Guide · Implementation
Updated: 24 July 2026
Do you want to really introduce shared leadership? This roadmap leads in six steps from the conditions to fine-tuning – with a focus on the step where most projects tip.
Contents
Check the conditions
Four things must be right beforehand. If one is missing, don’t start yet:
- Management backing – not just tolerance, but real support.
- A real trigger, not a fashion – a part-time position, a merger, a generational change.
- Two people who want it – both, not just one.
- Willingness to touch structures – contracts, roles, processes.
The 6-step roadmap
- Clarify trigger and goal. Why shared leadership, and what should it achieve? No goal, no way to judge later whether it works.
- Check readiness. Do culture, processes and people fit? Be honest – better stop now than after six months.
- Define model and roles. Which form, who does what? This step is the most important – more below.
- Fix decision and governance rules in writing. What’s decided alone, together, where escalated?
- Involve team and environment. Whoever isn’t brought along plays the two off against each other.
- Fine-tune after 3 and 6 months. No model settles instantly. Adjusting is part of it.
Why step 3 usually goes wrong
This is where most projects tip. Roles are split too vaguely – „we do everything together“ – and the first real conflict lays the gap open. A robust role split looks different: it names who makes which decisions alone, which are made together and where you escalate.
A simple example of a decision matrix:
| Decision | Person A | Person B | Together |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day-to-day in own area | alone | alone | – |
| Hiring in the team | – | – | together |
| Budget over a set limit | – | – | together |
| Strategy / fundamentals | – | – | together, else escalate |
Timeline and effort
Realistically: clarifying trigger and goal takes days, the readiness and blueprint phase a few weeks, the actual introduction with guidance 3 to 6 months. The biggest effort isn’t in the concept but in the discipline to live the agreed rules in daily work. I deliberately don’t name prices here – they depend on scope. Honestly: it costs capacity, especially in the first months.
When external help is needed
Much of this you can do yourselves. External help pays off when no one internal is neutral enough to really ask the role question, when an existing dual leadership already grinds, or when management wants assurance the model holds. If you notice it’s more complex than expected, that’s a good moment for a talk.
Checklist to take away
- Trigger and goal are written down.
- The conditions are honestly checked.
- The model is chosen and fits the decision structure.
- The decision matrix is in writing.
- The team is involved.
- Dates for fine-tuning after 3 and 6 months are set.
Frequently asked questions
How long does introduction take?
From clarification to settled practice usually 3 to 6 months, plus targeted follow-up.
Can we do it without external help?
Yes, if you can ask the role question neutrally and no one is already in conflict. Otherwise guidance saves time and friction.
What’s the most important step?
Step 3: the robust role and decision split. This decides whether the model holds.
Where do we concretely start?
With trigger and goal – and an honest readiness check. The self-check is a good first step.
Introduce shared leadership – with a tailwind
If you want to be sure the model holds: in the intro call we clarify your next step.
Amrit Rescheneder
Amrit Rescheneder helps organisations and leadership tandems build shared leadership that works. She led in a job-sharing model herself for years – after 15 years of leadership responsibility in banking. She knows shared leadership from practice, not from textbooks.