Innovative Leadership - A Soft Leadership Approach?

             As I reflect on my ability to be an innovative leader, I would like to consider some of the adaptations I have made and some of the initiatives that I am currently working on with my staff and my students. I work in a remote community in Nunavut.  My students are predominately Inuit and are second and third generation from residential schools and not too many years away from colonialization. They are suffering a disconnect from their Inuit culture.  Kral, (2012) contributes this to the disconnect in youth’s sense of belonging.  For Inuk’s “family, talking and traditional cultural values and practices were seen as most central to well-being and happiness. Sadness was considered primary to be the absence of these” (Kral, 2012, p. 310).  So as an innovative leader and as someone who has the capacity to make change, I felt compelled to do something.  We began a project where students were able to digitally capture traditional teachings and share them with the rest of the school.  We record Elders skinning animals like seal and how they prepare the skin to make clothing and the meat for food.  We have recorded the butchering of a caribou and how the sinews in the legs are used to make thread.  These are a few of the teachings of our Elders, but we wanted to make sure they are digitally recorded so that their stories are never lost. We also wanted to make sure we captured the language, thus we ensured we are listening to the Elders’ voices.

            In Nunavut, there has also been the loss of the traditional language.  This resulted in the Inuit Language Protection Act. The aim is to revitalize Inuit language.  This mandate began in 2009; it proposed that all children in school grades will have the right to education in their Inuit language.  This has shown itself to be a very difficult endeavour.  For the last two years, I have tried to hire an Inuktitut language teacher and have not had one person apply.  I cannot meet the government mandate with states that by 2019 this will be a reality. So, with the help of a young Inuit teacher, who is not able to speak Inuktitut, we are working on a plan to incorporate Elders into her classroom. The goal is for the teacher to create the objectives and work with the Elder to ensure that students have the language.  There is still so much for us to work out, but our goal is to use the expertise of the community to meet the mandate of the territory. As the plan is still in its infantile stages, we are working towards using technology to build a video archive which may possibly help support the learning of the language. 

            Possibly a soft leadership approach will work in our endeavour to promote Inuktitut language.  “Soft leadership is leading through soft skills and people skills. It blends soft skills, hard skills, and leadership. It emphasizes the significance of precious human resources” (Rao, 2017, p. 1). Our Elders are definitely our precious human resources. We acknowledge that we need to tap into their knowledge. Rao posits that soft leadership “focuses on the personality, attitude, and behavior of the people, and calls for making others feel more important” (p. 1). In a time where Indigenous people are struggling to hold onto their culture, a project like this has the potential to reconcile past wrongs with innovative ways that may resolve some of the barriers that currently exist.

            Rao (2017) posits eleven characteristics of soft leadership.  He talks about character as one of the key components. “People look at leaders who have an impeccable integrity and who walk the talk” (p. 4). He claims that charisma is important in leadership as it helps others feel important and valued. A third characteristic is conscience. “People expect leaders to be ethical and responsible” (p. 4). This is so important in the context in which I work.  As an educator, I believe in the integrity of my work.  History of the North shows that the Inuit have not always been treated ethically and responsibly.  I need to be an example of integrity, honesty and be a responsible part of the work towards reconciliation. Rao also examines other characteristics such as courage, conviction, consistency, communication, consideration and compassion.  These are important leadership skills in any school setting with groups of people. Rao (2017) suggests that the last characteristic is contribution: “genuine and selfless contribution takes true leadership” (p. 8). As a leader, it is important to me that I contribute, walk the talk so to speak and be part of the vision, the work and the goal.  I want to be in the weeds, so to speak, with my team and make effective change for the people I serve.

“Inuit Language Protection Act.” Inuit Language Protection Act | Language Commissioner of Nunavut, langcom.nu.ca/node/40.

Kral, M. (2012). Postcolonial suicide among Inuit in Arctic Canada. Culture, Medicine & Psychiatry, 36(2), 306-325. doi:10.1007/s11013-012-9253-3

Rao, M. S. (2017). Soft Leadership: an Innovative Leadership Perspective. The Journal of Values-Based Leadership, (1), 120. Retrieved from http://0-search.ebscohost.com.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsgao&AN=edsgcl.492222678&site=eds-live