Jimmy Wales is a catalyst. As founder of Wikipedia, he has built a life and business around engaging, empowering, and collaborating with a community of people. Wikipedia takes its name from the word “wiki” (from the Hawaiian word wiki, meaning "quick") and encyclopedia (from ancient Greek meaning "the circle of arts and sciences"). Wikipedia's 15 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world, and almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site. Said Wales, “I couldn’t write and encyclopedia by myself. From the very beginning, Wikipedia was a community.”

Actually, it didn’t start out that way. The venture began as Nupedia, an online English-language encyclopedia whose articles were written by experts and reviewed under a formal process. But Nupedia languished for almost a year, unable to generate compelling content and to compete with existing encyclopedia powerhouses such as Encyclopedia Britannica.

Releasing control of the tool is the thing that actually led to its success. But just because Wales is not in control doesn’t mean he’s hands-off. Jimmy is a catalyst for Wikipedia. He focuses his attention on maintaining the health and energy of the community, solving disputes, and keeping people engaged. He empowers people and gets out of the way…letting go, trusting people, and relying on others to effectively build the site. And it’s working – quick!

So, would you characterize your leadership as “catalyst” or “controller”? Is it working?