Leadership in the 21st Century, 6/18/12
I have
learned the following key principles that make up the foundation of outstanding
leadership:
(i)
Difference between a leader, manager and an individual contributor
(ii)
Emotional
Intelligence is more critical for leadership than IQ and
Technical skills
(iii)
DiSC
types – with my “i” type personality I am a fast moving people-oriented
person.
(iv)
Existence
of mind traps – I am at risk for anchoring, confirming bias, overconfidence traps.
(v)
Vroom
Yetton Decision Making model – A framework to determine
when to take the decision myself (S), when to Consult(C) a few members, and
when to allow the entire Group to participate and take a decision
(vi)
Thomas
Kilman Conflict Mode instrument – Compete, Collaborate,
Compromise, Accommodate, Avoid depending on the situation
(vii)
Crisis
Leadership – lead from the front rather than letting media
define you. Use the right combination of leadership style. Use autocratic or
pace setting styles for the short term and Authoritative style along with
affiliative, democratic and coaching styles over long term.
(viii)
Whistle
blowers – investigate every whistleblower’s complaint thoroughly.
(ix)
Candor – get
every brain engaged, unclutter and increase speed in decision making.
(x)
Celebrate
Differences – do not try to change character; play to people’s
strengths.
(xi)
Coach – do not
set people up for failure. Take the time to develop people. Listen.
(xii)
Six Sins
of Leadership – Not giving self-confidence its due, muzzling
voice, acting phony, lacking the guts to differentiate, fixation on results
over values, skipping the fun part
(xiii)
Crucible
moments – to see opportunity in intense situations and reflect on what I truly
value most. Translate adversity into something enduring and positive.
(xiv)
Manage Up – over
deliver and broaden the horizon of the upper manager. Think of big ideas that can improve
productivity and make everyone look good.
(xv)
Business
of Winning – Business is the engine of society. By building
strong businesses we can give to communities and create a better world.
Business is fun. Play to win !
I feel transformed by this course and will be
making several changes going forward. First, my weakness due to “i” DiSC style
is a predisposition to sometimes miss accuracy in details. I will therefore pay
greater attention to details. Second, I will avoid the 6 sins of leadership as
well the mind traps to make better decisions. Third, Jack Welch’s 8 steps of
leadership have given me a framework I plan to use for the rest of my life to
continuously evolve as a great leader both at work and in life. Additionally, I
feel much more confident about handling crisis situations – the existence of
difference leadership styles is a revelation to me.
Jack Welch has asked to eliminate grey areas while
making decisions. I value this advise tremendously and have resolved to run my
business free of corruption and bribes. Furthermore, Lencioni’s five principles of leadership taught me
the dysfunctions to look out for in teams. The class exercises, discussions and
team project gave me a chance to internalize the principles. I know what to do
now to elevate the performance of my teams.
I feel thrilled, excited and energized by this
course and I wish to take this moment to thank Dr Valerie Opher for her
continuous reminders about critical thinking, improving my writing skills,
encouraging discussions. I also am grateful to my classmates for making it such
a memorable learning experience.
clearly JWMI is among the finest centers of learning on the planet
Dr DP
No comments:
Post a Comment