The article describes the features of the positioning of a political leader in the public administration system. In this context, the author analyzes the leader’s functional and role burden as a bearer of the highest status of authority and as a civil entrepreneur that supports political communication with the society. Upon revealing the specifics of application by the leader of political and administrative tools in the implementation of its functions, the author reveals the limitations and risks of reducing its official functions, which emanate from the administrative hierarchy. As shown in the article, the key means of resolving the structural conflict between political and administrative tools of implementation of the activities of a political leader as a senior state manager is the formation of a special structure of power, emerging as the leader arranges formal and informal ties with the various segments of the ruling elite. The author identifies factors that contribute to the formation of such power construct (leadership political subsystem), as well as describes its network basis, inner structure, the content of endogenous and exogenous connections and relationships. In this regard, the article identifies the ways to enhance the productivity of leader’s administrative functions, to improve its adaptability to the administrative environment, as well as defines the conditions for eliminating the threats and risks of destabilization of the ruling regime.