SUCCESS IS ALL ABOUT LEADERSHIP

 By Sam Boyer

When it comes to business planning most managers will follow the basic outline of:

1.) Establish the goals
 2.) Determine the strategies that are needed and
3.) Execute against the strategies. 

This basic outline of planning is used repeatedly in business situations to achieve a desired outcome.  Many times it works, and many times it doesn’t.  The question becomes:  Why does it work only some of the time?

It’s all about leadership!  Any competent manager can follow the basic planning outline.  It takes a leader to inspire the individuals that make up his or her team to not only follow the basic planning outline but to also achieve the goals that have been established.  Many managers have become frustrated with their own or their team’s performance when they follow all the steps…and still do not achieve the established goals.  The difference between the managers that achieve goals and those that do not is leadership.

 So how does an individual go from being a manager to being a leader?  First, leadership is not bestowed upon an individual in the same way a manager’s title is.  Leadership is earned, and not over the short-term.  It’s a continuous process.

 Managers become leaders by the process of developing the “soft skills” of building relationships and being able to influence changes across the business operation.  These soft skills enable the leader to move otherwise intransient individuals to new levels of achievement.  When leaders are able to perform this task with multiple individuals at multiple levels within the operation, goals are achieved.

 As an individual moves from the concept of management to a leadership role the requirements of his or her position changes.  The importance of technical skills decline and the need for soft skills increases.  In 1998, Daniel Goleman analyzed 188 companies and identified the qualities that make a strong leader.  Those qualities most prevalent were: 

1.)  Self-awareness
2.)  Self-regulation
3.)  Motivation
4.)  Empathy and
5.)  Social Skills.

Goleman terms these five qualities as the factors that make up “emotional intelligence”. 

 It makes no difference what they are called.  Others who have done similar research on leaders (and my own observations) conclude it comes down to leadership not being identified by technical skills or by position within an organization.  Leadership is identified within an individual who has self-control, understands the needs of individuals, and has the social skills to relate to each individual.

 All beer distributors want to develop a successful workforce.  This requires owners and top executives to embrace leadership in the following ways:

 Leadership is not charisma . . .  it’s about learning and trust and the development of leadership skills in others.  Those leaders who term themselves as “charismatic” are threatened by individuals who are free thinkers and strive to develop their own skills.  True leaders are those individuals that constantly learn (especially from their mistakes), trust others, and allow other individuals to develop their skills.

Leadership is a learned process.  As discussed above, true leaders believe in constant learning.  They have learned to become leaders.  How did they do this?  They did it the old fashioned way; they worked at it…and continue to work at it every day.  Constant learning about themselves and others is the primary principle of leadership.

When it comes to constant learning, effective leadership development takes on a term from production management; continuous improvement.  Continuous improvement in leadership skills is achieved in a five-phase process.

 Phase 1: Leadership skills development begins with an assessment of the leader’s current skills by his/her co-workers.

Phase 2:  Creation of a development plan the leader prepares where he/she selects one or two high-impact goals to focus upon.

Phase 3: An announcement of the high-impact goals to those who observe and interact with the leader on a regular basis.

Phase 4: Implementation of the new skill(s) through coaching and improvements in on-the-job interactions and feedback.

Phase 5: Repeating the above process on additional high-impact leadership development skills.