REPOST: 5 Tips For Exceptional Leadership

Becoming a leader is a huge responsibility and not everyone is cut out for the role. This article from Forbes shares some tips on how to be a good leader.

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What makes a good leader? Looking at my own personal growth at SAP, I have found that the Holy Grail of leadership today is engagement. It’s only through truly engaging customers that we’ve increased profitability, and only through employee engagement do we increase productivity. I have been lucky enough to work with an executive coach who truly understands how leaders can inspire teams and foster engagement within both their organizations and their customers’ organizations. This is some of the insight I’ve gained from her on engagement, people management, and leadership.

Build a team of your own personal challengers

A recent article in the Economist claimed that as technology continues to become more intelligent, the role of the leader will center more and more on innovative thought leadership. In order to prepare themselves for this reality, leaders must continually nourish their minds with complex problems, new ideas, and divergent perspectives. To this end, everyone needs their own group of personal challengers; external experts who fulfill that part of their development and growth on an ongoing basis. This could be mentors, coaches, business advisors, or just friends who work in different industries. While it takes some work to assemble and practice, it’s a critical element to developing your breadth of thinking and continuing your growth.

Image Source: forbes.com

Convene and intervene
A very helpful leadership philosophy that I have learned is to convene and intervene. On one hand, part of being a leader is cultivating growth which entails convening people under a common purpose and allowing ideas to flourish. On the other hand, it’s about knowing when to jump in and steer the ship which entails helping the team take their ideas and shape them into something meaningful and executable. The leadership philosophy of convene and intervene allows you to be more present in a meeting by taking the onus off getting to the answer and instead focusing on the process of watching ideas grow and then simply shaping them. Not only does this help people feel engaged in the process, it also helps you learn a lot about the people you work with.

Two-to-one

Traditional thinking says that when coaching people, be sure to balance things that are working (positives) with lessons to be learned (negatives). Recent thinking suggests that the magic ratio is not 1:1, but in fact, 2:1. The 2:1 theory is that by emphasizing the positives, you create more buoyancy, leaving people feeling bullish and supported while at the same time having something constructive to work on. It’s so easy to jump right into the issue, especially in a company like ours where urgency can sometimes rule the day. I find myself needing reminders to adhere to this simple 2:1 rule of thumb, but when I do, I am stunned by the results.

Flying high and diving deep

Leadership in a sales driven organization requires an interesting balance of skills: the ability to help refine the details while simultaneously understanding the business with enough breadth to shape the strategy. The balance of knowing when to ‘fly high’ and ensure the overall health of the business, and when to ‘dive deep’ and run right alongside the teams, is a careful balancing act that is imperative to master for the sustainable health of both the business and the team. It can be really unnerving for people when a leader moves from one to the other quickly, which happens when leaders have both skills. Over time, and with amazing support, I have learned that announcing the switch – in a deliberate way – can help people understand what you’re doing. It ensures that people know they’re still trusted even though you need to understand the finite detail, and it allows them to understand that you also see the big picture and are looking out for their long term wellbeing.

Give, give, give, gone

Because there is never enough of it, time is the most valued gift we have to give. I’ve learned that when you have time with someone, give them everything you’ve got – your absolute undivided attention. If you say you’ll do something for them, do it there and then. Make the phone call, find them the document, send the email – but when they leave, move onto the next thing. This means you can always be true to your word, people get from you what they need, and you’re fresh and available to do it again when you move on to your next meeting.

Follow this Marc Accetta Facebook page to learn more about the characteristics of a good leader.

REPOST: 8 Ways to Promote Your Business as a Leader in the Field

To be able to succeed in managing business, having an excellent leadership skills is a must. This article shares the key responsibilities of an excellent leader.

Image Source: tech.co

Clear values, innovation, pricing strategies, passion, and branding are all key attributes that will help to transform new and existing businesses into trusted household names. Yet without excellent leadership skills, a business can quickly crumble. Read on for 8 simple ways to promote your business as a leader in the field.

Strong Values

Strong values lay the foundation for a solid business, so it’s essential that these values are clearly defined from the get-go. Put some effort into the vision statement, instead of throwing something together quickly. Create a truthful set of values that radiates the company nature and intent. Don’t be afraid to make changes along the way. As the business blossoms, its key values will need to be tweaked.

Uniqueness

What makes your business different from the thousands of other similar businesses? A unique selling proposition is essential for attracting customers and standing out from the crowd. Define your niche, then promote it. Once you harness your skills and bring a unique set of skills to the market, your business is destined to prosper.

Honesty

Benjamin Franklin said that honesty is the best policy. This certainly rings true when it comes to leading a business to success. Your moral character, integrity, and honesty will all come into play when leading a business. Set the bar high and encourage a healthy work ethic, and you will find your employees will be happier and more productive in the process.

An Excellent Management Team

An excellent business needs a highly skilled management team behind it. Oracle chose to make Safra A. Catz and Mark Hurd Co-CEOs of the Oracle Corporation.

When asked why Oracle needed two CEOs, Hurd replied, “We’re a big company. This is bigger than the sales force. It’s bigger than Safra and me. Bigger than Larry, Safra and me. … It’s the development team, other teams. We have over 130,000 people. We need a lot of leadership in our company.” Oracle’s CEO shake up shows that it’s not afraid to take risks to make sure the company succeeds.

Leaders can take note from Oracle by choosing to step away from the norm. Companies should always be structured to fit the needs of their own goals.

Ability to Delegate

The ability to delegate is important for creating a well-organized business that will flourish. Leaders sculpt the vision of the company, but they will also need to trust their team to develop this vision and allow it to grow. Delegating tasks is a sign of strength as it proves the company has faith in its staff.

Push Things Forward

It’s important to adapt according to advances in technology and the ever-changing needs of customers. Oracle’s Mark Hurd is leading the company to success with a new cloud subscription strategy that could potentially generate a $10 billion annual cloud subscription revenue. Hurd’s strategies are paying off as a cloud subscription revenue run rate of almost $2 billion was reported in Oracle’s latest year-endings earnings reports.

Study Leaders

Modeling is a system where an individual observes an expert to extract parts of their beliefs, behaviors, languages, and strategies in order to achieve similar results in their own field. While you may not want to delve into the complex world of neuro-linguistic programming, by studying inspirational role models you can learn to improve your skills and become a better leader.

Choose to Inspire and Motivate

Finally, motivating and inspiring your team is important in any business. If you’re leading a start-up to success, you will need to inspire your team to see and believe in your vision.

Incorporating bonuses will reward staff for their hard work and motivate them to work to their full potential, while giving away equity is another way for your team to feel invested in the success of the company.

Leading a business requires forecasting, strength, perseverance, commitment, clear values, and the ability to inspire and motivate while trusting your team to carry out your ideals and visions.

Max DePree put it well when he said, “The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant.”

Follow this Marc Accetta Twitter account for more tips on how to achieve success.