Prototypical Leadership in Agile Software Development

TL;DR

Prototypical leadership in agile software development is explored through qualitative interviews with eleven practitioners from six teams in five Swedish companies. The study uses thematic analysis to examine how leaders who embody the team's identity influence shared leadership, trust, and team performance. Findings identify three core mechanisms: distributed leadership based on expertise, informal seniority-driven influence, and leader-team alignment with shared values. The work highlights the practical importance of selecting and developing leaders who reflect the team's identity to improve engagement and outcomes in agile settings.

Abstract

Leadership in agile teams is a collective responsibility where team members share leadership work based on expertise and skills. However, the understanding of leadership in this context is limited. This study explores the under-researched area of prototypical leadership, aiming to understand if and how leaders who are perceived as more representative of the team are more effective leaders. Qualitative interviews were conducted with eleven members of six agile software teams in five Swedish companies from various industries and sizes. In this study, the effectiveness of leadership was perceived as higher when it emerged from within the team or when leaders aligned with the group. In addition, leaders in managerial roles that align with the team's shared values and traits were perceived as more effective, contributing to overall team success.