Leadership doesn’t always come with a title. Sometimes, it looks like building trust across teams, finding common ground with a new partner, advocating for an idea, or creating the space for others to challenge assumptions and bring something new to the table.
That was at the heart of a recent conversation among members of the Civitas Emerging Leaders Council (ELC), a group dedicated to strengthening leadership and management skills among individuals working to advance health improvement and health information technology.
During the Civitas 2026 Annual Conference, the ELC brought that conversation to the broader Civitas community through “Influence in Action,” a session exploring how leaders can create meaningful change regardless of their title or formal authority. We recently had a chance to hear directly from ELC Chair Van Le, Associate Director at PelEx, about this session at Network News (Civitas’ bi-monthly, member-only meeting). The topic was a natural extension of conversations the council had been having throughout the year.
“We can all be leaders in whatever role we play.”
Shared Understanding Leads to Greater Influence
Throughout the year, the ELC meets every other month to have candid conversations about the real-world challenges emerging leaders are navigating within their organizations. Members identify topics where they could benefit from the perspectives and experiences of their peers, with a focus on walking away with ideas they can put into practice.
One issue kept rising to the surface: influence.
We often associate influence with authority, seniority, or position, but the ELC’s conversations offered a broader definition. Influence is also about our ability to build relationships, establish shared understanding, find common ground, and use those connections to move work forward.
That is particularly important across the Civitas community, where progress often depends on collaboration among organizations, communities, government partners, funders, and other stakeholders.
What Does It Mean to Lead Without Formal Authority?
During the conference session, ELC members invited mentors and council alumni to reflect on their own leadership journeys, including a deceptively simple question: How do you lead when you don’t have formal authority?
The discussion surfaced several lessons that apply well beyond any particular role or organization.
Start with honesty and self-awareness.
Good leadership begins with understanding who you are, what you value, and what you bring to the table. Self-awareness creates a stronger foundation for finding alignment with others and developing relationships rooted in trust.
Create a culture where people can challenge one another.
One of the ideas shared during the session was the importance of creating a culture of “fearlessness,” where team members have room to question assumptions, challenge each other constructively, and introduce new ideas. Leadership isn’t simply about having the answer. It can also mean creating an environment where better answers can emerge.
Know your worth and advocate for it.
Influence also requires understanding the value of your perspective and being willing to communicate it. Emerging leaders don’t need to wait for the next title or promotion to begin contributing strategically or advocating for ideas they believe will strengthen their work.
Ground your leadership in your values.
Values can be a powerful starting point for collaboration. Understanding your own values and identifying areas of alignment with others can help create the trust needed to move difficult or complex work forward.
Invest in relationships.
Whether with colleagues, partners, mentors, or allies, meaningful relationships are central to influence. Those connections create opportunities to learn from one another, build trust, navigate challenges, and ultimately accomplish more together.
Leadership Can Happen At Any Level
Perhaps the strongest takeaway from the conversation was also the simplest: you do not have to wait for a certain milestone to become a leader. You can lead from the front, from behind, as a member of a team, as an advisor to a project, or as the person willing to ask the question that moves a conversation forward.
For those working to improve health and strengthen health data infrastructure, that mindset matters. The challenges facing our field increasingly require people who can work across organizational and sector boundaries, develop trusted partnerships, and bring others along toward a shared goal.
"Conversations like these are an opportunity to recognize that we often have more influence than we think.”
Developing that influence isn’t a single milestone – it’s an ongoing leadership practice that requires actively listening, learning, building relationships, understanding your values, and becoming more intentional about how you show up when the next challenge arises.
Growing the Next Generation of Civitas Network Leaders
The ELC is designed to provide networking opportunities, professional development, and leadership growth. Every other month, ELC members come together to discuss real challenges, learn from peers and experienced leaders, identify tangible ways to strengthen their leadership practices, and find new sources of inspiration. Members also have opportunities to become more involved across the Civitas community, including actively participating at the Annual Conference.
Seven ELC seats will open for 2027, with nominations open through November and the next cohort inducted in December. Civitas leaders are encouraged to consider colleagues who would benefit from these conversations and from deeper engagement with leaders across the network. If you’d like the nomination form, please email , and we will assist you.
