A thought-provoking article on leadership. Good market conditions create operationally competent executives and alpha managers, looking for short-term gains, not Level5 leaders.
Two powerful questions to ask:
- What is my industry/company type: disrupted or disrupters? This is applicable not only to corporate, but also entrepreneurs.
- Am I a transactional individual/manager operating at Level1 or a transformational leader operating at Level5+ (levels, courtesy Jim Collins)? Easier said than done? Transformational leadership is very loosely referred to in conversations these days. But how much of it is actually translated into concrete action?
Every successful entrepreneur and every popular management book reminds us the need for managing people as the single most important activity. But our organizations are not geared up to take this up as a top priority.
Our organizations have to move to training as a discretionary expenditure to a strategic investment in leadership development. We are at best good in delegating, but not in taking risk to give our teams to do something transformational. While old-fashioned delegation requires confidence & experience, to give team real transformational experience, needs vision and a selfless approach too?
Transformational experience is what will help to develop transformational experience. This can be achieved, not through training, managing, delegating or even mentoring. Some of these are passed on as “coaching”, which will not work. But real leadership coaching will work. By experienced, certified/credentialed coaches, who have proven track record.
PS: Opening line on ‘leadership crisis in politics & public institutions’ should worry every Indian & a whole lot of others too… For we would play an important role in sharing human history in coming decades. Not out of economic strength, but a for assertive, self-aware & hopefully spiritual values.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/building-leadership-unleash-disrupters-ravi-venkatesan
