Trans -domain leadership: Implications for the 21st century. A case study of the non-traditional transformational leadership of John Henry Stanford, 1961--1998

The skills, traits, and attributes of leadership exhibited by John Stanford during a thirty-seven year three-domain career are analyzed. His leadership produced identifiable transformations in the organizations which he led. The study generated grounded theory on the leadership model exhibited by Stanford. Stanford served as superintendent of Seattle Public Schools until his untimely death in November, 1998. His previous domains were 30 years in the U.S. Army, retiring as a major general, and four years as manager of Fulton County (Atlanta), GA.;This dissertation had two primary objectives: (1) to identify the essential characteristics of leadership practiced by Stanford within each of the three domains and across all three, and (2) to identify a new model of leadership defined by his example.;The data were collected from five sources from August 1996 to August 1998, through content analysis of (1) transcriptions of personal interviews conducted with past and present professional and personal colleagues, (2) surveys of the subject's leadership skills, traits, and attributes as perceived by others, (3) performance evaluations of the subject, (4) personal observations by the author, as well as (5) newspaper, television broadcasts, journal articles, and other public documentation of Stanford's leadership. Developing hypothesis from systematically obtained and analyzed data revealed four interrelated theoretical categories: leader characteristics, follower characteristics, relational conditions between leader and follower, and relational effects.;John Stanford was found to be a visionary, transformational leader who loved the people entrusted to his care; a man who led with a sense of celebration, energy, and a rooted belief in the potential of all people. His leadership style, tested in a successful three-domain career, had as its principle foundation relationships, interconnectedness, global vision, love of followers, and a passion for seeking and fixing problems. Stanford's ethos and exceptional cognitive skills contributed most significantly to his powerful presence.;One conclusion of the study found that John Henry Stanford exemplified a vision of effective future leadership.