Leadership in Science and Technology : A Reference Handbook

This 2-volume set within the SAGE Reference Series on Leadership tackles issues relevant to leadership in the realm of science and technology. The American workforce includes 11 million scientists and engineers, and each year hundreds of billions of dollars are invested in research and development in the U.S. alone. With virtually all aspects of our economy exploiting results of science and technology, effective leadership in this realm is unquestionably of fundamental significance. Leadership environments vary from bureaucratic positions in established academic, corporate, or government institutions and agencies to entrepreneurial start-ups seeking to attract financial investments and to recruit colleagues to the next big idea, invention, or groundbreaking research direction. In either environment, science and technology leaders must bring both organizational skills and solid scientific expertise. They must be intellectual leaders who not only coordinate activities of scientists and engineers but also can offer specific technical or theoretical advice and ideas to help reshape an individual program or an entire field. Furthermore, they must have vision to see farther than others do along with the social skills to join together other creative scientists and engineers, sometimes from completely separate fields, to see how their work might contribute to a greater whole. Mastery of varied communication streams (scientific, popular or mass media, policy) is but one factor of effective leadership within the science and technology communities. There#xE2;#xAC;"s also the ability to set a research agenda, to motivate scientists and staff during long, complex research programs that may have uncertain outcomes, to properly manage often tight resources, to compete-sometimes intensely-with other research groups or product-development teams while still maintaining ethical, cooperative and collaborative spirits, and to develop a mastery of cross-cultural sensitivities at a time when science and technology is a truly global enterprise. To encompass all this and more, within the pages of this handbook 100 topics will be arranged under eight headings. Volume 1 will focus on general principles of science and technology leadership and will include sections on social-scientific perspectives on S&T leadership; key scientific concepts about leading and innovating in S&T; characteristics of S&T leaders and their environments; and strategies, tactics, and tools of S&T leadership. Volume 2 will provide case studies of leadership in S&T, with sections considering leadership in informal communities of scientists and engineers; leadership in government projects and research initiatives; leadership in industry research, development, and innovation; and finally, leadership in education and university-based research. By focusing on key topics within 100 brief chapters, we hope to provide students with more detailed information and depth of discussion than typically found in an encyclopedia entry but not as much jargon, detail or density as a journal article or a research handbook chapter. Entries will be written in language and style that is broadly accessible, and each will be followed by cross-references and a brief bibliography and further readings. A detailed index and an online version of the work will enhance accessibility for today#xE2;#xAC;"s student audience.