Guide · The top level
In briefCo-leadership denotes shared leadership at the top: two people jointly lead an organisation or an area, e.g. as a dual leadership or co-CEO. Success depends on a clear division of portfolios, regulated decisions and a united outward presence.
What co-leadership means
Co-leadership is the term for shared leadership at the top of an organisation or an area. Two people jointly carry the highest responsibility – as a dual leadership in management, as co-CEO, or as a shared area lead. Co-leadership is thus a particularly visible and demanding form of shared leadership.
Co-CEO & dual leadership
The best-known form is the dual leadership – two equal people at the top, usually with separate portfolios. The term co-CEO emphasises the English, often international perspective. Both mean the same basic idea.
Key takeaways
- Co-leadership is shared leadership at the top – visible and demanding.
- Success depends on portfolio clarity, decision rules and a united presence.
- At the top there’s no instance above – internal rules matter all the more.
Opportunities and risks
Opportunities
More perspectives on strategic decisions, shared load at the top, higher resilience, a role model for the culture.
Risks
Power struggles with unclear portfolios, contradictory signals outward, blockade without a disagreement rule, confusion in the team.
Making it work
Decisive are a clear division of portfolios with genuine final decisions, a reliable mode for strategic questions and a united presence. That’s exactly what I work on in dual-leadership coaching. How conflicts arise and can be resolved in a duo is shown in conflict in a leadership duo.
Aus meiner Praxis
At the top, every disagreement becomes a signal. I’ve seen a single contradictory statement by two managing directors unsettle a whole team. A united dual leadership negotiates hard internally – and appears as one voice to the outside.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the difference between co-leadership and shared leadership?
Shared leadership is the umbrella term for shared leadership in general; co-leadership specifically means shared leadership at the top.
Is a dual leadership the same as co-leadership?
The dual leadership is the most common form of co-leadership – two equal people at the top.
Why do some dual leaderships fail?
Almost always on unclear portfolios or a missing rule for the crunch of disagreement – rarely on 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