Collective leadership in nonprofit sport boards

Lesley Ferkins, David Shilbury and Ian O’Boyle

Sport Management Review, 2025, vol. 28, issue 2, 257-281

Abstract: This study examines perceptions of collective leadership within nonprofit sport boards. Situated within literature that draws from both board processes and the growing phenomenon of collective leadership, we contribute to the study and practice of sport governance, specifically, the leadership dynamic within the boardroom setting. Grounded in interpretative-constructivist research philosophies, 16 semi-structured interviews were conducted across three nonprofit sport boards. After probing perceptions of collective leadership, our data analysis enabled us to illuminate in what ways collective leadership is understood within selected boardroom settings. We found a continuum of perceptions ranging from what we termed “collective voice”, “first among equals”, and “the individual in charge”. We concluded that, in using the lens of collective leadership, the importance of board member influence on the leadership dynamic is accentuated, which extends notions of shared leadership between CEO and chair. This has strengthened the basis for future investigations that might probe the conditions that facilitate or hinder the development of collective leadership and thus nonprofit board and sport organisation performance.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1080/14413523.2024.2425885

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