ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP THEORY: A REASSESSMENT AFTER 10 YEARS

A variety of assessments through 2001 discussed the striking neglect of theory related to leadership in public sector organizational settings. For example, Jerry Gabris, Bob Golembiewski, and Doug Ihrke called on the field to ‘improve on the emaciated condition of public leadership theory’. My assessment of administrative leadership soon thereafter, while trying to emphasize a recent uptick in volume, was nonetheless that ‘the needs are great and the research opportunities are manifold’. My relatively negative assessment has been widely cited and needs to be re‐evaluated a decade later since much progress has been made and the research needs have evolved substantially.