Global Followership Conference

This interactive session invites participants to engage and experience how worldviews shape our followership. Building on Implicit Followership Theory and the concept of worldview as a set of assumptions influencing our actions (Koltko-Rivera, 2004; Valk et al., 2011), we'll examine how these beliefs impact how we follow. Acknowledging the both secular and religious manifestations of worldview, participants will be invited to engage in respectful dialogue towards increased understanding of diverse perspectives on followership. This session aims to highlight the value of worldview dialogue for followership learning and development (Valk et al., 2011).

Teams thrive when individuals are engaged in meaningful conversations about both innovative ideas and concerns. Research and experience indicate, though, that people often have strong incentives to keep their heads down and not speak up, resulting in the phenomenon of organizational silence. This interactive session explores the premise that courageous conversations only become possible when we deeply understand the many legitimate incentives people have to remain silent, and the ways that leaders and followers together co-create a culture of psychological safety and empowerment to overcome silence so that teams and organizations can thrive.

Using images with an active learning approach, this interactive experiential session will enable you to explore and discover what represents leadership + followership to you, your organization, and how it impacts what you do when leading + following. Everyone’s perception of both leadership + followership influences their thoughts, feelings, and behavior which also impact a variety of unique perspectives, contexts, and situations. This workshop session will bring to life different learning activities that visually and interactively increase the value and perception of both followers and followership as well as leaders and leadership—working together.

This workshop will teach participants about (1) leadership and followership qualities, (2) observing others in leadership and followership roles, and, (3) self-awareness. This is an interactive but user-friendly workshop teaching the elements of leadership and followership through tango dance. Several warm-up activities are included at the onset of the program, with the remainder of the 90- minute session engaging in tango.

While followership research is increasingly becoming popular, its literature is thinly dispersed, making it difficult to find. Thus, Virginia Tech, through a mini-grant and two years of research, is building a digital followership collection with the goal of supporting and advancing the field. This session will introduce participants to the platform, share its potential benefits across contexts, and demonstrate the prospect of artificial intelligence for sustaining the field of followership.

This interactive workshop explores the often-overlooked concept of Followership through the lens of empowerment and self-awareness. Participants will learn to cultivate effective followership using tools designed to deepen personal insight and foster organizational health. Coaches, trainers, leaders, and individuals seeking to develop a stronger sense of empowerment and purpose will benefit from this session. Key takeaways include understanding the language of empowerment and creating the self-awareness necessary for both leaders and followers to thrive. Participants will engage in live exercises, small-group discussions, personal reflection exercises, and real-life stories and scenarios to demonstrate principles and spark dialogue. Attendees will gain practical strategies they can immediately apply in their roles and organizations.

The Behavior-Motive Matrix© offers a groundbreaking approach to understanding and addressing follower behaviors in the workplace. By categorizing actions as conscious or subconscious and identifying whether followers exhibit deficient or defiant tendencies, this framework empowers leaders to support growth and accountability among their teams. Attendees will explore strategies to help followers recognize gaps in awareness, build necessary skills, and align their behaviors with team and organizational goals. This session highlights how leaders can foster a culture of self-awareness and development, ensuring followers are equipped to contribute meaningfully and navigate challenges with purpose and confidence.

A key challenge in shifting attitudes toward followership is the language we use to describe it. Almost all of the attendees at the Fourth Global Followership Conference have experienced negative blowback about our own “F-Word”. Unless we can articulate the value of followership in fundamentally different ways that are clear, compelling, and resonant, our effectiveness as change agents will remain limited. To address this challenge, we must develop language that counters the negative perceptions of followership—passivity, weakness, conformity, and more. In this workshop, Gloria Williams and Tim Hurson will guide participants through dynamic, hands-on activities designed to spark insights, generate actionable ideas, and draft first-pass ‘scripts’ for productive conversations about followership. By the end of the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to refine and test engaging, connection-rich discussions that highlight the tangible benefits of adopting a followership stance.

Reflect critically and sensitively on your own experiences to prevent toxic followership behaviors from arising in response to toxic leadership behaviors.

Knowledge of followership is currently derived primarily from quantitative studies. These lack the capacity to generate a deeper understanding of lived experiences. Qualitative research is needed to better understand the construct of followership. In this facilitated session we aim to provide researchers and interested practitioners with a platform to discuss how we might advance qualitative followership research. It is designed to foster exchange and provide a platform for networking. The session is conducted in an unconference format in which participants suggest and prioritize the content.