Hot Groups

Background

Hot groups are not new. They have existed since humans first came together in groups. They are of particular interest now, however, because of their increasing importance in “startups” and large organizations whose life-blood is innovation. They are relevant to the leadership literature because of the intriguing and distinctive ways in which leadership is exercised within them. Hot groups, which tend to form organically, may involve several types of leaders, internal as well as external, and, in some cases, may have no designated leaders at all.

The internal leadership function in hot groups may rotate among the group members as the sequential stages of the task call for different types of expertise. When expertise that does not exist among the participants is required, new members may be introduced. These new members may then become group leaders for that stage of the task or may simply participate in the hot group until their part of the task is completed.

The leadership dynamic of hot groups sets them apart from more traditional groups, such as committees, teams, task forces, and other appointed or elected groups, where the leadership structure is clearer and more stable. In fact, hot group members often seem oblivious to the existence of the leader, focusing instead on the self-propelled activity of all the members. The organic and usually informal manner in which hot groups develop further differentiates them from other, more highly organized groups with more traditional structures, membership recruitment, and member-expulsion methods.

Hot groups usually originate from an innovative idea put forth by one or more individuals, who then informally recruit other members on the basis of their interest, specific expertise, and potential contribution to the task. Paradoxically, hot groups are simultaneously democratic and elitist in that they welcome anyone who can contribute, regardless of organizational rank but, by the same token, vigorously reject any would-be members who cannot help advance the hot group's progress.

...