Should leadership talent management in schools also include the management of self-belief?

Abstract

International concerns about leadership shortages in schools have prompted a renewed research focus upon leadership talent and leadership talent management. The journey to leadership has been previously researched from the perspectives of professional development, equality of opportunity, work environment and personal characteristics. However, a small number of studies have begun to suggest that the management of self-belief may be an important but neglected factor in the journey to leadership. Is there any basis upon which to implicate the management of self-belief as an important component of talent management in schools? Self-belief has not been previously explored within a frame of talent management. This article offers an analysis which strongly suggests a relationship between the management of self-belief and the goals of talent management expressed via socialisation, belonging, perseverance, and the facilitation of identity transformation and the enactment of leadership. The article concludes that self-belief is an important component of talent management and warrants further exploration if human potential is not to be lost, wasted or misplaced within schools.