Week 7&8: Theories in Action (Transformational Leadership)

As I finalize the last two weeks of my internship, I thought it was wise for me to reflect on the leadership that I was supervised under and how it has been very influential during my whole internship period.

The form of leadership in this organization is very transformational rather than transactional. The leadership team is very small, consisting of one executive director and 4 other directors who are full time and are the integral part of creating the program. Then there are the faculty members who are hired, interns and guests. As I have mentioned before, because the team is so small, there is not much hierarchy within the team. It is as if everyone is on the same platform and they make it democratic. But everyone has their own parts and responsibilities that they need to fulfill and are not afraid to ask for opinions or guidance from one another. All the directors are all also co-founders of this organization which makes them all more connected to each other and have the same values and drive that influence each other to go forward.

My supervisor asked me to be part of voting for the best logo to represent the theme of the programs happening and asked for my ideas and point of view. They have expectations from me and want me to take responsibilities for the work I have been assigned, but they also have influenced me and each other through their own hard work and dedication to the programs and students that it made me want to work harder especially for the passionate students.

They love their job and their work for the students, which drives them to be leaders with each other and also leaders for the students that they work with. The students come to become better performers, but I have seen them so engaged and gain more passion for what they love after encountering the administrative staff, faculty and the interns. But this also has worked in the opposite way where the students also influence the faculty and staff to work harder and regain their passion in the arts from when they were young. When I was watching the students rehearse and perform online, even though it was through a screen, I was moved by their hard work and their love for performing.

I think Covid made the team stronger and more connected because the situation was something nobody expected, and everything became a trial and error. They have never done their programs online, so everyone contributed to see what the best route would be. Because everything was up in the air, it brought everyone more attentive to each other and influence one another. It has been my privilege to be part of such a wonderful team and I hope to be part of a transformative leader one day as this team has been.