Public sector leadership

What the publications show

1. Studies of school leaders in Finland, Italy and Estonia find high levels of exhaustion and burnout symptoms. In these studies, higher job demands go together with lower job satisfaction and more frequent plans to leave.

   Université de Tours, 2026 (opens in a new window) · University of Milano-Bicocca, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Tallinn University, 2025 (opens in a new window)

2. The same studies point to what protects: recognition, role clarity, influence over one’s own work and a sense of meaning go together with less burnout. Role conflict and violence at school are associated with more severe and worsening burnout trajectories.

   Université de Tours, 2026 (opens in a new window) · University of Milano-Bicocca, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Tallinn University, 2025 (opens in a new window)

3. Dutch studies report that work stress among school leaders has risen since 2018, most sharply in secondary education. As a result, some school leaders have too little time for instructional leadership.

   Inspectie van het Onderwijs, 2026 (opens in a new window) · MOOZ, CAOP, Centerdata and Fontys, 2025 (opens in a new window)

4. An American multiple case study and the Dutch reports describe a gap between the time school leaders should spend on teaching and learning and the time they actually have left. The Dutch Inspectorate of Education, for its part, singles out the school leader as a lever for better education quality.

   Grand Valley State University, 2025 (opens in a new window) · Inspectie van het Onderwijs, 2026 (opens in a new window) · MOOZ, CAOP, Centerdata and Fontys, 2025 (opens in a new window)

5. One comparative study by Tallinn University shows that the burden differs by country: Finnish school leaders report more workload and a faster pace, Estonian school leaders more cognitive demands and more resources.

   Tallinn University, 2025 (opens in a new window)

Topics within public sector leadership

This list shows what the publications on this theme are about, with the number for each topic. Open a topic to see its publications; if a topic has a briefing, the link is underneath.

• Work stress and burnout4 publications

  • School principals' burnout trajectories: Nature, predictors, and outcomes · Université de Tours, 2026
  • How to Promote School Principals' Well‐Being? The Role of Job‐Related Perceptions and Behaviors · University of Milano-Bicocca, 2026
  • Educational leaders’ well-being – Estonian and Finnish comparative perspectives · Tallinn University, 2025
  • Samen groeien: werkbelasting van schoolleiders en de school als lerende organisatie (eindrapport) · MOOZ, CAOP, Centerdata and Fontys, 2025
• Time for instructional leadership3 publications

  • Instructional Leadership’s Lost Hours: A Multi-Case Study of Role Distortion and Systemic Constraint · Grand Valley State University, 2025
  • De Staat van het Onderwijs 2026 · Inspectie van het Onderwijs, 2026
  • Samen groeien: werkbelasting van schoolleiders en de school als lerende organisatie (eindrapport) · MOOZ, CAOP, Centerdata and Fontys, 2025
  Briefing: Work stress, time use and turnover among school leaders →
• Leaving and careers3 publications

  • Schoolleiders in beweging. Arbeidsmarkt en loopbanen van schoolleiders nader onderzocht · Voion, 2026
  • Educational leaders’ well-being – Estonian and Finnish comparative perspectives · Tallinn University, 2025
  • School principals' burnout trajectories: Nature, predictors, and outcomes · Université de Tours, 2026
• Tasks and authority3 publications

  • Onderzoek managementstatuut · Regioplan (commissioned by the Ministerie van OCW), 2025
  • Kamerbrief met beleidsreactie Staat van het Onderwijs 2026 · Ministerie van OCW, 2026
  • De Staat van het Onderwijs 2026 · Inspectie van het Onderwijs, 2026

Briefings on this theme

Where several organisations publish roughly the same thing on a topic, we have used AI to compile a briefing. Click a card for the key point, the figures with their sources and what it means for the leadership team.