In families, organizations, and indeed even our society, one of the reasons for failure is the inability by leadership to establish and enforce accountability. Accountability in leadership is a topic that is not frequently discussed and the result is often relating to compliance to procedures, following work rules, treating customers with respect, achieving results, and getting along with co-workers. Accountability is at the heart of empowering people to perform well, demonstrating initiative, and acting responsibly. When a climate of accountability exists, things work smoothly; and when it is absent procedures fail and policies are ignored.

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In order for your organization to achieve market leadership development, a focused, first class strategy is required. Leadership within the organization must create a truly compelling and distinctive value proposition under this strategy that will cause customers to seek you out in an over-crowded, competitive field. Forming a really attractive value proposition is often the easy part. The harder part is creating a customer oriented culture to support the proposition. You can master the art of improving the value of your products and services and become a very tough competitor, but it is simply impossible to achieve market leadership without being effective in the discipline of customer intimacy. Let’s face it, most of us know those suppliers and vendors whom we refuse to work with because of the poor response we receive when problems develop.

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A Year Long Process

This past year, I had the opportunity to spend five weeks with a group of twenty five middle-level managers from Latin America. We were involved in a program designed to help the group focus on a series of leadership skills that would ultimately add to their leadership development. This great experience culminated just this past week with some great training experiences. Even more exciting was what has happened in the lives of these participants over the course of a year.

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A Leader Becomes A Leader: Inspirational Stories Of Leadership For A New Generation

This book definitely belongs in any office. It is a great resource for inspiration as well as a review on the elements of leadership. The only problem with this book is the dimension and size. It is such a rich resource that I would have preferred it in a shelf friendly size rather than for a table. However, it has found a place in my office.

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Burning the Candle At Both Ends

It was 11:45pm. The light was off and my head just landed on my pillow. It had been one of those long and busy days! I was starting to drift into sleep when I hear my boy Talmage (3 years of age) out of his bed and moving around. I got up and walked into the hallway where he was lying and I asked impatiently why he wasn’t in bed. After giving excuses and nonsense answers I said in a stern voice “get back in bed.” This battle has occurred many times before. His response was “I can’t,” “why not,” I immediately replied? “Because I went pee-pee in my bed.” I let out a big sigh of frustration. It’s late, I’m tired and I now get to change the bed linens, give my boy a bath, and get him ready for bed again.

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Long years of sacrifice and hard work have finally paid off. The grueling and intense interviews are finished. You have obtained a new leadership position. Your time has come.

Are you ready? Do you have what it takes? Have you developed the crucial skills that will make you an effective leader?

Organizations continually change and doing things the way they have always been done before will not cut it today. Leaders must be flexible and observant of the environment around them. They must think strategically and prepare themselves for new adventures and challenges. Your ability to transition into leadership effectively will define your potential and your ensure success in the future. While there are many skills and qualities to master, there are three areas that will get you started on the right track: influence, coaching, and team leadership.

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A good leader knows when a project has gone bad and is getting worse. I’m sure everyone can relate to an experience where a project rapidly moved toward failure. Failure is a good teacher and throughout my career I have had my fair share of good teaching experiences. One experience that had a memorable impact on me was the opportunity to assist my father on a project at his home. He had begun an extensive remodeling project on the exterior of his house. Due to unexpected scheduling conflicts with building contractors, we needed to remove some concrete stairs within 24 hours to allow the next building contractor to begin working. If the stairs were not removed in time, there would be a 3 week delay in the project.

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By Steven J. Stowell, Ph.D., Matt M. Starcevich Ph.D., and Roy S. Yamahiro

Sixteen blind people entered the classroom. The trainers had great expectations. The managers had no idea what to expect.

Imagine yourself one of sixteen managers starting the second day of a week-long senior-management development program. As you walk into the classroom you note a curious change: all the tables and chairs are gone. You mill around hesitantly with other participants. No one knows what is going on.

Enter the instructor with an explanation:

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Quality or Position?

There are many different types of leaders. There are those who are placed into leadership positions due to accomplishments such as consistently leading a team to success. There are also those who are placed in positions due to company politics. Others might be leaders because they are more senior and experienced within an organization. But simply being placed in a leadership position does not make you a leader. If you do not possess qualities of leadership, then people will likely only follow you because they are required to or they just want to keep their jobs. True leaders are those who make a difference and influence others as a result of the qualities they possess. They are remembered and cherished by those they influence.

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Igniting The Strategic Spark In Others

If the whole purpose of leadership is to leverage talent and achieve results through the efforts of others, then leaders have a very special stewardship when it comes to igniting the strategic spark in others. Leaders who understand the essence of this part of leadership have a golden opportunity to mine strategic ideas and capitalize on strategic actions of others. All it takes is a willingness to teach and motivate others about how to think and operate strategically. This in turn creates an organization that is prepared and ready to seize opportunities and head off catastrophes, which translates into better operating results down the road. But there is a tradeoff; it does require an upfront investment, discipline, and a skill set that unfortunately are foreign to some leaders.

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