Date of Conferral

7-23-2024

Date of Award

July 2024

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

David Mohr

Abstract

Millennials have been constructed in the popular imagination as self-centered, bratty, and difficult to manage. Finding ways to relate to this generation has taken on more urgency now that it is the largest in the workforce. Company leaders realize as well that they can no longer rely on traditional forms of leadership amid the proliferation of complex adaptive systems and digital technologies; one leader does not possess the skills, knowledge, and abilities to handle the complexities faced by contemporary organizations. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the behaviors and experiences of millennials who work in a shared leadership environment. Distributed leadership was the theoretical framework used to examine millennials' behaviors and experiences working in a shared leadership environment. Purposeful sampling was used to select the nine participants from a project management team that were millennials between the ages of 27 and 41 who are working in a shared leadership environment. Data were collected by conducting semi-structured interviews. Data analysis yielded thematic categories for behaviors and experiences that millennials deemed critical in their quest for success in a shared leadership work group. This study provides a lens for organizational leaders to utilize when connecting and mentoring the next generation of leaders. Doing so is pertinent as the role of leadership continues to evolve from a hierarchical one to a social process.

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