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Oliveira, V. & Nunes, F. G. (2026). Interweaving identity and leadership:  evidence from a development program. ISTR International Conference - Imagining the Next Generation:  Strengthening the Foundations of the Third Sector.

V. D. Oliveira and F. G. Nunes,  "Interweaving identity and leadership:  evidence from a development program", in ISTR Int. Conf. - Imagining the Next Generation:  Strengthening the Foundations of the 3rd Sector, 2026

@null{oliveira2026_1786009712416,
	year = "2026",
	url = "https://www.istr.org/page/ConferenceProgram#Schedule"
}

TY  - GEN
TI  - Interweaving identity and leadership:  evidence from a development program
T2  - ISTR International Conference - Imagining the Next Generation:  Strengthening the Foundations of the Third Sector
AU  - Oliveira, V.
AU  - Nunes, F. G.
PY  - 2026
UR  - https://www.istr.org/page/ConferenceProgram#Schedule
AB  - Diverse have been the attempts to capacitate the social economy sector until now, but few leadership development programmes put the social mission and other potential elements of identity of the organizations at its core.
An eight month’s quasi-experiment with fifty three social economy organizations and three hundred participants, tested if having organizational identity as the assembler for the different modules that incite organizational development, lead to an effective capacitation of the organizations in improving current processes and innovation (Jansen et al., 2009) and to identity leadership and leadership identity development in participants. In this study, we studied both the individual and organizational development.
Evaluation data was composed of a pre and post-test based on validated scales (Hiller, 2005; Jansen et al., 2009; van Dick et al., 2018), mentors feedback, constant evaluation through online platforms as knowledge tests and assignment submissions based on application of contents to their own organization. Data analysis is currently taking place, so it is still early to share all the insights this quasi-experiment provides.
The program contents had organizational identity was the assembler for important themes as organizational climate, governance, leadership, strategy, fundraising, team management, connection assured by the completion of specific identity work activities. This corresponds to the latest developments of organizational identity scholarship as it’s assembling function is identified (Pratt, 2020; Veldsman & Veldsman, 2025) due to the important role it plays in key areas as strategy (Nag et al., 2007; van Knippenberg, 2016); planned change (van Riel et al., 2016), innovation (Callen & Tripsas, 2016).
Identity leadership has been described as leaders’ management of a shared sense of we and us (van Dick et al., 2018) but rarely yet studied in connection with the identity of the organization where it takes place, even though authors recognize the importance of testing collective approaches of leadership development (Haslam et al., 2017). Leadership development is intended as the best practices and methods for development (Day et al., 2021). Learning took place through community meetings, individual learning the platform, accompanied by mentors all along and with feedback opportunities, on digital platforms, with both real time and distance learning events. Each module concluded with an assignment submission where contents had to be applied to the organization where individuals work/volunteer.
The results will be important on two fronts. By connecting three streams of important literature (organizational identity, identity leadership and leadership development), this experiment advances the knowledge about how organizational identity can become an integrative framework for both leadership and organizational development in non profits. Being this a digital based experiment, this model can bring useful insights for organizational capacitation at distance.
ER  -