Using Social Network Analysis to Examine Leadership Capacity within a Central Office Administrative Team

Abstract. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ways in which Social Network Analysis (SNA) could inform leadership capacity within a small, Midwestern school district. Four findings were identified. The first was that hierarchical or formal structures continue to hold sway within educational institutions. The second was that ―birds of a feather‖ or people of common interest or equivalent status within the hierarchy do indeed flock together. The third was that collaboration, trust, and transparency are inter-dependent and undergird capacity. The fourth was that social networks are the organization, making SNA an essential diagnostic and decision-making tool. The findings led to a number of implications for practice, which were framed by Information Age imperatives arising from the literature