Final Integration Paper in Leadership
by Leader Ma. Corazon Q. Guevarra
I. Introduction
This integration paper summarizes what the Leader-writer has learned during the past eight weeks of the course which comprises information from the book- The Heroic Leadership, discussions and lectures in the blog, Harvard Business Review Materials and other related handouts provided by the Lecturer. The main objective of doing this paper is to provide a clearer view not only of how extensive has been learned but also how the leader intends to apply or put into practice the acquired knowledge.
II. What have I learned in the Leadership course?
The first assignment was to write the Learning Agreement which we were required to submit during the first session. The Learning Agreement was more of a Curriculum Vitae (CV) and an inclusion of a much deeper introduction of myself such as the analysis of my strengths and weaknesses; my five-year plan, my objectives in taking the course, and my desired grade. It was the start of the self-awareness exercise as well as being courageous enough by disclosing and sharing with our Professor some of my secrets like my weaknesses, plan and desired grade for the course.
During the first session, we were asked by our professor to define Leadership. Each leader gave different definition of the word which were all correct. According to Chris Lowney, author of the book Heroic Leadership, John Kotter has given the most concise definition of leadership. Thus, he defines Leadership as establishing direction by developing a vision and strategies that will bring about changes needed to achieve that vision. It also means aligning people by imparting direction in words and deeds to all those whose cooperation may be needed so as to influence the creation of teams and coalitions that will support the vision and strategies that will have to be carried out.
Leadership is also about motivating and inspiring people by helping them to overcome major barriers by satisfying their basic and most often their unfulfilled needs. It also means producing change in an impressive and powerful degree.
In other words, the leader guides us where we need to go (vision), taking us to the right direction, sharing the vision that we will follow willingly, and coordinates and balances the conflicting interest of all members, uniting us in facing the inevitable obstacles that may come along the way.
Ignation Leadership differs from the contemporary as well as the conventional leadership. The former emerges in a very different light. The four differences are:
1. We are all leaders and we are leading all the time, well or poorly
2. Leadership springs from within. It is all about who I am as much as what I do.
3. Leadership is not an act. It is my life, a way of living
4. The task of leadership is an ongoing and continuing process.
The Ignatian leadership approach has been constantly reminded to us by our Professor which is for me the most significant message of this course, i.e. everyone is a leader regardless of profession whether one is employed or not, handles people or not, a manager or an ordinary employee. Leadership is for everyone. Hence, this concept justifies the famous saying that "Leadership is not a position or a title, it is an action and example".
Goes, Ricci and Clavius had illustrated to us what Ignatian leadership was. Despite the fact that they had different professions i.e. Goes was an explorer; Ricci was a linguist, mapmaker and philosopher; and Clavius was a mathematician and astronomer, all of them exemplified the Ignatian leadership style regardless of their failures (Goes did not reach his destination-Cathay or China). Their leadership resisted our common concept that leadership is all about success. For them, Leadership was all about visioning, persevering, innovating, energizing, and teaching.
In the book Heroic Leadership, C. Lowney also cited the Jesuits' enduring leadership secrets which are the four core pillars or principles namely: self awareness- understanding one's strengths, weaknesses, values and worldview; ingenuity- the ability to adapt and innovate amidst a changing world; love- engaging others with a positive and loving attitude, unleashing their full potential; and lastly heroism- energizing oneself and others with heroic ambition and a passion for excellence.
The four core pillars of the Jesuits, I believe are the reasons behind their enduring success and longevity as an organization. These same principles are still applicable in the modern times.
Authentic leadership is being a genuine leader and not a replica of others. According to Bill George et.al.no one can be authentic by trying to imitate someone else. Hence, an authentic leader can learn from the experiences of others but he has to be who he really is. The qualities of an authentic leader are: demonstrates passion for his purpose; practices values consistently; leads with his heart as well as his head; establishes long-term, meaningful relationships; and has the discipline to get results.
Authentic leaders use their difficult experiences to give meaning to their lives. They are not after their need for public praise or financial rewards because they value more their intrinsic motivations. They want long-term results. Integrity means a lot to them to sustain the organizational results through good times and bad. Their leadership emerged from their life stories which make them discover that their authenticity is helping them more to be effective leaders.
Authentic leaders develop self-awareness out of their experiences. They are willing to listen to feedback especially the kind that they do not want to hear. They practice values by translating them into action. They create a work environment where people are respected, valued of their contributions, provided job security and encouraged to fulfill their potential. They give importance to staying grounded.
The question on whether leaders are born, made or situational has been the topic of the debate during the first session. The group that defended the view that leaders are made, won the debate. I am so glad that I was part of that group. Although we won, in my own opinion leaders are a combination of the three- born, made and situational. The percentage for each may vary in every individual. Some may have strong innate leadership qualities and little amount of experience while others may have little inborn qualities while others are made because of their significant experiences.
Personal Mastery which revolves in the idea that leadership starts with oneself is the ability to be aware of the impact of our feeling, thinking and behaving on the people and situations around us.There are seven masteries that a leader should have namely:
1. To think by using our five senses, learning to observe, using critical thinking which is endless questioning, using syllogism and taking into consideration the magnitude , importance, urgency and doability of the decision.
2. To intuit from an Italian word "intuire" which means from within. It also means sixth sense or the gut feel. Good leaders sometimes make decisions out of intuition which are most of the time right decisions.
3. To feel by letting our innermost feelings flow out from us by being empathetic and sympathetic; practicing self-awareness, emotional intelligence and emotional maturity; and mastering adverse emotions by using Adversity Quotient or AQ- this is how we respond to and deal with tough situations and everyday hassles that may come along the way.
4. To do by learning before doing through the use of a business plan such as marketing or operating plan; learning while doing through the use of problem solving, pareto principle, PERT, Gantt Chart, Decision tree and the like; and learning after doing through the use performance evaluation, audit or post-mortem review.
5. To communicate by disseminating and receiving messages accurately, and learning how to prioritize messages that urgently require action. Being creative by delivering attention –getting and unique speeches resonates with the audience.
6. To lead by taking responsibility of oneself and others through self-awareness on what type of leaders we are: born or made, inspirational, transformative or adaptive. Apart from this, leaders should possess the qualities of being assertive and adventurous.
7. To be by knowing everything about myself such as what is my mission and vision in life, strengths and weaknesses, failures and successes, how I would like to be remembered when I am gone and what I am going to do to be remembered as such. And this is possible by living as if it were always the last day of my life.
Leadership theories have also been taken up namely:
1. Great man theory which assumes that the leadership traits are intrinsic or inherent which means that great leaders are born and not made. This theory also sees that leaders are destined by birth to become great leaders, and their leadership capabilities come out when faced with an appropriate situation.
2. Trait Theory supports the idea that people are either born or made with certain qualities that will make them excellent leaders. These qualities are intelligence, creativity, sense of responsibility and other traits or values that make anyone a great leader.
3. Behavioral Theory which addresses the shortfalls of the trait theory offer a new point of view that focuses on the behaviors of the leaders as opposed to their mental, physical and social characteristics. This also strongly supports the concept that leaders are made not born.
4. The Contingency Leadership theory contends that there is no single way of leading and that every leadership style should be based on certain situations, which means that there are certain people who perform at the maximum level in certain circumstances; but at minimal performance when they feel out of place or uncomfortable about the situation. This theory is at some point an extension of the trait theory in the sense that human qualities or traits are related to the situation where leaders engage leadership.
5. Transactional theories are typified by the relationship and arrangement made between the leader and his followers which support positive and mutually beneficial relationship. For these theories to be effective, the leader must be able to align to give reward or punishment to his follower for their performance.
6. Transformational Leadership theory explains that a person interacts with others and is able to create a solid relationship that results in trust that will later result in an increase of motivation, both intrinsic and extrinsic, in both leaders and followers. It also emphasizes that leaders transform their followers through their inspiration and charisma as these attributes provide security to the followers making them feel they belong thus they can easily associate with the leader and his purpose.
The components of leadership have also been discussed such as: character which is the moral and mental traits of the individual; purpose which is the reason or objective for existence; and competence which is the capability and proficiency to accomplish tasks and duties efficiently
Leadership vs. Management
Leadership differs from management. While leadership provides direction, encouragement and inspiration to motivate a team to achieve organizational success, management on the other hand, coordinates people's efforts and the allocation of resources to maximize efficiency in achieving company's goals.
The distinction between leadership and management is useful to better understand their different functions in an organization. Leadership and management go hand in hand. To be a good manager requires leadership skills, and an effective leader will be dependent on applying their own and others' management skills to achieve their vision.
The table below outlines some of the key differences between leadership and management:
Leadership Characteristics
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Management Characteristics
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- Strategic and people oriented focus
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- Tactical and organizational focus
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- Setting of organizational direction and goals
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- Planning coordinated activities
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- Motivation and inspiration of people
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- Administering and maintaining systems
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- Establishment of principles
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- Formulation of policies
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- Building a team and development of talent
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- Allocation and support of human resources
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- Development of new opportunities
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- Solving logistical problems
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- Promoting innovation and invention
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- Ensuring conformance to standards and procedures
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- Empowering and mentoring people
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- Instructing and directing people
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- Risk engagement and instigation of change
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- Management and containment of risks
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- Long term, high level perspective
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- Short term, detailed perspective
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Leadership and management are closely linked functions: each complements the other. Without efficient management, the direction set by a leader is at risk to being unsustainable. Similarly, management without an effective leadership will perpetuate current activities and directions, without adaptation to meet strategic goals and without optimizing team performance.
According to Ronald A. Heifetz and Marty Linsky, there are two challenges that a leader or an organization faces. Leaders are typically engaged in adaptive rather than technical challenges as the former have no known solutions and are more complex which concern conflict of values and habits wherein a change in hearts and minds is needed. The latter on the other hand, have concrete and known solutions and process to address a problem or an issue.
Adaptive change gives rise to resistance because it challenges the habits, beliefs, and values of the people. That is why when leaders seek to implement a change, and the change opposes to the held values and habits, leadership becomes a danger because people will either fight or flight. The change puts them to unwanted situation of a probable loss, uncertainty and express disloyalty to some people and their cultures. This is why people resist. Such dangers are masked in an organization namely:
1. Marginalization- Leaders should orchestrate conflict rather than embodying it. It is dangerous to embrace and exemplify an issue or a conflict under the leader's authority as it ties to these adverse circumstances his success and survival.
2. Diversion – A leader should give a careful thought why he has been promoted unexpectedly or given an enjoyable and important task to handle. He should take a pause and consider whether this is a tactic to divert him from addressing an uncomfortable issue. This is sometimes a clever way to divert him from the main issue or problem.
3. Attack - Attacking a leader personally is another tried and tested method of counteracting his message. An attack on the person with the message dissipates the acceptance of leadership. Linsky and Heifetz note that no one criticizes when the leader has good news or rewards, they do so when they dislike the message. The display of attack creates a drama and moves people away from underlying issues. By personally responding to attackers, the leader is conniving with the attacker in distracting the public from the real target. Hence, the leader should learn how to handle personal attacks.
4. Seduce – This mask is about losing your sense of purpose and takes place when your guards are down, when defense mechanisms are reduced either by your supporters or those opposing you. One of the everyday forms of seduction is the desire for approval of one's own supporters. When he intends to implement a significant change, his supporters will have to make a compromise for the change to succeed. The hardest job of the leader is to handle disappointed expectations.
Leadership requires the ability to recognize the manifestations of danger, and also the necessary skills to respond effectively to them.
Leadership is also about defining moments which are memorable and life changing events, actions or decisions in our life that have helped us define our true purpose, mission and meaning of our existence, thus resulting to a significant change in the life of a person. They can be positive or negative but rarely ordinary. They can be in the form of trials, a specific but unique experience, or a painful experience. They are unalterable. They are memorable and you usually remember the exact date and sometimes the exact hour that your defining moment occurred.
Defining moments are important because we can use them to discover our purpose which can affect many areas of our life to our advantage. I believe that we can also use them to teach us a lesson not only for our own benefit but also to benefit others.
The first reflection paper that we submitted was all about our defining moments which was for me a process of looking back and identifying the events that have not only brought me tears and joy but remarkably changed my direction in life.
The importance of teambuilding has been successfully disseminated to the class by conducting actual team building activities. The objectives of the exercise is to boost morale and motivation, build trust, stir up better communication and understanding, improve productivity and give way to self-awareness. The team building exercise is one of the leader's resources to get his team move towards his vision and goals.
I strongly recommend team building in every organization or company. But just like retreats for students and teachers, it should be done every year to maintain and keep the fire (passion/motivation) burning. Team building is a nice venue for employees to open discussions among themselves, and between employees and management thereby improving relationships. It also breaks the barrier between leaders and employees, and develops problem-solving skills.
Passion and leadership go hand in hand. This is the reason why leaders have to examine themselves to be aware of their passion or the things they love doing. Passion communicates as it emanates from it our desires to achieve something which makes leaders succeed in their undertakings.
The reflection paper about passion came to be very enlightening. Normally, we take for granted or put aside the things that we want to do. Little did I know that these passions are what keep us going when we feel down. They restore our energy when we get weak. Thus it is important for us leaders to be always passionate to be successful.
What shapes a leader is also essential in the self-awareness exercise of a leader. It is very vital for a leader to know the factors that have molded him which may come from internal such as his strengths, weaknesses and values; or external that which comes from external sources - his environment, the opportunities and situation, his mentor, role model and family members. All of these affect his decisions and prepare him for the challenges that he will be dealing with in the future.
Personally, the happy family where I was brought up, my values, and my mentor (my boss) have greatly influenced and shaped me into what I have become as a person and as a leader.
Exercises such as Enneagram Test and Genogram are useful methods that have helped us become more aware of ourselves, particularly our leadership traits.
Enneagram test gives a more or less accurate view of what type of persons we are. Enneagram which is from the Greek words "ennea "meaning nine and" gramma" meaning something written or drawn, is a model of human personality which is of nine interconnected personality types:
The test has been widely promoted in business management, seminars, conferences and spiritual retreats which its main objective is understand and develop oneself, although being criticized for lack of scientific validity.
I took the Enneagram test three times which yielded same results. I am a type 2, meaning I am a helper which is considerably accurate. I always have this innate conviction that I should always be willing and ready to help others without expecting anything in return. I am basically an altruistic person with unconditional love for others. My positive qualities are: sincere, empathetic, warm-hearted, friendly, generous, self-sacrificing. On the other hand, at times I can also be sentimental and a people- pleaser.
Aside from the fact that Genogram is very useful in helping us trace the origin or source of our leadership skills, I find the activity very exciting as it led me to a beautiful realization –to appreciate my roots especially the hardships that my parents went through just to be able to send myself and my siblings to college. Despite their lack of college education and resources, they patiently and diligently fulfilled their obligations regardless of extreme sacrifice and difficulties. For me, what they did was an example of heroic leadership.
The Bad Boss- Plan a Crime group activity was fun. The creativity and ingenuity of every group came out. Our group (Group 1) prepared a story based on workplace fraud which is a common occurrence. Every business—large or small is vulnerable to these crimes. Anomalies or irregularities in the workplace usually start small triggered by dire financial situations such as desperate need of cash of those who are in the position like the CEO, CFO, accountants, procurement officers, etc. These "small" irregularities will surely continue until they balloon which will significantly impact on the company's "bottom line" and eventually lead to its demise.
As in almost all cases, the perpetrators of the crimes are the top executives of the company. In the case that we have presented, the CEO and CFO who are supposed to defend the welfare of the company, with their good planning, persuasive and good communications and relationship building skills, were able to collaborate with the key people in the company to support their fraudulent schemes.
I agree with what our Professor said when he reminded us that power and wealth may drive leaders to drift towards the wrong direction. Hence, we should always remember that our ultimate purpose in life is not to serve ourselves but to serve others so that we can live in the loving presence of our Creator when our life here on earth is done.
The Call to Arms Speech is one activity that I find very challenging taking into account that I am really not comfortable speaking before an audience. Aside from voicing out our advocacies, the exercise's main objective was to give emphasis that leaders must have good communication skills because this is one of the resources that will influence their followers or constituents.
The activity has also strengthened my will and determination to pursue and be more active in carrying out my advocacy which is to help and participate in the preservation of our environment.
I have always been nervous whenever I am being asked to speak in front of many people. I am happy to know that the exercise has helped me gradually overcome my stage fright. I am now certain that with a little more effort and practice, I will be totally free from this kind of fear.
The 12 Stages of the Hero's Journey is a popular form of structure derived from Joseph Campbell's Monomyth from his book The Hero With a Thousand Faces that many Hollywood movies followed such as Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz.
Following the same structure, our professor has required us to pick a movie of our choice and illustrate the journey of the leading character (protagonist/hero) using the twelve stages. I chose the classic movie 12 Angry Men which is one of the best movies I have ever seen. The most exciting part in the exercise is to configure and pattern our own life story/journey using the twelve (12) stages:
1. Ordinary World
2. Call To Adventure
3. Refusal Of The Call
4. Meeting The Mentor
5. Crossing The Threshold-
6. Tests, Allies, Enemies
7. Approach To The Inmost
7. Approach To The Inmost
8. Ordeal
9. Reward (Seizing The Sword)-
10. The Road Back
11. Resurrection
11. Resurrection
12. Return With The Elixir
The Wheel of Leadership as illustrated below, represents the total make up of an authentic leader. An authentic leader is born (which can be traced through self-awareness exercises, our genogram and enneagram tests); made (can be developed through education, training, experience); and lastly, transformed (through our defining moments and crises).
The Triad of Leadership represents the three components of Leadership namely: purpose which is the vision or the direction which stands as the reason why his followers should follow him; competence which comprises the ability, skills and knowledge that a leader should possess that will make him act effectively in his job or at a given situation; and lastly, character which is the way a leader thinks, feels and behaves. For me the three are equal in importance in the make-up of an efficient leader.
The Audiovisual Presentation (AVP) was another project that was worth doing. It brought out the artistic side of every leader. Each AVP was really something to look forward to. We were able to know more about our fellow leaders. And in my case, every time I watch my AVP, I could not get away with the feeling of becoming too emotional because of the realization that this is where I am now and it gives me so much joy being aware that I was able to sail over turbulent seas and climb rocky mountains with flying colors.
The story about the Hope for the Flowers which was my first time to read lengthily, including a brief background of the author has shifted my first impression that it was a story for children. It was so nice to know that the lessons it intends to convey are for everyone. Hope for the Flowers is an allegorical novel written by Trina Paulus who is an advocate of justice, peace and environmental work.
The story is all about hope and transformation which indirectly speaks a lot about the advocacy of the author. Just like the caterpillars that have metamorphosed into butterflies to pollinate flowers so the latter can reproduce, leaders should also give hope to their followers that will transform them into better leaders as well.
True leaders are passionate and determined to transform the people and the organization they lead even if it entails hardships, (like the caterpillars in their cocoons) that will eventually work for the common good.
The story can also be likened to today's competitive era of wrong kind of leadership wherein some people would try to purposely step on someone else's foot to be on top. They do not care if they have already crossed boundaries, degrading others' self-worth and dignity. They do not realize that crab mentality isn't the key to success but rather, it is only by truly knowing one's self and reaching our goals without hurting others will make the best leaders that we can be.
The simplicity of the book to understand plus the creativity of the author have taken me to the dreamland with hope, peace and love in my heart.
The Ten Harvard Business Review (HBR) Must Reads on Leadership are:
1. What Makes a Leader? by Daniel Goleman
Daniel Goleman, the proponent of Emotional Intelligence (EI) said that IQ and technical skills are important but EQ distinguishes great leaders from merely good ones. EI which comprises five skills enables leaders to maximize their performance as well as their followers': self-awareness- knowing one's strengths, weaknesses, values and their impact on others; self-regulation- controlling and regulating disruptive moods and impulses; motivation- inspiring others to achieve their goals; empathy- understanding other peoples' feelings and emotions; and social skills- establishing rapport with others to influence them towards the desired direction.
The first time I heard about EI or EQ was from my mentor(boss) years back. Like Daniel Goleman, my boss is also a strong believer of EI. In fact, he uses EQ as a primary criterion when hiring or selecting people for employment. I share with him this belief that technical skills can be learned through training. EQ on the hand is not innately present in every person. Leaders with high EQ can get along well with their followers which results to achievement of desired goals thus, making them successful leaders.
2. What Makes an Effective Executive by Peter F. Drucker
Great managers differ in their qualities. Some are charismatic while others are dull, others are generous and others are tightfisted. Although effective leaders have different personalities, they have one thing in common by following eight practices: they ask what needs to be done; they ask what's right for the enterprise; they develop action plans; they take responsibility for decisions; they take responsibility for communicating; they focus on opportunities, not problems; they run productive meetings; and they think and say "We," not "I."
Discipline is needed to religiously apply these rules to ensure effective and efficient leadership. I agree with Peter Drucker when he said that even if one is not born a leader by following the eight simple practices and getting the right things done in the right way, one will make a good leader.
3. What Leaders Really Do? by John P. Kotter
According to John Kotter, leadership skills are not innate but they can be acquired and honed, hence, leaders are not born but made. He also mentioned that leadership is about learning how to cope with rapid change. In short, for companies to succeed, they should have adaptive leaders who can drive the former towards fast and continuous change. This is how management differs from leadership. The former is basically involved in organizing and staffing as well as in problem solving, while the latter is involved in setting direction and aligning and motivating people to be able for them to adapt easily to changes that continually come along the way.
Kotter was definitely right when he said that although management and leadership differ from one another, their functions are complementary.
4. The Work of Leadership by Ronald A. Heifetz and Donald L. Laurie
Leaders can make it easier for their followers to face adaptive challenges by applying the six principles:
a. Get on the balcony. This means that in order to be effective, a leader should be able to get some distance from the challenging situation to gain a better perspective and see the bigger picture and possibly pacify the hysteria that is taking place on the ground. This high-level perspective helps the leader mobilize people to do adaptive work.
b. Identify your adaptive challenge. By identifying and exposing the value-based conflicts, a leader can resolve them effectively.
c. Regulate distress. To inspire change without disabling people—pace adaptive work: First, let employees debate issues and clarify assumptions behind competing views safely. Then provide direction. Define key issues and values. Control the rate of change: Don't start too many initiatives simultaneously without stopping others. Maintain just enough tension, resisting pressure to restore the status quo. Raise tough questions without succumbing to anxiety. Good communication skills with calmness will relax the tension.
d. Maintain disciplined attention. Encourage managers to discuss on divisive issues, rather than indulging in scapegoating or denial. Deepen the debate to unlock polarized, superficial conflict. Demonstrate collaboration to solve problems.
e. Give the work back to employees. To instill collective self-confidence versus dependence on you—support rather than control people. Encourage risk-taking and responsibility then back people up if they err. Help them recognize they contain the solutions. Motivate them to make decisions.
f. Protect leadership voices from below. Don't silence whistle-blowers, creative deviants, and others exposing contradictions within your company. Their perspectives can provoke fresh thinking. Ask, "What is this guy really talking about? Have we missed something?"
The above pointers are very useful as they encourage to open the communication lines between the leader and his followers. I strongly support open forums to resolve conflicts among the people, and I encourage whistle blowers to voice out their concerns. In my past employment under the new management/owners, I was very disappointed to find out that they do not support whistle blowers. I think this is the reason why the company which used to be at the top is now going to the opposite direction.
5. Why Should Anyone Be Led by You? by Robert Goffee and Gareth Jones
Leaders must be good in inspiring their followers. It is not enough that they have vision, it is equally important to get their people follow them to get things done. Aside from having a vision, energy, authority, and strategic direction, there are four additional qualities that a leader should have, to wit: he has to show that he is human, revealing some of his weaknesses; he should be a "sensor," collecting data that lets him rely on intuition; he has to manage employees with "tough empathy and passionate care; and he must dare to be different, capitalizing on his uniqueness.
Mix and match these qualities to find the right style for the right moment. Without all four qualities, a leader might climb to the top. But few people will want to follow him, which will result to the failure of his company.
6. Crucibles of Leadership by Warren G. Bennis and Robert J. Thomas
Extraordinary leaders extract strength and wisdom from their crucible experiences which are in the form of trials, bitter circumstances and adversities. They find meaning and learn from negative events by rising above the bad situations and emerging more strong and confident in themselves and committed to work. Crucibles force leaders into deep self-reflection, where they examine their values, question their assumptions, and hone their judgment.
It is very inspiring to hear the stories of some great leaders who became who they are now because of the transformation that the many shapes of crucibles i.e. violent, traumatic, life threatening; or even the positive ones have done to their lives.
7. Level 5 Leadership The Triumph of Humility and Fierce Resolve by Jim Collins
What did the Top 11 Companies have in common? Each had a Level 5 leader. What propels a company from merely good to truly great? Level 5 leaders blend the paradoxical combination of deep personal humility with intense professional will. This rare combination also defies our assumptions about what makes a great leader. According to Collins, the key ingredient that allows a company to become great is having a Level 5 leader: an executive in whom genuine personal humility blends with intense professional will. A very good example of this kind of leader is Darwin Smith, CEO of Kimberly Clark who epitomizes Level 5 Leadership. Shy, awkward, shuns attention but shows iron will and determination. Such qualities made Kimberly Clark the worldwide leader in the industry.
Personally, I agree with Collins that humility should be one of the key traits of a leader. A leader who is too proud and arrogant will not make a pleasant interpersonal relationship with his people which will eventually impact negatively on the performance of the company.
8. Seven Transformations of Leadership by David Rooke and William R. Torbert
Leaders are made, not born, and how they develop is critical for organizational change. Every company needs transformational leaders—those who spearhead changes that elevate profitability, expand market share, and change the rules of the game in their industry. But few executives understand the unique strengths needed to become such a leader. Result? They miss the opportunity to develop those strengths. They and their firms lose out. How to avoid this scenario? Recognize that great leaders are differentiated not by their personality or philosophy but by their action logic—how they interpret their own and others' behavior and how they maintain power or protect against threats. The seven types of action logic are: Opportunist, Diplomat, Expert, Achiever, Individualist, Strategist, Alchemist.
David Rooke and William Torbert are correct in saying that the leader's journey of development or transformation is complex . Some people change little in their lifetimes; some change substantially. Self-awareness and willingness are essential in developing or transforming oneself. Those who practice these two attitudes succeed in becoming transformational leaders.
9. Discovering Your Authentic Leadership by Bill George, Peter Sims, Andrew N. McLean, and Diana May ( Please see page 2)
10. In Praise of the Incomplete Leader by Deborah Ancona, Thomas W. Malone, Wanda J. Orlikowski, and Peter M. Senge
No leader is perfect. But even with the presence of flaws and incompleteness, leaders' success is still possible by understanding the four leadership capabilities that all organizations need: Sensemaking—interpreting developments in the business environment; Relating—building trusting relationships; Visioning—communicating a compelling image of the future ; and Inventing—coming up with new ways of doing things.
Leaders should accept the fact that they are humans with strengths and weaknesses. In addition to the four capabilities, leaders should work with others who can fill in the capabilities that they are lacking. By taking this approach, they promote leadership in the entire organization, unleashing the expertise of their people, and directing the vision of their company.
Decision Making, Critical Thinking and Conflict Resolution were also discussed in the blog and expounded during the last session.
Decision making is a crucial responsibility for leaders. The decisions of a leader can make or break his organization meaning they can make things succeed or fail completely especially if there are many people involved. In situations where the leader has many followers, it is helpful to get their feedback and decide with them by knowing the consensus. For big companies especially, decisions are not supposed to be a one-man action.
There are times that a leader has to come up with fast decisions and at the same time take into consideration a lot of things or options. This is where critical analytical thinking comes in. Critical Analytical Thinking or CAT is definitely an edge for a leader in decision making. Hence, leaders must be able to master CAT which involves: challenging the question and assumption; asking all possible questions and not to accept hearsays; being able to know what data is relevant or irrelevant; being able to assess the magnitude and direction of the data; and being able to come up with logical conclusions
Being able to resolve conflict is absolutely necessary to be an effective leader. Conflicts are sometimes necessary to produce good results. Besides we should not expect everyone to agree with everything we say or do. The presence of conflicts at times is healthy so as to regulate or control probable abuse of those who are in authority, and also to bring out the truth. Pointers on how to resolve conflict were discussed on the blog to wit: to avoid (avoid unpleasant people who may give problems later), to pray (pray for adversary, for strength and understanding), to strategize (learn to neutralize the moves of the opponent), and to go to war (seek arbitration, go to court or give up).
The pointers and the options mentioned for CAT and conflict resolutions are useful but the most important thing that we should not forget doing is praying for God's guidance in our decisions. Discernment or obtaining spiritual direction will help us come up with right decisions and resolve conflicts wisely. If we constantly rely on God, he will give us wisdom that will guide us when there is a need to make decisions, and settle disagreements, differences or conflicts.
Mind mapping was one of the lessons that I found interesting. Although, this subject was only discussed briefly, I took initiative to make a little research. I happened to come across mind mapping few years back, but this time out of curiosity, I wanted to learn more about it.
According to the business dictionary, mind mapping is a graphical technique for visualizing connections between several ideas or pieces of information. Each idea or fact is written down and then linked by lines or curves to its major or minor (or following or previous) idea or fact, thus creating a web of relationships. Developed by the UK researcher Tony Buzan in his 1972 book 'Use Your Head,' mind mapping is used in note taking, brainstorming, problem solving, and project planning. Like other mapping techniques, its purpose is to focus attention, and to capture and frame knowledge to facilitate sharing of ideas and concepts.
MORAL LEADERSHIP MODEL
MORAL LEADERSHIP MODEL
Traits/Qualities
· Integrity
· Selfless Service
· Decision Making Skills
· Personal Values
· Leading by Example
|
Ethical
· Dignity & Respectfulness
· Serving others
· Justice
· Community Building
· Honesty
|
Authentic
· Passion for purpose
· Practice values
· Leads with heart and head
· Long-term meaningful
Relationships
· Discipline
|
Heroic
· Self-awareness
· Ingenuity
· Love
F· Heroism
|
Putting together what I have learned in this course, I was able to come up with my own Moral Leadership Model. I believe this is what our world needs especially our country in addressing its long-existing problems that have been caused by absence or lack of moral leadership. The rampant graft and corruption in the country is a clear manifestation of the declining morality among our leaders, which is the root cause of other national problems like poverty, unemployment, illiteracy/education and environmental problems etc.
I have always been bothered by the hopeless and desperate situation that our country has been confronted with for the past few decades. Seeing the country being deeply buried into this devastating condition would sometimes make me feel hopeless. As ordinary citizens, we are also leaders, thus, it is our duty to lead this country to the right direction by being vigilant and united in our goal for a better Philippines by not allowing our leaders to deviate from the path of being moral leaders. This is also our obligation to the community we live in, to the organization that we work for, as well as to the church in which we are part of. In every unit in the society, one thing in common is lack of moral leadership. I know that everyone will agree with me that no one is exempted from being a moral leader. This is for me, the first and foremost requisite and indispensable quality of a leader.
Moral Leadership is comprised of four components:
1. Traits/Qualities - integrity, selfless service, decision making skills, personal, values, leading by example
2. Ethical –dignity and respectfulness, serving others, justice, community building, honesty
3. Authentic- passion for purpose, practice values all the time, leads with his heart as well as his head, establishes long-term and meaningful relationship, discipline to get results
4. Heroic- self-awareness, ingenuity, love, heroism
Conclusion:
My experience in the Leadership Course has been beyond my expectations. The richness of the course with life-changing lessons has put myself into another level of spirituality of not merely being a leader in words but in deeds, not only for myself but more so for others. The realization and recognition of my duties of being a leader have given me a deeper meaning of my temporary existence here on earth in order to prepare for the salvation of my soul which is also my mission for others.
I have joined Ateneo Graduate School of Business two years ago but this is the first time I have gained full understanding of being an Atenean which I will forever be grateful for. Thank you Professor Saguinsin for the experience which I can consider a turning point and at the same time a defining moment in my life. I pray that I will be able to follow your footsteps in spreading the Ignatian way of life of being "men for others" and doing "more" for Christ.
References:
- Chris Lowney, Heroic leadership, (Chicago, Illinois,2003) p.13,-15,27
· Retrieved from: Leadership on the Line: The Heart of Danger, The Faces of Danger | Cruxcatalyst: The Heart of Change of-danger/
· Retrieved from http://www.movieoutline.com/articles/the-hero-journey-mythic-structure-of-joseph- campbell-monomyth.html
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