Institutional Combination for Co-Operative Development : Trustful Cultures and Transformational Mid-Levelers Overcame Old-Guards Conservatism

Proper financing is often critical for co-operative development, but banks usually avoid financing co-operatives. A federation/consortia of co-operatives that collects fees and creates guarantee fund may obtain enough financing in normal periods, but not in turbulent times which require radical, costly changes. Israeli kibbutzim (pl. of kibbutz) faced this problem in the late 1950s when economic restructuring was needed. Old-guard leaders were conservatives in a dysfunction phase and did not use their power to get proper financing. A mid-level official, who had previously been a kibbutz transformational leader together with his peers in other organizations created schemes that solved the problem without compromising co-operative principles. High-trust cultures and participative democracy nurtured this leader. Ideas for practices that enhance such nurturing and mitigate oligarchic processes are offered