THE GREAT LEADERS METTLE

Posted By: TimoStevens, 2009


Great leaders know the need to unleash talent. They create a culture that releases the highest talents and contributions of their people.


People make their highest and best contributions when their leaders execute on the following 4 imperatives:


1. Align Systems; Great leaders build the organization's capability to consistently achieve its goals, attract and retain talent, improve work processes, and develop intense customer loyalty.


2. Unleash Talent; Great Leaders tap the full potential and contribution of each individual, respecting all the dimensions of the "whole person."


3. Inspire Trust; Great leaders create personal credibility and earn the legitimate trust of others.


4. Clarify Purpose; Great Leaders work efficiently with others to create a clear and compelling purpose that is focused on customer needs - strategically aligned and financially viable.


"Talented employees need great managers... how long that employee stays and how productive he is while he is there is determined by his relationship with his immediate supervisor," - Buckingham and Coffman (First, Break All the Rules)


Source: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Franklin Covey.

By Project RiseUp2010 with 1 comment

FIVE STEPS TO POWERFUL TEAM BUILDING

1. Abandon the idea that you know it all. 


You don't. No matter how long you've been in business, you can still learn from customers, employees, and vendors.


2. Collaborate, don't dictate. 


By encouraging your constituents to contribute ideas, suggestions, criticism, and feedback, you will give them the sense of teamwork that makes everyone more productive.


3. When visiting customers, listen before you sell. 


People want the opportunity to explain in detail what they need. And they want to know that their vendors value their input and factor it into the product or service.


4. Resist the urge to dominate company meetings. 


Listening to the boss issue a stream of orders isn't a meeting –  it's a one-person show that violates the spirit of teamwork.


5. Give people freedom to make mistakes. 


If you are a military commander, you tell your troops, "Make a mistake and you're dead." But in business, you can make a mistake and have the chance to learn, regroup, and try again – all the wiser from your experience.


Source: Moshe Levy

By Project RiseUp2010 with 1 comment

10 LEADERSHIP ESSENTIALS

1. Create a positive work environment. 


You set, maintain, and change the tone. Model and encourage a positive one.


2. Set clear expectation. 


Tell people what you expect, when, and how, or your day can be filled with surprises, such as "Oh, you meant today?" Unclear expectations create an atmosphere of unease and frustration.


3. Give clear guidelines. 


As others participate in your organization, give them clear road maps. Don't keep your processes a secret.


4. Delegate. 


The added perspective on a job can create even more substantial results than you might create if it were part of your balancing act.


5. Be enthusiastic. 


Enthusiasm is contagious and creates an energetic work environment.


6. Demonstrate confidence. 


Believe in your product / service and yourself. Others will be far more eager to follow you.


7. Provide necessary resources. 


Ensure that team members can access information and people to help them achieve their goals.


8. Provide training. 


Provide team members with the skills and information to reach their fullest potential. If you want your team to be confident and competent, provide avenues for them to enhance their knowledge and skills.


9. Inspire team spirit. 


Hone your understanding of teams to create a positive atmosphere in which people feel appreciated and inspired.


10. Provide developmental feedback. 


By letting your team know how they are doing, you will propel them to excellence.


Source: Linda Eve Diamond and Harriet Diamond.

By Project RiseUp2010 with 1 comment

HOW TO LEAD CREATIVE PEOPLE

1. Innovation is the lifeblood of an organization. 


Knowing how to lead and work with creative people requires knowledge and action that often goes against the typical organizational structure. Protect unusual people from bureaucracy and legalism typical of organizations


2. Be vulnerable to real surprise.


3. Be wary of incremental changes – they replace creativity and real innovation.


4. Creative people are loyal to an idea and appear to be nonjoiners. Don't demand unreasonable personal or corporate loyalty.


5. When you have real innovation, don't compromise.


6. Set the example for how to live with eccentricity.


7. Creative people need diverse experiences to do their work.


8. Creative people need constraints.


9. Creative people need to work with others of equal competence.

Source: Max DePree

By Project RiseUp2010 with 1 comment