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How can we Understand the Demise of Kids Company?
Author(s) -
Foster Angela
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
british journal of psychotherapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.442
H-Index - 17
eISSN - 1752-0118
pISSN - 0265-9883
DOI - 10.1111/bjp.12205
Subject(s) - demise , charisma , feeling , psychology , charismatic authority , closure (psychology) , headline , social psychology , public relations , psychoanalysis , management , law , political science , advertising , business , economics
The sudden closure of the charity Kids Company was headline news in the UK on 6 August 2015. In this piece the author shares her feeling of shock, her questions and her concerns arising from the BBC interviews with the charity's founder Camila Batmanghelidjh who had been at the helm for 19 years. While alluding to the vision of charismatic leaders and their extraordinary ability to bring about social transformations, the author refers to Weber and others highlighting that charismatic leadership must be transitional if the enterprise is to survive. However, charisma can lead to idealization which puts the enterprise at risk.