Clever leadership can transform a state’s smallness into an asset when promoting national and international interests at home and abroad. Good leadership skills are required to correctly prioritize and bargain in international surroundings. Small states need to defend their interest in their key sectors and within these sectors they need to be able to demonstrate leadership, offer clever solutions to problems, and wield positive influence. This can be achieved through consensus-forming, policy innovation and figure-heading external initiatives. It is thus vital for a small state to develop administrative competence in key areas and provide leaders with knowledge that will help them in taking initiative when needed and drive forward coalitions in issues the small state wants to move forward. Leadership skills are imperative to make this happen and secure successful diplomacy for a small state.

The 2019 Tallinn Summer School was the second intensive programme hosted by the partnership. The school's focus was on leadership issues from the perspective of public administration and governance. The special nature of public administration in small states was introduced and the impact of small scale on public administration, politics and governance discussed. The implications of scale for public leadership and leaders’ development were also explored.