Article: A Case of Leadership

A Case of Leadership

Anyone in a leadership position is continually faced with the question, “What is a leader to do?” The Dimensions of Leadership Profile^® is a powerful tool to help leaders answer that critical question.

To illustrate the usefulness of the profile, I shall refer to an executive coaching assignment with one of my clients. We have been using the Dimensions of Leadership Profile as the foundation for the executive’s leadership development. Each two-hour coaching session focuses on one of the twelve dimensions of leadership.

The individual being coached is the executive vice president for an industrial company. This person is being groomed to become the president of the business. During one of our recent sessions, this individual shared that the company’s sales and profits have been falling over the last two years. He asked what the company’s leadership should be doing to reverse this trend. We referred to the dimensions of leadership to find an answer to his question.

We first identified the present focus of attention of the company’s leadership. That focus is on Character. The company president emphasizes the organization’s values and mission. He leads by Integrity and Self Renewal. The president’s personal style is introspective. He is values-led and emphasizes continuous learning and development.

The vice president and I then looked at what is required in the present circumstances facing the company. The critical issue facing the business is how to increase sales and profits. The vice president decided that the leadership focus needs to be more on Accomplishment. Concrete results need to be achieved to reverse the downward trend in income. Performance needs to be the leadership emphasis.

To improve the company’s performance, however, will require new approaches. Continuing to operate in the same fashion as they have been will simply reap the same results. The leadership’s perception of the marketplace has not kept pace with the changing needs of the company’s customer base. The vice president sees the need to breakout of the traditional modes of operating. This requires a focus on Analysis expressed through the dimension labeled Perceiving.

But how is one to persuade others to leave old ways of perceiving and performing? This requires a shift of focus to Interaction. Company leaders will need to implement the Inspiring dimension to energize followers to act in new ways. Leaders will also need to emphasize Collaborating if they are to gain broad participation and encourage everyone to contribute to the group endeavor. The vice president quickly recognized that this means Team Building will be needed if individuals are to unite their efforts toward the common goal of increased sales and profits. After all, the entire change effort being envisioned is being driven by the need for Accomplishment.

For people to implement changes in perception, interaction, and performance requires them to acquire new knowledge and skills. Here the focus becomes inward on Character expressed through Self Renewal.

As we continued to examine what will be required to accomplish an increase in revenue, the client and I identified contributions to be made by each of the twelve dimensions of leadership. Which brings us back to the question, “What is a leader to do?”

Each person has specific strengths and weaknesses. We are not to expect that an individual leader is to be proficient at exercising every one of the twelve dimensions of leadership. Nor will an individual be naturally sensitive to each of the four focuses of attention. A leader, however, can be aware of each of the focuses and dimensions of leadership and when each is appropriate. The leader is to make certain that others are monitoring each focus of attention so as to avoid blind spots. Who is strong in each of the leadership dimensions is also important knowledge for the leader to possess.

The role of the leader, then, is to orchestrate the actions and interactions of the followers. Similar to an orchestra conductor, the organizational leader is to indicate when those with a particular focus or dimension need to come forth to be heard over the rest of the players. Likewise, the leader must signal when to de-emphasize particular approaches. In certain circumstances, a single voice may need to solo or certain players may need to be silent. Much of the time, however, everyone will be contributing to the effort of the whole. The designated leader is to keep everyone focused on the score and make certain that all are making an appropriate contribution at the precise moment it is needed. The leader is to draw out from the swirl of individual activity a symphony of organizational achievement.

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