What Makes a Leader Resilient?

       When I think of resilience it brings to mind the movie Blind Side that was based on Michael Oher's life.  In the movie Michael Oher is faced with many challenges from a mother that was an addict to living in the streets but through it all he found a way to look at the positive.  His story is what resilience is all about, the ability to move forward even within the troubled times.  We have all had setbacks in our lives but the test of true resilience is how you bounce back. So with this in mind what does it take for a leader to be resilient?  Commonly used terms, which are closely related within psychology, are "psychological resilience," "emotional resilience,""hardiness","resourcefulness," and "mental toughness."

      A leader can only get so far with stamina, ideas and skills to deliver success year after year. This is why a Leaders ability to bounce back, revitalize and renew is essential for the leaders of today. "Most research now shows that resilience is the result of individuals being able to interact with their environments and the processes that either promote well-being or protect them against the overwhelming influence of risk factors."

      A Leader must learn the skills necessary to become resilient in a turbulent marketplace. A recent study by Korn-Ferry found that 90% of leaders were let go due to physical or mental conditions that impaired their leadership effectiveness. Second, organization changes planned without consideration for the impact on the human condition, will not only cause current leadership to falter, but they will also cause the next crop of leaders to be inefficient and ultimately everyone will suffer. A leader needs to understand their own strengths and limitations.  An understanding of who in the organization compliments your capabilities will create teamwork and support. A leader must be aware of the challenges that they face. Self-Awareness is an important part of a leader’s resilience.  Empathy, consciousness and learning are important qualities that need to be focused on.  Emotional Intelligence so that the leader realizes the personal impact to others and understands how connections create and maintain relationships.  A leader must maintain wellness spiritually, emotionally and physically.

Conner (1993) identifies five attributes of personal resilience:

- Positive: views life as multifaceted and overlapping - as challenging with hidden opportunities

- Focused: clear vision of what is to be achieved - uses this as a guidance system to maintain perspective

- Flexible: pliable when responding to uncertainty - has a high tolerance for ambiguity, displays humor and patience and relies on relationships for support

- Organized: applies structures to help manage ambiguity - sets priorities and manages
simultaneous tasks and demands, plans carefully and asks for help when needed

- Proactive: engages change instead of evading it - uses change to their advantage, leans from past experience with change and influences others to do the same

      To lead in today’s marketplace it takes continuous development, effective use of resources and mental/emotional clarity.  The key is to maintain these factors in order to maximize sustainability. While business acumen and industry knowledge can be gained from the classroom and through experience, leading for life requires a relationship with one’s self and the business community. The ability to lead from the heart is a trait that will give a leader the ability to be in the race for the long run.  The days of ruling with an iron fist are short lived and not the qualities of a leader for life.    The successful leader of the future will lead by intuition as well as through knowledge.

Zautra, A.J., Hall, J.S. & Murray, K.E. (2010). "Resilience: A new definition of health for people and communities", pp. 3–34 in J.W. Reich, A.J. Zautra & J.S. Hall (eds.), Handbook of adult resilience. New York: Guilford

Anthony, E.J. (1987). "Risk, vulnerability, and resilience: An overview", pp. 3–48 in E.J. Anthony & B.J. Cohler (Eds.), The invulnerable child, New York: Guilford Press

The Case for Business Resilience

15 Steps For Effective Team Leadership

     Leading a team to become an effective and efficient group is an important part of any organizations framework.  Leadership in a team environment is essential for the team’s success.  Effective team leadership requires a leader to perform certain actions to be effective.  Team leadership is an essential part of creating an environment for success.  In order for a leader to move a team into effectiveness the leader must be effective in these fifteen areas of management.

Compose team - The leader must be a facilitator in composing the team so that they are effective in assigning the respective responsibilities within the team. 

Define mission - Defining a mission is crucial to the team understanding their directive and moving in the same direction to achieve the goals

Establish expectations and goals - A leader must be sure that the goals and expectations of the team and the individual team members are understood is iatrical to the success of the team. 

Structure and plan - With the team’s mission and overall purpose established, setting challenging but realistic goals for the team and outlining clear performance expectations based on those goals aids in accomplishing the team’s task

Train and develop team - Leadership actions directed at coaching, developing, and mentoring the team have been shown to enhance team processes and effectiveness across a wide range of formal and informal leadership sources

Sense making - Given the impact that disruptive events can have on team functioning, sense making is a particularly important team leadership function that satisfies important team needs.

Provide feedback - From a functional leadership perspective, feedback processes are an integral part of the team leadership process that allow teams to assess their performance, adapt as necessary, and develop over time

Monitor team - To ensure that the team performs up to its potential and is aware of external contingencies that may impact its functioning; the team must be monitored as it actively engages in task performance

Manage team boundaries - The leader must be involved in creating team boundaries and work as the peace keeper and manager of the team’s interaction

Challenge team - The team leader needs to challenging teams with regard to their task performance and confronting the team’s assumptions, methods, and processes in an effort to find the best ways of accomplishing the team’s work

Perform team task – Sometimes a leader needs to roll up their sleeves and help. A team leader may need to  perform the team’s task involves taking a more active role in the team’s work by participating, intervening, or otherwise performing some of the team’s task work.

Solve problems - As a leader it is necessary to solve problems that surface in the team’s directive.  There are times that problems suffice that must have the assistance of the leader to solve in these instances a strong leader is required to solve the issues so that the team can progress in the team’s directive

Provide resources – As a Leader it is important to provide resources for the team. This includes obtaining and providing informational, financial, material and personnel resources for the team.

Encourage team self-management – A Leader needs to encourage team members to resolve task and teamwork related problems themselves, and by relying on their own resources rather than seeking expertise from outside the team, the team becomes more adaptable and resilient.

Support social climate – A Leader must help to solve conflicts, building cohesion, setting the team climate, demonstrating consideration, and empowering team members. They found a positive relationship between supportive team leaders and team performance.

     As a Leader it is essential to be proactive in the formation and facilitation of the team that they lead.  A leader is the facilitator and with this monitoring, solving issues and moving the team forward are essential parts of their responsibility.  Without all of the elements of effective leadership a group could falter.  Effective leadership in a team can create success for the organization overall and produce a highly effective team.  They must have an open communication with the members of the group to assure that the directives are being met. When all of these directives are met the leader can create an effective team.

Morgeson, F., DeRue, D., & Karam, E. (2010). Leadership in teams: A functional approach to understanding leadership structures and processes. Journal of  Management, 36(1), 5-39. (Business Source Complete Accession Number: AN 47241619).

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Leadership Styles and Adapting to the Situation

Leadership styles do need to be adjusted due to the circumstance.  Just as an artist changes their brush size or stroke a leader must also look at the situation and the group to determine the correct style for the environment. “Leadership is less about your needs, and more about the needs of the people and the organization you are leading. Leadership styles are not something to be tried on like so many suits, to see which fits. Rather, they should be adapted to the particular demands of the situation, the particular requirements of the people involved and the particular challenges facing the organization.” The Wall Street Journal Guide to Management” by Alan Murray, published by Harper Business.

Situational Leadership Theory Hersey and Blanchard (1977) is a contingency theory that states leaders should adapt their leadership style based in the subordinate.  “The theory states that instead of using just one style, successful leaders should change their leadership styles based on the maturity of the people they're leading and the details of the task. Using this theory, leaders should be able to place more or less emphasis on the task, and more or less emphasis on the relationships with the people they're leading, depending on what's needed to get the job done successfully.” Mind Tools Ltd, 1996-2013, The Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Theory Choosing the Right Leadership Style for the Right People

The early version of Charismatic Leadership Theory was developed by Max Weber (1947) his theory was based on a natural born leader emerges with a vision in the face of a crisis.  The theory holds that the follower sees the leader to be an innovator in the face of crisis.  Since Max Weber the theory has been formulated into a new version by various social researchers. “Attribution of charisma to leaders is believed to be dependent on 4 variables: 1. the extent of discrepancy between the status quo and the future goal or vision set forth by the leader, 2. the use of innovative and unconventional means for achieving the desired change, 3. a realistic evaluation of environmental resources and constraints for achieving such change, and 4. the nature of articulation and impression management used to inspire subordinates in pursuit of the vision.” Toward a Behavioral Theory of Charismatic Leadership in Organizational Settings Conger, (Oct 1987)

Transformational Leadership Theory McGregor Burns (1978) works to enhance motivation, morale and performance of the followers through different psychological tools.  This is achieved by helping the follower or sub ordinate identify with the project and organization.  The leader helps the follower to feel that they are a role model and a point of inspiration for other team members.  This helps to give ownership to the follower.  The leader uses the strengths and weaknesses of the followers to align them with the correct tasks to give the follower the best chance for success.

Shaping your leadership style to face the challenge of the current situation is important. 

After looking at the three leadership theories the leadership style that is the most difficult style to achieve is situational leadership theory.  Adapting to the situation that you are currently in and the people that you are leading can be difficult but if obtained can be highly successful.  With this in mind I would say that transformational leadership is the most adaptable for many situations and many people can identify with the values that this theory creates in both the leader and the follower.  We can see that charismatic leaders have been around us and have lead people through a troubled time like great leaders such as Muhammad Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Mother Theresa or Nelson Mandela. These leaders have used techniques that incorporate the transformational leadership skills and abilities.  Leading with empathy can transform the field of Management and industry.

 

 

Success or Failure of a Leader Are Based on Attitude of the Leader

The success or failure of a leader is based on attitude of the leader.  I am a firm believer in the law of attraction in that attitude can influence the outcome of any situation.  Great leaders need to be motivational to be successful today.  They must create a sense of following and trust in the direction that they are leading their followers. 

The strategy of attention through vision creates an overall focus for the organization, particularly in times of socioeconomic change.  Such managerial leaders are continually looking for challenges (opportunities) that need solving rather than merely solving the ones that come their way. J. Darling, Organization Development in an Era of Socioeconomic Change: A Focus on The Key to Successful Management Leadership.  Leaders are the directional compass for the organization and are always looking ahead for the path of the organization to follow.  Transactional leaders predetermine what their followers should do to realize their personal and organizational aims; they classify these aims and help their followers to become more self-confident in order to achieve their goals with the minimum effort. I. Simić, Transformational Leadership-The Key to Successful Management of Transformational Organizational Changes Today Leaders must communicate and articulate their vision of the organization.  Effective communication is invaluable today to be a successful leader.  “Think about it, how do the best leaders motivate and inspire their people? Through clear communication. How do the best organizations promote discipline, accountability and strategic alignment? With clear communication. And, how do market leaders sell their products and services? With compelling ads and marketing campaigns, in sum, by clear communication.”

Communication: The most important key to leadership success. Trust is an extremely important factor and quality in a leader.  Trust is in fact something that a leader must have in his followers and followers must have in their leader.   It must thereby be a two-way enactor that helps to enable the managerial leader to make it possible for organizational development to occur effectively; two-way because trust must reside as a very valuable thought in the mind of the managerial leader, thus being vibrated to the universe which returns it to the leader via the law of attraction (Hanson, 2004)

Respect through confidence is essential to the success of a leader.  The respect of the followers in the leader is an important part of evoking confidence in that leader and their ability to lead.  “Respect is a choice made by personnel in an organization, and in virtually all cases it is based upon the confidence they first have in a managerial leader's thoughts, and reflected in his knowledge and ability to make appropriate decisions regarding organizational development. “J. Darling, Organization Development in an Era of Socioeconomic Change: A Focus on The Key to Successful Management Leadership

Transformational Theory

        Transformational leadership works to enhance motivation, morale and performance of the followers through different psychological tools.  This is achieved by helping the follower or sub ordinate identify with the project and organization.  The leader helps the follower to feel that they are a role model and a point of inspiration for other team members.  This helps to give ownership to the follower.  The leader uses the strengths and weaknesses of the followers to align them with the correct tasks to give the follower the best chance for success.

       James MacGregor Burns (1978) first introduced the concept of transforming leadership in his descriptive research on political leaders, but this term is now used in organizational psychology as well (Bass & Riggio, 2006).  Burns explained that the process is one in which leaders and followers help each other to advance to a higher level of moral and motivation.   He introduced to concepts transforming leadership and transactional leadership. The transforming approach changes the life of both the people and the organization.  This changes the perceptions and aspirations of the followers and the leaders.  The transactional approach is a give and take relationship, this relationship both the leader and the followers take an active role in the formation of success.  This theory supports a leader to live by example and create the traits that they are looking for the follower to display.  

       Bernard M. Bass (1985) continued the studies originated by Burns Theories (1978) by looking at the tools that were inspiring the transforming and transactional leadership.  Bass replaced the transforming with Transformational leadership expanding on the methods by adding measurements to the impact on leaders and followers and their performance.  These leaders are measured by the influence that they have on their followers.  The followers have respect for the leader and work harder towards the goal and the leader is inspired by the followers, which in turn makes the leader work harder toward the goals and objectives.

       This research has been ongoing for the last 30 years and the analysis has shown that transformational and transactional leadership positively predicts a variety of performance outcomes including individual, group and organizational level variables.