Today, there are so many books and articles on excellence in leadership that it is astounding engagement levels are running at barely 50%, costing this country $33 billion annually. Maybe we should find some courses and write some books on poor leadership and see if it makes any difference.
Effective leadership is about positive influence, about having followers – the art of achieving excellent results through others. If the followers are on the average 50% effective, what does this say about leadership? The challenge is much of the “good” leadership development is often aimed at middle management, while senior executives are “too busy” or claim they “don’t need it” or make some other excuse.
Having “good” middle managers does little to change engagement levels if not strongly supported by executive leadership. It all starts at the top. Some executive managers would not like to hear this. Some would be justified as they do “walk the talk” support their managers, get involved and have high expectations and achieve great outcomes. But too many don’t. The numbers don’t lie. Often when discussing mentoring and coaching opportunities, these folk think it’s a great idea – for someone else!
So what makes for effective leadership and its many forms? At its core, it necessarily includes the ability to:
- Articulate a strategy
- Establish guiding principles
- Make decisions quickly, efficiently and effectively
- Earn the trust of your people, include them in the process, treat them fairly, keep them informed and above all else communicate effectively
- Keep the organisation focussed on the positive outcomes
Therefore a definition of Leadership –
“To maximise the expectations, the positive hope of the outcomes that come from change – while minimising the fear of change for those involved.”
