1  2  3  4  5  6 

Would I Work For Me? Exploring the Essence of Transformational Leadership

Debbie Craig and John Gatherer maintain that most leaders’ perception of their own leadership qualities is much higher than what it is in reality. In this article, they take a closer look at leadership effectiveness, the competencies and behavioural descriptors of great leaders and provide us with practical tools to assess leadership qualities. This is the first article in a series of articles on leadership.

by Debbie Craig and John Gatherer

ABOUT THE AUTHORS
	Debbie Craig is the Managing Director of Catalyst Consulting and John Gatherer is the Chief Operations Officer at Catalyst Consulting. For more information, please contact Debbie on 082-872-5429 and Debbie@catalystconsulting.co.za or John on 083-709-8222 and John@catalystconsulting.co.za or visit http://www.catalystconsulting.co.za/

“Leadership must be based on goodwill. Goodwill does not mean posturing and, least of all, pandering to the mob. It means obvious and wholehearted commitment to helping followers. We are tired of leaders we fear, tired of leaders we love, and of tired of leaders who let us take liberties with them. What we need for leaders are men of the heart who are so helpful that they, in effect, do away with the need of their jobs. But leaders like that are never out of a job, never out of followers. Strange as it sounds, great leaders gain authority by giving it away."  – Admiral James B. Stockdale

Introduction
Leaders are always under scrutiny. They are constantly watched, talked about in the corridors and discussed with friends and colleagues. Their cues and signals are dissected, analysed and labelled. Their style and approach to managing people is continuously under the spotlight. The adage “people leave bosses, they don’t leave organisations” attests to the huge influence and impact that a leader has on members of his or her team. The great leaders leave a legacy of inspiration, huge respect and a stimulating and meaningful work environment. They also have a strong focus on delivering results, motivating and empowering their team and shaping them to reach high-performance standards. They have effective relational skills, connect well with their direct reports and take a genuine interest in their career development and personal growth.

However, the reality of organisational life is that not only is the converse true, but even more evident! Dysfunctional leaders are operating across all structures and are found in every organisation – the boss with derailing behaviours, the autocrat, the super-egotist, the cynic, the sceptic, the “my way or the highway” advocate – they’re alive and well and sometimes flourishing!

If you were a fly on the wall to your employees’ secret thoughts, views and corridor conversations, would you like what you hear? How accurate is your perception of yourself as a leader compared to the perception of others? How often do you encourage candid feedback from your team members? Essentially…would you want to work for you?

1  2  3  4  5  6