Reframing Leadership in Digitally Transforming K–12 Systems: An Alignment-Based Integrative Model of Institutional Performance

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-599-7_27How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Educational Leadership; Transformational Leadership; Entrepreneurial Leadership; Digital Leadership; Institutional Performance; Digital Transformation

Abstract

The growing complexity of K–12 educational systems, shaped by digital transformation and evolving societal demands, challenges the explanatory power of traditional leadership models. While transformational, entrepreneurial, and digital leadership have each been extensively examined, their combined influence on institutional performance remains insufficiently theorized.

This paper develops an integrative conceptual framework that repositions leadership effectiveness as a function of alignment across complementary leadership capabilities and organizational subsystems. Rather than treating leadership paradigms as discrete or additive, the study advances a relational perspective in which their interaction becomes the primary driver of institutional outcomes. Within this framework, digital transformation is conceptualized not as a parallel dimension, but as a mediating mechanism linking leadership configurations to operational and educational performance.

The paper contributes by (1) reframing leadership as a systemic and relational construct, (2) introducing alignment as a central explanatory variable, and (3) proposing a set of theoretically grounded propositions to guide future empirical research. Implications are discussed for leadership development, institutional strategy, and education policy.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if you modified the licensed material. You do not have permission under this license to share adapted material derived from this chapter or parts of it.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Camelia Ivan
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/07/31
TI  - Reframing Leadership in Digitally Transforming K–12 Systems: An Alignment-Based Integrative Model of Institutional Performance
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Management and Entrepreneurial Leadership for K-12 Education Excellence (LEADK12 2026)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 428
EP  - 435
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-599-7_27
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-599-7_27
ID  - Ivan2026
ER  -