A CONSCIOUS - AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP APPROACH IN THE WORKPLACE Leading From Within

This study combines components of the relatively nascent concepts of conscious leadership and authentic leadership. It is a synopsis of a recent empirical study comparing two groups of companies and their respective CEOs. Each group is comprised of three companies. Group I is led by CEOs who use a conscious-authentic leadership approach in the workplace. They infuse their personal values, beliefs, and relational leadership behavior into the policies, practices, and employee programs within their respective organizations to achieve specific organizational outcomes. Group II CEOs do not use this leadership approach. The companies selected for study were categorized by disinterested third parties in the business community. This study explores the perceptions of the employees of both groups and the impact of the conscious-authentic leadership model on organizational behavior and specific organizational outcomes in the workplace. The organizational outcomes tested in this study are voluntary employee-withdrawal behavior and absenteeism during the period 2003-2005. An employee questionnaire was administered to the employees of both groups to measure organizational behavior. The same questionnaire was administered to the CEOs to determine their level of self-awareness and their sense of the reality of the human condition within their respective organization. A separate leadership questionnaire was administered to the CEOs for a self-assessment of personal attributes and leadership style. The findings provide a working definition of conscious-authentic leadership behavior and a working model of the components of this approach as implemented by Group I CEOs in the workplace.