A book review article written by Senior Research Director Takeshi Hayashi of the Food Affairs Division, Policy Research Institute for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, as a book review for Policy Research Institute Review No. 126, introducing reference books on leadership and organizational management.
This book review systematically explains the nature of leadership considered important in modern organizational management and effective team building methods, introducing practical leadership theories that serve as references particularly for policy formulation and research institution management in agriculture, forestry and fisheries fields.
Regarding basic concepts of leadership, the importance of transitioning from traditional authoritative leadership to facilitative leadership that emphasizes member autonomy and utilizes diverse opinions is emphasized. To address complex policy issues and research themes of today, it is shown that not only top-down decision-making but also creating mechanisms to harness the wisdom of the entire organization is essential.
For team building methods, specific techniques for effectively collaborating toward common goals while utilizing member diversity are introduced. Practical content directly applicable includes ensuring psychological safety, appropriate role allocation, effective communication methods, how to proceed with constructive discussions, and other matters explained in detail.
Regarding organizational culture cultivation, creating environments that promote innovation, transitioning to learning organizations, building challenging climates that do not fear failure, and other topics are explained with specific examples. Particularly emphasized are organizational management concepts based on long-term perspectives, which are important for research institutions and policy formulation organizations.
For crisis management and leadership, practical approaches to leadership roles and response methods when facing unexpected difficulties and changes are explained. The importance of appropriate communication with stakeholders, rapid decision-making, maintaining organizational cohesion, and other factors is specifically demonstrated.
From a human resource development perspective, methods for developing next-generation leaders, the importance of mentoring, capacity development for diverse human resources, and other topics explain the necessity of initiatives based on long-term organizational development perspectives. Particularly in highly specialized organizations, developing human resources who can balance specialized knowledge and organizational management capabilities is positioned as an important challenge.
The article concludes that effective leadership and organizational management are extremely important elements for improving policy quality and social implementation of research results in agriculture, forestry and fisheries fields.