Navigating through the storm: The managerial role and leadership during a crisis

Sammanfattning: Abstract Title: Navigating through the storm: The managerial role and leadership during a crisis Authors: Julia Sjöström and Malin Wedin Olsson Supervisor: Tony Huzzard, Lund University, Sweden Submission: date May 21st 2021 Purpose: The aim with this study is to gain a deeper understanding of managerial work and its relationship to the nature of leadership in the context of a societal crisis. Research Question: How do managers make sense of their own role during a crisis and what implications does that have for leadership practices? Methodology: This research is based on a qualitative research method following a interpretative and abductive approach. The empirical data consists of 11 semi-structured in-depth interviews with managers from our case company. Theoretical Perspectives: The theoretical framework for this study is based on managerial work and a subjectivist perspective on leadership. Further, we draw on six metaphors on leadership as well as including the aspect of emotional intelligence and its relationship to leadership. Theoretical Contributions: This study provides a deeper understanding of how changes in managerial work has affected how leadership is talked about in crisis situations. We also contribute to the literature on leadership by our metaphor “leadership as navigation”. The metaphor provides a better understanding of how changes in managerial work have implications for the nature of leadership, as the situation hinders managers’ ability to provide meaning beyond the here and now. Keywords: Managerial work, Leadership, Emotional intelligence, Metaphors on Leadership, Crisis