Leadership credibility, board relations, and administrative innovation at the local government level

This article explores the association between administrative leadership, elected board behavior, and administrative innovation at the municipal level. It is hypothesized that city administrators perceived as credible leaders will generally nurture more regenerative relationships with their respective boards-leading to higher trust, higher openness, lower risk, and higher owning. The resulting cooperative dynamic should facilitate the acceptance and perceived success of multiple administrative innovations. To test these hypotheses the authors surveyed city administrators, department heads, and elected board members, and then compared subgroup response patterns to overall group trends. While each subgroup varied slightly in specific areas, the dominant pattern suggests broad subgroup agreement on most key items. Our findings suggest that leadership credibility does influence perceptions toward board behavior and managerial innovation-which adds support to the notion that city administrators benefit from progressive leadership approaches. Board/staff cooperation does not emerge in a vacuum. It must be carefully and skilfully nurtured by professional administrators who understand effective leadership practices.