A contextual perspective -- People leadership -- People leadership and organisational management -- Schools as organisations -- people as 'competitive edge' -- Contemporary South African people leadership issues and development -- The development of people leadership in South Africa -- Contemporary overview of South African education -- People values and cultures: a South African school leadership perspective -- Contemporary South African school leadership issues -- Employment equity, affirmative action and empowerment -- HIV/AIDS -- People in action -- The Batho Pele principles and their linkages to people in action -- People in action -- Leading people and achieving quality schools -- Culture, leaders, and people in action -- Emotional intelligence -- Motivation -- Team building -- Conflict management -- Resourcing talent -- Centralisation, governance and power -- The talent managment process -- Assessing talent -- Assessment as a tool for the development of talent -- Assessment and the selection process -- Assessment and performance appraisal -- IQMS as an example of staff assessment -- The role of teams in talent development and assessment -- Problems with assessment -- The role of the principal regarding poor performance and disciplinary action -- Talent development -- Human capital theory as an orienting theory for professional development -- The Oldroyd and Hall Model as the basis for professional development -- Talent development in schools -- Conditions for successful professional development -- Training as a development tool -- Reform types of development programmes.