dualleadership

Dualleadership, also known as dual leadership, is an organizational arrangement in which two individuals share executive authority and responsibility for leading the same entity. In practice, this can take the form of co-CEOs or co-presidents who jointly set strategy and oversee operations, or a model in which two leaders assume distinct, clearly delineated domains (for example, one focusing on external relations and growth, the other on operations and finance). The approach is used in corporate, nonprofit, academic, and government-adjacent settings and is often chosen to leverage complementary skills, manage transitions, or distribute risk.

Models and governance: Effective dualleadership typically relies on a formal governance charter that defines decision rights, ranges of authority, and escalation paths. Common arrangements include equal joint leadership with shared decision-making, or a division of labor where responsibilities are demarcated but joint accountability remains.

Benefits: Potential advantages include access to broader expertise, resilience during leadership transitions, enhanced stakeholder relationships, and the ability to balance competing priorities and perspectives.

Challenges: Risks include ambiguity of authority, potential conflicts or power struggles, slower decision cycles, unequal visibility or compensation tensions, and difficulties in performance evaluation. Success commonly hinges on trust, aligned strategic vision, and robust conflict resolution mechanisms.

Implementation considerations: Organizations should articulate duties and success metrics in a charter, establish regular joint planning and review cadences, set clear escalation and voting rules, define communication protocols, and provide processes for leadership transitions or sunset clauses if performance falters.

Evidence and uptake: Research on dualleadership shows mixed results; when roles are clearly defined, aligned with culture, and supported by strong governance, dual leadership can work, but it does not guarantee superior performance and may be ill-suited to simpler or fast-moving environments.