ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on those human aspects that are the fundamental determinants of public leadership. We discuss the role and content of human values that help make the case for human-centredness in public leadership. This chapter outlines the two-dimensionality of the human-centred approach to public leadership. First, it asks what it takes to create people-centred organisations, geared to serving people. Second, it discusses how public organisations create conditions that enable citizens and public service users to take part in the process that enhances societal betterment and human well-being. Thus, this chapter approaches human-centredness, first, from the organisational perspective and, second, from the perspective of the users of public services and citizens. The chapter connects human-centred public leadership with the Human Relations movement of the early 20th century. The justification for this is to make explicit the idea that the people-centred focus in organisation and leadership theory is not new but rather derives its origins from classical studies on human motivation that took place at the Western Electric factory site roughly a century ago. The Human Relations movement radically changed existing management thinking by emphasising the role of human beings, humanistic values, and employee self-direction in improving organisational efficiency. Motivation and human relationships were now viewed as cornerstones in our understanding of how organisations function. This development paved the way for explanations of how organisational culture developed, evolved, and matured and how this was reflected in changes to the approach to serving people through public service delivery.
