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Do You Have What It Takes to Be an Effective Leader?

Editor's Note: Take a look at our featured best practice, Lean Daily Management System (LDMS) (157-slide PowerPoint presentation). The concepts of Lean are straightforward and can be easily understood. In comparison to technical engineering projects, implementing Lean designs is relatively simple. However, many attempts to implement Lean production end in disappointing results. Why is it so challenging to achieve successful [read more]

Also, if you are interested in becoming an expert on Organizational Leadership (OL), take a look at Flevy's Organizational Leadership (OL) Frameworks offering here. This is a curated collection of best practice frameworks based on the thought leadership of leading consulting firms, academics, and recognized subject matter experts. By learning and applying these concepts, you can you stay ahead of the curve. Full details here.

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Effective Leadership Behavior1Leadership is the single most important human capital issue that organizations face. In fact, in today’s 21st century business, leadership has become a vital element for companies striving to achieve global competitiveness. However, while Leadership can build a team, a department, or an organization, it can also “un-build” or destroy them.

A big responsibility has been put on HR to come up with programs that will build the kind of leadership 21st century companies need. Executives are put on a pedestal to meet the increasing demands of a very competitive world. Members of the team are increasingly hedging their leaders as leaders continue to push members to optimize performance.

But, a big unresolved issue has been hovering and putting an unclear cut on leadership. In the end, before anything else, we have to resolve what sort of Leadership Behavior should organizations encourage.

  • Is Leadership so contextual that it defies standard definition or development approaches?
  •  Should companies concentrate on priorities such as role modeling, making decisions, defining visions, and shaping leaders who are good at adapting?
  • Should companies stress the virtues of enthusiastic communication?

Leadership Study Results

A recent research showed that a small subset of Leadership skills closely correlates with Leadership success. A survey of 189,000 people in 81 diverse organizations around the world was conducted to assess how frequent certain kinds of Leadership Behavior were applied in organizations. A list of 20 distinct Leadership traits was first developed. The population was then divided into organizations whose Leadership performance was strong and those that were weak.

Leaders in organizations with high quality Leadership displayed 4 of the 20 possible Types of Leadership Behavior. The 4 Effective Leadership Behaviors that came out prominent amongst 189,000 people explain 89% of the variance between strong and weak organizations in terms of Leadership Effectiveness.

The 4 Types of Effective Leadership Behavior

Leaders in organizations with high quality Leadership teams display 4 Types of Effective Leadership Behavior.

The 4 Effective Leadership Behavior does not refute the centuries old debate about what distinguishes great leaders. Experience shows that different business situations often require different styles of Leadership.

Leadership behavior slide1

 

1. Effective Problem Solving

Effective Leadership starts with the ability to solve problems effectively and focus on results.  Problem solving is the process that precedes decision making. It is deceptively difficult to get right yet it is a key input to decision making. Leaders must learn to effectively gather, analyze and consider information to come up with informed decisions.

2. Results-oriented Focus

Leadership is not only about developing and communicating a vision and setting objectives. Effective leaders must also follow through to achieve results. To achieve this, Leaders must have strong results orientation, emphasize the importance of efficiency and productivity, and prioritize the highest value work.

3. Pursuit of Different Perspectives

Effective Leaders must consider different perspectives to be able to make decisions that are based on sound analysis. Leaders must avoid many biases to which decisions are prone.

This can be achieved when Leaders continue to monitor trends affecting the organization and grasp the changes in the environment. Leaders must be able to encourage employees to contribute ideas that could improve performance. They must be able to differentiate between important and unimportant issues and give appropriate weight to stakeholder concerns.

4. Supportive of Others

Leaders who are supportive can understand and sense how other people feel. Effective Leaders show authenticity and a sincere interest in those around them. They can build trust, inspire, and help colleagues to overcome challenges and intervene in group work to promote organizational efficiency. Unwarranted fears about external threats are allayed and energies of employees are prevented from dissipating into internal conflict.

Having the right Effective Leadership Behavior lays the groundwork for companies to achieve sustained growth. The current Leadership behavior situation of your organization can still be improved. Using the Situational-Leadership Staircase is the way to go.

Interested in gaining more understanding on how to develop and hone your leadership skills? You can learn more and download an editable PowerPoint about Effective Leadership Behavior here on the Flevy documents marketplace.

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25-slide PowerPoint presentation
Behavioral competencies have long been utilized across many organizations to assess the competencies and potential of leaders. The competency models are prevalent due to several reasons--shared vocabulary to express the expectations from people, a basis for performance management planning, clarity [read more]

Want to Achieve Excellence in Organizational Leadership (OL)?

Gain the knowledge and develop the expertise to become an expert in Organizational Leadership (OL). Our frameworks are based on the thought leadership of leading consulting firms, academics, and recognized subject matter experts. Click here for full details.

For both the current executives and leaders of tomorrow, our frameworks address 2 facets of Leadership:

1. How to elevate your management skills to becoming a Leader in your organization.

2. How to elevate your organization to becoming the Leader in your Industry.

Learn about our Organizational Leadership (OL) Best Practice Frameworks here.

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About Joseph Robinson

Joseph Robinson is the Vice President of Strategy at Flevy. Flevy is the marketplace for best practices in business management. Learn how the Fortune 100 and global consulting firms do it. Improve the growth and efficiency of your organization by leveraging Flevy's library of best practice methodologies and templates. The documents at Flevy (https://flevy.com) are of the same caliber as those produced by top-tier management consulting firms, like McKinsey, BCG, Bain, and Accenture. Most were developed by seasoned executives and consultants with 20+ years of experience. Flevy covers 200+ management topics, ranging from Digital Transformation to Growth Strategy to Lean Management. You can peruse a full list of management topics available on Flevy here. Prior to Flevy, Joseph worked as an Associate at BCG and holds an MBA from the Sloan School of Management at MIT. You can connect with Joseph on LinkedIn here.

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