Guide
In briefShared leadership means that two or more people deliberately share a leadership role and its responsibility. Instead of a single head, a team decides together – by rules agreed in advance. Success depends less on chemistry than on clear roles.
Contents
What is shared leadership?
Shared leadership – in German geteilte Führung – describes an understanding of leadership in which leadership responsibility does not rest with a single person but is deliberately spread across several shoulders. That can be a dual leadership at the top of a company, a leadership tandem in middle management, or a team that takes on leadership tasks in rotation.
The word deliberately is decisive. Two people who happen to share an office and a few tasks are not yet practising shared leadership. Shared leadership only emerges when roles, decision rights and responsibility are explicitly clarified.
From my own practice
This is exactly where most fail: they share the tasks but not the decision rights. As long as it isn’t clear who decides in case of doubt, shared leadership is just a nice word.
Why now?
Shared leadership is not a fad but an answer to tangible developments: leadership positions are ever harder to fill full-time, qualified people want part-time even in leadership, and the complexity of many roles exceeds what one person can carry alone. Where these forces meet, shared leadership shifts from an option to a necessity.
Key takeaways
- Shared leadership means sharing responsibility deliberately, by clear rules.
- It rarely fails on the people, usually on missing structure.
- The most important building block is decision rules, not good chemistry.
- It isn’t sensible for every role – honesty is part of it.
The models at a glance
Shared leadership comes in several forms – from the classic dual leadership to part-time top-sharing. Which fits when is shown in Models of shared leadership compared.
Pros and cons
Shared leadership brings real benefits – from better decisions to more sustainable roles – but also real costs such as higher coordination effort. The honest weighing is in Pros and cons of shared leadership.
How to introduce it
A successful rollout clarifies the structure before the people are named. The steps in detail: Introducing shared leadership. If you want guidance, you’ll find it in consulting for organisations.
The most common mistakes
- Naming the people first, then clarifying the roles.
- “We decide everything together” – without a rule for the crunch.
- Using shared leadership as a symbol, without real sharing of responsibility.
- Not readjusting after the kick-off.
Does shared leadership fit you?
An intro call clarifies in 30 minutes whether and how shared leadership works for you.
Frequently asked questions
Is shared leadership the same as geteilte Führung?
At its core yes – they’re the English and German terms for the same concept, with the English one more research-driven.
Does shared leadership take more time?
At the start yes, through coordination. Set up well, it saves time later because decisions are more broadly carried.
Which roles is it not suited for?
Roles that need a fast, single final decision, or where the willingness to genuinely share power is missing.
How do you best start?
With an honest status check – not with selecting the people.
Sources & further reading
- Pearce, C. L. & Conger, J. A. (2003): Shared Leadership. Reframing the Hows and Whys of Leadership. Sage.
- Carson, J. B., Tesluk, P. E. & Marrone, J. A. (2007): Shared Leadership in Teams. Academy of Management Journal, 50(5), 1217–1234.
- Wang, D., Waldman, D. A. & Zhang, Z. (2014): A meta-analysis of shared leadership and team effectiveness. Journal of Applied Psychology, 99(2), 181–198.
How this article was written
This article is based on my own experience as a leader in a job-sharing model and 15 years of leading in banking, as well as the established research on shared leadership (see sources). Where I speak from practice, it is marked as such.
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.
Updated: 25 July 2026