‘Strong’ leadership

Recently, the world witnessed the apparent deception of the syllogism of “hyper-leadership” – a style of leadership that dominates the stage with individualised decision-making power. A “lone ranger” style of charismatic leadership that is self-absorbed and combative.

A smart leader cannot afford to be self-centred or self-absorbed because his decision impacts all life skills including collaboration communication, creativity, problem-solving and adaptability.

It is wrong to describe consensus as the absence of leadership.” Consensus, also, is not a “foolish master”.

Some leaders have fallen victim to impulsive decisions and therefore wrong actions because they failed to align their actions with the opinions and perspectives of others. Such leaders unfortunately did not harness the collective wisdom that consensus offers and also overlooked the need to nurture collaboration with range of perspectives and shared values.

Leading with conviction is a powerful and dynamic style that aligns a leader’s vision with unshakable confidence and energy. It is a critical requirement when bold moves are made and everyday innovation is necessary. A leader’s certainty and clarity in this regard undoubtedly inspire value-adding actions in the midst of confusion, crisis and chaos.

To enable high performance, leaders must use conviction as the icing on the cake of consensus. When a leader recognises that every employee’s voice matters, creativity will undoubtedly thrive. The creative thinking process flourishes when different ideas and perspectives are brought together.

When a leader cultivates collective ownership, harmony among team members ensures that the organisation remains ready to adapt to a constantly shifting and uncertain business environment. Consensus is an ideal leadership approach that regularly empowers and elevates the team.

Consensus is definitely “not the absence of leadership”. Rather, it enhances group dynamics and enables leaders to solve problems by clearly assigning responsibilities. Purpose and goals are excellently delivered through a sense of dedicated “connectedness”.

Let me, however, briefly highlight the downside of the consensus style. If not properly managed, some individuals within the team may assume the position of “informal” leaders through their style of participation. Apart from muzzling their colleagues, they may sometimes advance and achieve mischievous objectives. They oftentimes promote unhealthy self-interests and can become a retrogressive pressure group.

Leadership is privilege and a responsibility. Organisations must strive to achieve competitive advantage and favourable market share, which should translate into a good percentage of inflows within their chosen markets through well-managed consensus leadership.

Good decisions must be taken to protect gross profit and contribution margins. There is also the personal margin of safety for leaders. A leader must maintain a margin of safety for himself in the very important areas of emotional, physical, financial and time management. The leader must be fully aware of personal limits, strengths, weaknesses and moral attributes.

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Smart decisions must regularly be made in aligning resources with new opportunities and priorities. We can describe this as the economics of winning, an area in which the leader must always remain on top of developments.

The leader’s critical skills in this area include curiosity, audacity and the transformative utilisation of identified potentials.

Whatever leadership style a leader adopts, Business Model Innovation is today’s go-to approach for maintaining an organisation’s profitability and growth.

The leader must never miss the MOMENT. Do not hesitate to depart from a hitherto successful path when necessary. Constantly rethink your business model and envision tomorrow’s opportunities on a daily basis.

The innovation cycle is constantly spinning, and it is incumbent on leaders to regularly improve and increase customer value. Rethink your targets, customers, offerings to customers and value proposition. Always look for additional ways to deliver greater value and generate increased inflows.

Do you know that, today, smart selling is no longer driven solely by outcomes and benefits? Conventional outreach, cold calls, discovery conversations and leading with products, features and benefits are no longer adequate.

There must be a mindset shift. You must solve problems using your “optimal language”. Present better outcomes, better results, better responses and better customer service as solutions to the problems customers face.

Your knowledge of human psychology and ability to discern buying motives have become increasingly important. Customers have options, whether based on price or need. Affordability has become a major consideration. Buying decisions are now influenced by varying degrees of motivation.

Let me conclude with my views on the Relationship-Based Leadership style and Consensus in Community, particularly for leaders who oversee businesses on one hand and those who contribute to community and societal development.

For the relationship-based leader, you must always encourage leader-employee exchange regularly. Your success depends on the quality of individual relationships.

Leaders who seek to impact society must encourage and drive a cooperative culture. Do not impose your competitive self on your engagement.