Leading the Academy: Distributed Leadership in Higher Education has as its focus future leadership possibilities for the higher education sector. While recognising the important ongoing role of positional leaders, the author recognises the contribution of the many experts who comprise the higher education sector. In so doing, distributed leadership is promoted as an approach for the academy. While distributed leadership has been adopted across the sector for use in many diverse applications, much potential for increased adoption remains.

In supporting a distributed leadership approach for the sector this HERDSA Guide aims to increase the sector’s understanding of, and practice in, distributed leadership. It brings together research into the theory and practice of a distributed leadership approach. The question then becomes one of how an increased distributed leadership practice can be supported across the academy.

The Guide includes several innovative features:

1. Action focus
2. Nexus between theory and practice as means to an integrated change process
3. Scholarly foundation for a distributed leadership
4. Advocacy of an integrated personal mindset change and institutional paradigm shift
5. Examples of configurations of a distributed leadership approach
6. Reflective questions to assist its planning and implementation of a distributed leadership approach