Understanding Contemporary Leadership through the Participatory Conference Approach: Capturing Managers’ Perceptions in Ecologically Relevant Settings

Abstract

Research Question: In this paper, we discuss and analyze the methodology of participatory conferences as a way to obtain highly relevant data for work and organizational psychology and management science in a context that offers greater ecological validity than typical research settings. Motivation: We analyze how the participatory conference approach can enable the collection of ecologically relevant insights into managers’ perceptions of future leadership characteristics. Idea: Participatory conference approaches entail open discussions of professionally relevant topics and collaboratively address pressing issues within professional communities. By integrating different conference formats, a forum that embodies the scientist-practitioner approach could be created by offering a structure for exploring participants’ understanding of some predefined topics while generating practical solutions relevant to professional practice. In this paper, we analyzed one specific segment of the SPARK 2024 leadership conference (i.e. "SPARK Lab"), which was held in Belgrade in 2024. The conference brought together about 200 leaders (70% of participants were employees in top management positions), who, particularly within the "SPARK Lab" segment, discussed the characteristics of future leaders. Our study draws on different conference materials to explore how participatory conferences foster environments conducive to both knowledge generation and practical problem-solving. Particular attention is given to the characteristics of future leaders as understood and enacted by managers in Serbia. Tools: We have employed a case study approach and qualitative content analysis relying on Gioia methodology. Findings: The results indicate that managers in Serbia perceive future leaders as empaths who regulate employees’ emotions and promote organizational culture. Attitudes toward the future are marked by ambivalence toward new technologies, seen both as an imperative and a threat to collective relationships, while the role of future leaders in socially responsible management remains insufficiently defined. The results revealed the extent to which the conference fostered a relaxed atmosphere that encouraged honest responses, while simultaneously guiding participants toward embedding their responses in highly professional discourse which revealed certain limitations in relation to innovative approach. Implications: The participatory conference approach could be further analyzed and used as an ecologically reliable method for both process oriented scientific endeavours and pragmatic problem solving.