Governance: An International Journal of Policy, Administration, and Institutions V. 10

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10 Governance: An Int'l J. Pol'y, Admin, & Institutions 1 (1997)

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Autonomous Policy Leadership: Steering a Policy
Process in the Direction of a Policy Quest

JOE WALLIS* and BRIAN DOLLERY**

This article attempts to make a contribution to the literature which reflects a
growing interest in the conditions underlying radical policy reform. It
advances a concept of autonomous policy leaders who can be distinguished
from vote-buying politicians by their passionate commitment to make a
difference by advancing a particular policy quest, with particular reference
being made to the way such leadership was exercised by Roger Douglas, New
Zealand Minister of Finance from 1984 to 1989. Although such leaders
resemble the policy entrepreneurs described in garbage can models, their
goals are more ambitious and the window of opportunity they are waiting for
(with its characteristic mix of crisis, mandate, honeymoon and weakened
opposition) much greater. They are also dependent on, and emerge from with,
an advocacy coalition network which provides them with the backing and
resources to redirect public policy. This redirection may produce a backlash
from groups concerned that these policy elites may steer the policy process
too far in a particular direction.

There is a long tradition of inquiry into the phenomenon of leadership in the
humanities, in certain branches of the social sciences, and in studies of
management and organizational behavior.1 Two issues have repeatedly
emerged as important areas of concern in this literature. These issues relate
to the significance and distinctiveness of leadership as a social phenomenon.
On the one hand, leadership theorists have been concerned with whether
leadership can make a difference, with whether leaders can steer the history
of the societies, organizations, or groups which look to them for leadership
in the direction they intend, or with whether followers simply attribute
effects which are actually caused by underlying historical, economic, and
social factors to leaders, as in romantic fiction (Pfeffer 1977; Mendl and
Ehrlich 1987). This strand of the leadership literature reflects a concern with
the authenticity of the claims which are made about the significance of the
role leaders can play in catalyzing intentional historical transformation in
institutions and social groups.
On the other hand, leadership writers are frequently concerned with
whether leadership can be distinguished from other directive or steering
activities-such as management, administration, or political en-

University of New England, New South Wales, Australia.
*University of Otago, New Zealand.
Governance: An International Journal of Policy and Administration, Vol. 10, No. 1, January 1997
(pp. 1-22). Š1997 Blackwell Publishers, 238 Main Street, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA, and 108
Cowley Road, Oxford, OX4 IJF, UK. ISSN 0952-1895