ABSTRACT
This chapter attempts to link the account of leadership-as-practice (L-A-P) with an account of dialogic process. It outlines the approach of "dialogue-as-practice". The actions of people take place, by and large, within dialogic relationships. The chapter focuses on the function of utterances within ongoing conversation. It draws especially from Wittgenstein's metaphor of the language game, Garfinkel's explorations of ethnomethodology, Austin's illumination of the performatory character of speech, Shotter's concept of joint-action, and the writings of the Bakhtin circle on dialogism. The chapter focuses on enriching dialogic practices in the context of organizational leadership. In developing leadership-as-practice, learning processes can best impart "dialogic knowledge". The chapter draws from a repository of scenarios common to organizational life, including for example, scenarios related to team development, guided organizational change, interpersonal conflict, organizational innovation, and coaching. If the aim of leadership development is to enhance skill in practice, the limits of a text-based pedagogy are clear.
