Liderança como prática intercultural: liderança em projetos internacionais na Organização Rotary

Abstract

Epistemologically, the notion of practice represents a differentiated way to think about social research and the various forms of organizations. Within the field of leadership as practice, in which no research has integrated the interaction between cultures, this article elaborates and discusses a conception of leadership as cross-cultural practice, with impacts to research practice, because it understands that cross-culturality is a fundamental element in orienting how organizational practices are constructed and how leaders make and base their decisions, act and interact. In this sense, an empirical research involving leadership as cross-cultural practice in international projects in the Rotary organization, which represents a rich field with regard to leadership and cross-culturality, is carried out, which allows the study and the advance in the development of a conception of leadership as cross-cultural practice, based on the identification and the analysis of leadership practices in such context. In the conception we bring, leadership is a practice that represents the process – linked to the present interaction between cultures – of influencing one or more people toward the achievement of goals. The proposal enables in-depth knowledge about leadership based on an integrated understanding of existing practices, taking into account the leaders, the followers, the context and the culture of the group, which involves the organizational culture and the present social cultures. Implications are discussed.