Advancing tendencies? PR leadership, general leadership, and leadership pedagogy

• We consult 20 years of PR leadership and leadership literature.
• We search for applicable approaches to advancing leadership in PR.
• We consider peripheral and direct approaches to PR leadership.
• We argue for more democratic and “leaderful” organizations.
• We advocate looking outwards to learn from current leadership and pedagogy.

What are the best ways to advance PR leadership? In exploring answers, we consider the last two decades of PR literature and identify two main tendencies. We link those two with general leadership literature and practices, as well as with literature on leadership pedagogy. We conclude that, rather than recent moves to look within the field, without self-reflection, to existing PR perspectives and figures for solutions, looking outwards has greater potential to transform not only the PR leadership literature, and PR practice, but also to create less hierarchical, and more democratic and “leaderful,” PR workplaces.