants were interviewed and the results cannot be generalized to all women (or men) leaders who are leading during an organizational crisis. Secondly, the She-model provided by this study was not empirically tested and future studies can test this model to ensure the reliability and practical implications.