This blog is part of our Unlocking Collective Leadership: 7 Conditions for Lasting Impact series, highlighting the conditions that help P20 systems move from individual effort to shared leadership.
The Role of Work Structures in Collective Leadership
A solid strategy won’t get far without the right structures in place to support it. Educators are expected to collaborate, lead, and improve, but even the best efforts stall out when the systems around them don’t support that work. Work structures, such as how we schedule time, set priorities, and make decisions, are what make sustainable improvement possible. In collective leadership, those structures are intentionally designed to support shared ownership of the work.
Time and effort are precious. The right structures protect them. Here’s how to build routines that make school improvement work possible.
What is Work Structures?
Work Structures are the fourth condition of collective leadership. They include the rhythms and routines that guide how a school or team functions, such as calendars, schedules, meeting structures, planning processes, and communication norms.
In collective leadership, these structures are designed to support shared priorities. That means:
- Protecting time for collaboration
- Aligning day-to-day operations with long-term goals
- Reducing friction and confusion in how work gets done
When this condition is in place, teams gain clarity, coherence, and the capacity to lead well, without burning out. Work feels purposeful. Meetings get smarter. And people can spend less time navigating logistics and more time driving improvements.
One school that has put this condition into action is Maryville Elementary, whose intentional focus on instructional improvement has led to increased staff and student engagement, as well as a decrease in student referrals.
Work Structures in Practice
At Maryville Elementary, sustainable work was about more than managing busy schedules. It began with aligning around shared priorities for feedback and instructional expertise. The staff came together to reimagine observation practices, increasing two-way informal feedback among teachers. This shift strengthened staff culture and had a clear, positive impact on students.
Through behavioral learning walks, the school cultivated a culture of vulnerability and shared learning, intentionally focusing on improving student engagement and outcomes.
The results speak volumes: academic performance rose from Below Average to Average on the 2024-2025 School Report Card, and student referrals dropped by more than 76 percent.
When teams prioritize collaboration and continuous learning, meaningful change follows. This is the power of collective leadership in action.
Pressure or Progress? A Team Check-In on Work Structures
Gather the team and ask the following prompts:
- What gets prioritized in our schedule—and what consistently gets squeezed out?
- How do our routines and meetings support (or stall) meaningful work?
- Which structures help us work collaboratively, and which reinforce silos?
Resources for Work Structures
Ready to take a closer look at how your team’s work structures support shared leadership? Use this reflection tool to track your time, identify misaligned routines, and find one shift you can make toward stronger collaboration.
Want tools, examples, and reflection prompts delivered straight to your inbox? Subscribe to the Unlocking Collective Leadership email series to dig deeper into each condition and explore how to bring collective leadership to life in your school or district.