I am a rather unusual academic. Rather than pursue tenure, I have always prioritised research that could help leaders achieve greater impact. Yet, at many points throughout my career, I have often doubted whether I was on the right track.  

Currently, I am a Senior Fellow based at the Center for Social Sector Leadership at UC Berkeley who studies social impact networks. The main question my research seeks to answer is “What are the values and leadership approach that enable networks to achieve impact far greater than the sum of their individual parts?”  

For nearly a quarter of a century, I have researched, published, and presented extensively about what I have learned from networks across a broad range of organisations, from large foundations to small nonprofits working at the grassroots level across a range of different issue areas from climate and environmental conservation to education to development to social services, among many others. 

In every case, these networks are catalysed by unsung heroes who put mission ahead of organization interests, invest to build trust rather than control systems, lead with humility rather than hubris, and build constellations to achieve their vision rather than try to be the brightest stars. By focusing less on themselves and investing in a network of trusted peers, these leaders put themselves on the road to scalable, sustainable, and transformational change.     

I have been so inspired by this leadership approach that I have made it my life’s work to share the wisdom of these leaders in the hope that network leadership will someday be the norm, not the exception in social change work. 

Last week, I was in Rome to present at Philea’s Winter meeting and PEX’s 2024 meeting. I shared these four simple, yet counterintuitive principles, and had the privilege to co-present with Alina Porumb from Inspire to share her experience working with community foundations to build and support communities. 

I also led participants in two small group exercises which gave them a chance to build deeper connections with each other. The first was a trust-building exercise, where participants shared their personal stories, before receiving a reflection from each colleague within the small group. The second exercise was to share a specific challenge or opportunity that they were currently working on to get feedback or support from their peers. Participants were able to build a stronger sense of trust and also begin to support each other more directly in their work. So often, when leaders gather, there is a status hierarchy, and unspoken power dynamic that leads to arms-length, transactional interaction at best. 

The point of my sessions was to allow participants to experience what it feels like when you bring committed people, all of whom bring their own talents and wisdom into a room together, build trust amongst them, and then allow them the space to experiment and support each other. That is when you get amazing and wonderful things to happen.

It was so gratifying to hear from many participants after my presentations. Some of them had already been working through networks and found it affirming to have their approach articulated through the Four Network Principles. This exercise enabled them to better articulate the approach to other stakeholders, whether funders, board members, staff, other nonprofits, and community partners. Others particularly enjoyed the chance to get to know colleagues, some of whom they had worked with for years, but did not know as well on a personal level. They found that sharing their stories led to greater openness and a spirit of generosity.  

What I loved was the opportunity to unleash these powerful dynamics by doing little more than giving leaders the framing and the space to deepen trust, and foster a sense of community. The talent, commitment, and wisdom were already in the room, I simply provided an opportunity for it to come together in new ways and begin to flourish.  

At the same time, it was so rewarding and exciting to learn that there are so many leaders across Europe who are not only open to this way of leading but are already leading the way. It is truly my hope that the Philea and PEX communities can lead by example and be at the forefront of supporting network leadership. At the same time, my own goal is to change the culture in the social sector so that someday network leadership is the norm rather than the exception requires that I practice what I preach.  

I am always seeking partners to travel this path together and I welcome the opportunity to support Philea and PEX participants in their own journeys to apply network leadership in their own communities. There is such a tremendous opportunity for achieving transformational change especially when nobody seeks to own it. 

A favourite quote that captures this spirit is from the ancient Chinese Philosopher Lao Tzu, who said, “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.”  

Jane Wei-Skillern is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Social Sector Leadership at the Haas School of Business at University of California, Berkeley.