How does leadership factors spur the success of sister city cooperation?

Abstract

Some scholar indicated the leadership factors contribute to the success of sister city cooperation. However, research on the extent of its contribution is still limited. To fill this gap, an investigation of leadership factors was carried out through in-depth interviews with key actors who played a role and were directly involved during the process of sister city cooperation. This study examines the mechanism of local leaders which succeeded in building and implementing sister city cooperation to solve city problems. We found that local leaders designed sister city project or activities according to local needs and characteristics by involving academics and local communities, maintained and developed cooperation consistently and continuously by forming sister city management team, and encouraged community collective action to implement sister city cooperation through direct communication and incentives. The results of this study enrich the knowledge of leadership roles in city management and provide lesson learned for leaders of cities in the world.