Abstract
Acting on the individual is complex; acting on the collective is even more so. How, then, can productive collective action be ensured? The article suggests the concept of the meeting as an experiential analyzer of the leadership process. Mastering the structural and functional determinants of school organization is necessary, but not enough to be recognized as a leader. Leadership is characterized less by the powers of the job title (what the leader is) and more by the leader’s actions (what the leader does). In support of a pragmatic approach, the meeting is a construct of leadership, meant to combine the coherence and convergence of the collective's guidance to guarantee the organization’s stability and transformation. Our proposal will explore three reflective contributions: i) Creating proximities makes the meeting possible by mobilizing energies at the convergence of geographical, cognitive, social, organizational and institutional proximity; ii) Creating synergies to make the meeting happen requires the combination of three actions: agreeing to agree, regulating commitments, and recognizing the quality of the work accomplished; and iii) Structuring collective autonomy to make the meeting successful combines the distribution of decision-making, evaluative commitment, and staff training.