dc.contributor.author	Coartney, Jama S.	en
dc.contributor.committeechair	Kaufman, Eric K.	en
dc.contributor.committeemember	Archibald, Thomas G.	en
dc.contributor.committeemember	Cash, Carol S.	en
dc.contributor.department	Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education	en
dc.coverage.state	Virginia	en
dc.date.accessioned	2021-09-21T08:00:16Z	en
dc.date.available	2021-09-21T08:00:16Z	en
dc.date.issued	2021-09-20	en
dc.description.abstract	Farmers markets play an important role within the local food system and the short food supply chain (SFSC); they promote economic development by connecting vendors, people, and community. While the number of farmers markets has increased dramatically since 1994, many markets fail, and it is unclear why. Little is known about the influence of leadership practices on the success and decline of farmers markets. This qualitative case study explored the influences of farmers market leadership and asked the question: How does leadership influence factors contributing to success and failure of farmers markets? The first objective explored patterns and trends contributing to the success and failure of farmers markets. The second objective analyzed farmers markets through the lens of leadership. The study explored findings through application of Jackson et al.'s (2018) Leadership Hexad, developed to help examine leadership within social enterprises. Adaptive leadership (Heifetz et al., 2009) and good-to-great leadership principles (Collins, 2011) provided additional depth and connections to multiple leadership perspectives. The study may be of interest to people involved in leading and working with social enterprises, such as farmers markets. Findings revealed surging operational changes, strong support of the short food supply chain (SFSC), and the need for stabilizing forces, such as a stable location and municipal support. The six lenses of Jackson et al.'s Leadership Hexad—person, position, process, performance, place, and purpose—generated additional findings. Topics include the influences of vendors, champions, and partnerships; the role of managers in supporting the community and entrepreneurship; the ambiguity of ownership when referring to farmers markets; planning for succession; surviving the startup phase; professionalizing farmers market management; co-constructing leadership with the community and vendors; evolving the purpose; and leveraging the purpose of farmers markets within the local food system. The recommendations for future practice include a professional development leadership pipeline oriented to actors in social enterprises, especially farmers markets.	en
dc.description.abstractgeneral	Farmers markets play an important role within the local food system and the short food supply chain (SFSC); they promote economic development by connecting vendors, people, and community. While the number of farmers markets has increased dramatically since 1994, many markets fail, and it is unclear why. Little is known about the influence of leadership practices on the success and decline of farmers markets. This qualitative case study explored the influences of farmers market leadership and asked the question: How does leadership influence factors contributing to success and failure of farmers markets? The study used three leadership theories or frameworks for exploring farmers market leadership. The study may be of interest to people involved in working with social enterprises, such as farmers markets. Findings revealed surging operational changes, strong support of the SFSC, and the need for stabilizing forces, such as a stable location and municipal support. Additional topics include the influences of vendors, champions, and partnerships; the role of managers in supporting the community and entrepreneurship; the ambiguity of ownership when referring to farmers markets; planning for succession; surviving the startup phase; professionalizing farmers market management; co- constructing leadership with the community and vendors; evolving the purpose; and leveraging the purpose of farmers markets within the local food system. The recommendations for future practice include a professional development leadership pipeline oriented to actors in social enterprises, especially farmers markets.	en
dc.description.degree	Master of Science in Life Sciences	en
dc.format.medium	ETD	en
dc.identifier.other	vt_gsexam:32393	en
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10919/105036	en
dc.publisher	Virginia Tech	en
dc.rights	In Copyright	en
dc.rights.uri	http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/	en
dc.subject	farmers markets	en
dc.subject	social enterprise	en
dc.subject	Leadership Hexad	en
dc.subject	adaptive leadership	en
dc.subject	Virginia	en
dc.subject	short food supply chain	en
dc.title	A Qualitative Exploration of the Influence of Leadership on the Success and Failure of Farmers Markets in Virginia	en
dc.type	Thesis	en
thesis.degree.discipline	Agricultural and Extension Education	en
thesis.degree.grantor	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	en
thesis.degree.level	masters	en
thesis.degree.name	Master of Science in Life Sciences	en

A Qualitative Exploration of the Influence of Leadership on the Success and Failure of Farmers Markets in Virginia

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