From 'Doing Digital' to 'Being Digital': Reimagining School Leadership
Leading a school has never been more challenging. As technology reshapes education, society and relationships at breakneck speed, school leaders find themselves travelling with outdated maps while still needing to nurture the human connections that make great schools thrive. While many leaders excel at pedagogy, team management, and creating supportive learning environments, today's landscape demands more. Not just from leaders, but from governors too.
Approaching this problem requires a re-imagining of what school leadership is. The most successful leaders will be those who can bridge the gap between technical expertise and human-centred leadership, understanding that digital literacy isn't just another item on their to-do list, but a core competency that works alongside their existing skills in change management and pedagogical understanding.
The pandemic starkly revealed the consequences of undervaluing digital strategy. The sudden closure of schools exposed gaps in digital infrastructure, strategic thinking, and training that many had overlooked. For those of us who care to remember, frantic messages were exchanged about what to do next and it was only through the generosity of schools and individuals who were 'thinking digitally', that a standardised and acceptable approach to education was engineered. Now, with generative AI becoming widely available and students facing a world where AI influences both work and study, addressing these gaps isn't optional, it's essential. See the recent World Economic Forum's 'Future of Jobs Report 2025' and this paper on Generative AI in higher education from the Association of Pacific Rim Universities as examples.
The first step to addressing this challenge is to create a culture of continuous learning where governors, staff and students feel supported in exploring new possibilities. The schools that will be successful in the next decade will not just 'do digital', they will 'think digital' in ways that enhance rather than replace human connections. These schools will become organisationally ambidextrous: managing the delicate balance between honouring tradition and embracing innovation, all while keeping student and staff needs at the centre of every decision.
It should be clear that this is not just another change management exercise or optional or temporary – it is a fundamental shift in how we conceive school leadership. Every leader and governing body is navigating these waters, and success will come to those who see digital transformation not as a threat to traditional values, but as a catalyst for enhancing them. The future belongs to the schools that are able to harmonise the digital and the human in an institutional framework that is not just more efficient, but more empathetic, adaptable and alive to the world beyond the school gates.
References
Bersin, J. (2016). Digital Leadership Is Not an Optional Part of Being a CEO. Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2016/12/digital-leadership-is-not-an-optional-part-of-being-a-ceo
O’Reilly III, C. A. and Tushman, M. L. (2004). The Ambidextrous Organization. Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2004/04/the-ambidextrous-organization