Rate my professor: implicit leadership theories in academia

Followers’ implicit leadership theories (ILTs) are core to understanding how leaders are described and as how effective they are perceived. While much is understood about ILTs in the business context, we know little about professorial leaders although effective leadership is key for performance and success in academia. To explore ILTs in academia, we asked pre- and postdoctoral researchers in Germany to specify the characteristics of the typical professorial leader and to rate these characteristics in terms of effectiveness. Based on an inductive content analysis of 2048 characteristics, 18 categories emerged. We found that the typical professorial leader is primarily described as caring, competent, and ambitious. Thus, ILTs in academia differ notably from ILTs in the business context. This implies that the academic context deserves particular attention of leadership researchers. These findings have implications for leadership effectiveness in academia as well as academic leader selection and development.