Google the word “leader” and you’ll find that there are 264,000,000 hits; the word “leadership” has 155,000,000. Still, pundits continue to lament the lack of leadership.
Instead of claiming to have authored yet another study in the midst of studies, we have attempted to synthesize and integrate the research about what makes for effective leaders. Out of this taxonomic work, we have identified five outcomes that leaders deliver, each woven around a role that a leader plays:
• Strategist. Effective leaders develop a point of view about the future.
• Executor. Effective leaders build the discipline of getting things done.
• Talent manager. Effective leaders engage others in planning and executing their agenda.
• Human capital developer. Effective leaders prepare the next generation of employees.
• Personal proficiency. Effective leaders have personal skills and abilities that enable them to lead and others to follow.
These five leadership roles are characterized by behaviors and outcomes that apply to new and seasoned, junior and senior, and public and private sector leaders. If becoming a more effective leader is half DNA and half learning, mastering these five roles will help any leader be more effective.
While we have identified and taught the skills and actions associated with these five outcomes, we have recently identified another dimension of effective leadership. Leading in today’s uncertain, changing, and risky world is not just about the actions or motions of leadership; it is also about the e-motions.
