Abstract

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many have argued that we require transformational leadership to help us face the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4thIR). The authors propose the layered round table approach to be one response to this call to arms. Inspired by the hierarchical, systematised, impersonal, and transactional interactions of the military, the boardroom table (or traditional corporate organisational structures) has largely continued to reflect Max Weber’s bureaucratic theory of management 150 years ago. Whilst the round table has symbolised inclusivity and diversity, the authors argue that it has not quite displaced the exploitative tendencies of hierarchical management styles. Whilst most board rooms have introduced the round table to encourage discussions and debate, solutions are still largely decided upon by CEOcracies or expert advisors. In this chapter, the authors aim to lift the round table from out of the sphere of the symbolic, clarify these challenges, and posit ways in overcoming them via the layered round table approach. More than a symbol of inclusion and communion, it becomes the hub of solution creation and ensures the kind of transformational leadership required to face today and tomorrow. The authors present the layered round table as the seat from which managers can build the kind of cultural change which fosters more nurturing values, far removed from the mechanistic legacy of our corporate genealogy/past.