Distributed Leadership
“ Permeable, porous, responsive, interconnected, centering artists voices. ”
— A Distributed Leadership concept from community meetings, surveys, Board, and staff
What is Distributed Leadership?
Simply put, distributed leadership is a means by which organizations re-organize and distribute power and authority with accountability to multiple people throughout an organization instead of a typical top-down structure (LeaderSpring’s Creating a Distributive Leadership Model Report).
Distributed leadership re-examines who holds and exercises power and authority to make decisions. Bridge Live Art’s distributed leadership model is a deliberate structure to decentralize power—over decisions, finances, and resources—by equitably sharing responsibility and decision-making among co-directors, staff, board members, and our artist community.
Cherie Hill & Rebecca Fitton (L to R), Photo by Noah Laroia-Nguyen
Why Distributed Leadership?
Karla Quintero, Rebecca Fitton, David Herrera (L to R), Photo by Faith Elder
Bridge Live Arts (B.L.A.) embraces an emergent distributed leadership model deeply connected to our organization’s artistic and social justice values. At B.L.A., distributed leadership is expressed through a co-directorship structure, with additional staff members taking on leadership roles in areas aligned with their expertise and interests. Our pay equity model supports this dynamic approach, which ensures that compensation reflects the nuances of how we share leadership.
Distributed leadership strengthens and expands our equity-driven work by bringing community voices into conversations about organizational decision-making. Sharing our leadership allows us to address systemic patterns of exclusion that have historically denied Black, Indigenous, and Artists of Color access to resources and power within arts nonprofits and institutions.
Dancing Distributed Leadership
Applying Administrative Learnings to Creative Process and Performance
Dancing Distributed Leadership (2023-2024), a multi-year B.L.A. initiative, explored how commitments to equity and experiences with administrative shared leadership show up in the studio and on stage. The project's performance, Experiments in Motion, debuted choreographic works by current Co-Director Rebecca Fitton, with former Co-Directors, Cherie Hill and Hope Mohr.
Hope Mohr, Cherie Hill, Rebecca Fitton (L to R), Photo by Dale Dong
Distributed Leadership Services
Partner with B.L.A. to Strengthen Shared Leadership
B.L.A. offers feedback sessions on distributed leadership. Rooted in our equity-oriented artistic practices, these offerings foster collaboration, expand collective wisdom, and help teams and organizations grow their capacity for shared leadership. We guide teams in cultivating a culture where power is equitably shared, and decision-making processes are inclusive and participatory.
Laura Ellacott, Hope Mohr, Erin Donohue (L to R), Photo by Dale Dong
At B.L.A., we view administration as an extension of our artistry, grounded in the deep wisdom of our bodies. Our staff brings creativity, collaboration, and improvisational and choreographic wisdom into our administrative work. Our Embodying Shared Leadership workshops help individuals and teams explore ways embodying leadership impacts programming and decision-making.
Cherie Hill, Rebecca Fitton (L to R), Photo by Dale Dong
Additional Resources
Organizations B.L.A. Has Worked With:
Assorted organizational logos
Header Image: Cherie Hill, Hope Mohr, Karla Quintero (L to R), Photo by Ulysses Ortega