The results of this study can be utilized in sensitizing people to the varying meanings and ways of conceptualizing leadership. As conceptions of leadership implicitly include normative descriptions of leadership effectiveness and ethics that people use in their evaluations of leaders and organiza- tional performance, the different conceptualizations can be utilized in evaluations and development actions in organizations.
This does not mean that the variation of leadership conceptions in this study would self-evidently be applicable to other contexts. Still, they provide examples of the possible ways in which leadership can be experienced especially in small business organizations, run by their owners and where simi- lar organizational conditions prevail. When the aim is to develop leadership in a certain setting, the totality of the ways of experiencing leadership in that setting should be explored and reflected upon. In these situations, the conceptual model of leadership in a small enterprise generated in this study can be a useful device.
As organizational members use their implicit theories and conceptions of leadership in their evalua- tions of leader 'goodness', managers and leaders should acknowledge these conceptions and be re- sponsive to them. Particularly, owner-managers of small firms should be sensitive to the expecta-
tions of 'good leadership' directed at them. These expectations do not concern only leader qualities or the ways in which the leader behaves in her/his interactions with the subordinates, but a variety of other issues related to her/his decision making and use of ownership power, management of or- ganizational structure, processes, personnel and change. It might be useful for the proprietors to be- come aware of such expectations and the ways in which they may be collectively experienced and used as implicit theories of organizational performance.
Instead of focusing on leader traits and behaviours (cf. Barker 1997, 343) the nature of leadership as a socially constructed phenomenon possible to conceptualize in different ways should be considered in managerial and leadership education. My findings align with the former theorizing of Calder (1977, 202) and Lord and Hall (2003, 56) that the specific meaning contents of leadership concep- tions may be different to different individuals, different groups of people and in different contexts; leadership depends on how it is perceived by other people. Consequently, managerial and leader- ship training should educate students of leadership to understand the different leadership construc- tions and how they may be related to the specific contexts in which they occur and to the construc- tions of leadership in wider contexts.
Also leaders as well as other organizational members should become aware of the ways in which leadership is socially constructed and reificated and reflect on their own conceptions of it. By ex- ploring them they may find out whether the conceptions contribute to the functioning of their or- ganizations and understandings of organizational life or hinder alternative ways of seeing and im- proving organizations.
The results of this study suggest that when a small firm evolves and employs people, they hold ex- pectations concerning leadership that they direct at the owner-manager of the firm. How these ex- pectations are met by the organizational leader, may be of significance in relation to the success of the company and the well-being of its members. In addition to being sensitive to these expectations, proprietors need to be able to act upon them. This requires listening to the employees' concerns, and discussing them in order to develop mutual understanding about the situation.
As people are prone to attribute successes and failures to organizational leaders – to those who hold salient positions of power in their organizations – the owner-managers of small enterprises are in a critical position, because ownership is a legitimate basis for leadership. In these settings leadership ideals can have non-constructive consequences as was demonstrated in this study.
In small firms run by proprietors, power imbalance between different organizational members is great. That is why it can be difficult for subordinates to question the actions of the leader and organ- izational practices, even if they may be harmful to the company. When the leaders define the organ- izational reality, then those disempowered have no other choice than to conform or to leave. As was shown in this study, conforming to conditions, which one cannot accept can bring along cynicism and withdrawal. It may decrease the employee's motivation and commitment to her/his work and the organization, and affect negatively on the fellow-workers.
To cut this chain cannot be the business of small firm employees only; it requires that the proprie- tors become more conscious about the prerequisites of personnel management and personal leader- ship (cf. Sandberg 2001b). In this respect, entrepreneurs may need support; leadership training for entrepreneurs may be helpful. Instead of refusing to be leaders – as the CEO of the small firm in this study did – they should take leadership seriously and understand it to be a part of running the business. This does not mean that they should stick to the myth of a heroic leader. On the contrary, it would probably increase the power differentials in the small firm and support the attribution of difficulties to the one at the top.
Proprietors should enable their personnel to voice their concerns about the company matters, take initiative and participate in solving the problems experienced in small companies instead of retain- ing power to their own hands only. In growing firms, the need for jointly agreed practices and proc- esses to provide structure and order to the activities of the organization is commonly seen as a pre- requisite of successful growth. As they discipline both leaders and the led, they may also support organizational members' feelings of safety and predictability.
Moreover, they offer possibilities for participation. Instead of relying on 'mutual adjustment' as in a small firm naturally occurring during the work, arenas for discussions are needed. They may help in diminishing communication barriers common in organizations with wide power differentials that are likely to lead to conflicting perceptions and expectations between employees and organizational leaders (cf. Wolfe Morrison & Robinson 2004).
Understanding leadership and talking about it as a function in the small enterprise in which every organizational member has her/his stake may help to create enterprises, where leadership is not at- tached only to leaders but understood as an ideal about how things should be in the organization – how the business and people should be taken care of and what issues are central in leading success- ful businesses.
Embedded in the conceptions of leadership is the idea of what is good for people and organizations. Even though the content of these conceptions may vary between different groups, they still include archetypish stereotypes about central functions and roles in organizations and what is essential in fulfilling them. Furthermore, they are interpreted and reinterpreted and renewed in the everyday life in organization in ways that are flexible and meet the local needs – as was shown in this study.
Instead of taking these ideals for granted and accepting them as truths beyond problematizing, peo- ple should reflect on them to find out how they serve organizations and the well-being of organiza- tional members. Furthermore, people should consider the possibilities to change them, if they are experienced as unrighteous, if they suppress the value of individuals and their possibilities to be ac- tive participants in their organizations and finally, if they hinder the development of organizations.