While the Foreign Affairs Office operates within a traditional bureaucratic and highly protocol-driven environment, my WBL experience revealed several emerging forms of innovative leadership. These practices were demonstrated both by organisational leaders and by staff members—including my own contributions—who sought to improve efficiency, professional standards, and strategic relevance in city diplomacy. This section outlines the key innovative leadership behaviours observed throughout my placement.
3.1 Leadership Through Strategic Vision
One form of innovation observed at the FAO was leadership driven by strategic vision. Certain senior officials emphasised the need to expand the scope of city diplomacy beyond traditional ceremonial exchanges toward more thematic, developmental, and economically aligned cooperation. For example, the conceptualisation of the International Sister Cities Digital Economy Alliance reflected an effort to reposition Xi’an as a leader in the digital economy among Silk Road cities. Instead of relying solely on symbolic relationships, this initiative promotes sustained, outcome-oriented collaboration.
This shift signals emerging transformative leadership—leaders who attempt to articulate a clear long-term direction for the organisation and encourage stakeholders to align with broader development strategies rather than routine administrative tasks.
3.2 Encouraging Cross-Cultural Intelligence and Adaptive Behaviour
A significant dimension of innovative leadership at the FAO is the emphasis on cross-cultural sensitivity and adaptive behaviour, especially in interactions with international partners. During the Cuenca–Xi’an Ceramic Mural Initiative and the Kyoto Youth Choir visit, several senior officers demonstrated the ability to adjust communication styles, negotiation strategies, and hospitality arrangements based on cultural contexts.
For example, when collaborating with Ecuadorian partners, communication required a more flexible and informal tone. Conversely, cooperation with Japanese partners demanded greater attention to formality, precision, and detail. These adaptive behaviours reflect elements of cross-cultural leadership, which is essential in modern international relations but not yet uniformly practised across all divisions.
3.3 Empowering Younger Staff and Informal Leaders
Another innovative leadership characteristic was the informal empowerment of younger staff members and interns. Although the FAO operates within a rigid hierarchy, many mid-level leaders actively encouraged junior staff to take ownership of project components, propose new ideas, and independently manage communication tasks.
During my placement, I was entrusted with responsibilities such as drafting bilingual correspondence, producing session briefs for the Silk Road Cities Roundtable, and coordinating with external organisations. This trust, although informal, exemplifies distributed leadership—where leadership roles are shared rather than confined to those with formal authority. Such practices not only alleviate workload pressure but also enhance organisational adaptability.
3.4 Innovation Driven by Problem-Solving and Initiative
A significant portion of innovative leadership at the FAO was not top-down but emerged from individual initiative. Staff members frequently employed creative solutions to overcome bureaucratic constraints, coordinate across departments, or meet tight deadlines.
For instance, when preparing materials for the Cuenca mural event, I introduced bilingual QR-code-based information panels to improve accessibility for foreign guests. Similarly, for the Roundtable event, I designed structured documentation tools—such as delegation profiles and issue-specific session briefs—to professionalise communication and reduce confusion among internal departments.
These incremental improvements illustrate how innovation can emerge organically through proactive problem-solving, even within a rigid administrative system. Such contributions enhance organisational effectiveness despite structural limitations.
3.5 Leadership Through Professionalisation and Standardisation
A growing leadership trend at the FAO involves efforts to professionalise internal processes. Some staff members, particularly those with international exposure or academic training, actively pushed for the adoption of systematic tools such as standardised communication templates, project timelines, and more detailed briefing formats.
My own WBL capstone project—the creation of a City Diplomacy Strategic Handbook—aligns with this trend. The handbook introduces structured SOPs, project management tools, and frameworks derived from international best practices. These tools aim not only to strengthen operational efficiency but also to elevate the FAO’s overall strategic capability.
This reflects a shift toward institutional leadership, where the focus is not merely on leading people but on shaping processes and systems that can improve organisational performance over the long term.
3.6 Summary of Innovative Leadership Practices
In summary, innovative leadership at the FAO emerged through strategic vision, cross-cultural awareness, distributed responsibility, proactive problem-solving, and the professionalisation of internal processes. Although such innovation remains uneven across the organisation, these practices demonstrate a gradual shift away from purely administrative mindsets toward a more strategic, adaptive, and modern model of city diplomacy.