Leadership in the 21st Century, Week 11, 6/18/12
What is the difference between management and leadership and how do they
function in an organizational setting ?
Fundamentally,
leadership deals with change while management deals with complexity. Role of a
leader is to provide a compelling vision for the organization and set a
direction. A good leader thinks of big ideas, develops a strategy, anticipates
changes in the marketplace and prepares his or her organization to adapt
quickly and cope with change.
Jack Welch highlights eight specific responsibilities
for a leader:
(1) Build great teams - The team with the
best players wins and so relentlessly upgrade the team. Never be satisfied with
the quality of a team. At every opportunity evaluate, coach and build
self-confidence.
(2) Values - Ensure that people not only see
the values but live and breathe it. Values must support a mission and must
specify expectations for employees’ behaviors. Leaders define the culture and
set a high bar for ethical action. Leaders cultivate emotional intelligence
(EI).
(3) Optimism - Leaders get under the skin of
their employees, exuding positive energy and optimism.
(4) Trust – Leaders build trust with candor,
transparency and credit. With emphasis on candor, leaders engage every brain in
the game, unclutter bureaucracy and drive up the speed of decision making.
(5) Courage – Leaders have the courage to
make unpopular decisions through gut calls.
(6) Question – Leaders question and probe
with curiosity, bordering on skepticism, making sure their questions are
answered with actions.
(7) Inspire – Leaders inspire risk taking
and learning by setting an example.
(8) Celebrate – Leaders celebrate
accomplishments and never skip the fun part.
The role
of a manager is to support the leader’s vision by taking care
of details in complexity and execution. Specifically, Jack Welch points out that a manager has four major responsibilities:
(1) Planning & Budgeting – Managers are
responsible for delivering results in a predictable manner, always on time and
within budget
(2) People – Pick the right people for the
right job. Set performance goals and measure behavior. Motivate, encourage,
guide and counsel employees. Create individual development plans. Differentiate
performance and decide on fair rewards. Create an environment where employees
can excel and innovate. Encourage diversity, celebrate differences and play to
people’s strengths.
(3) Performance – Track performance versus
target and problem-solve by removing obstacles.
(4) Policies – Articulate clearly the
business conduct guidelines, management policies & protocols.
crystal clear insights from Jack Welch
Dr DP
No comments:
Post a Comment