LEADERSHIP

By Daniel Whitford

When we think of leaders we tend to think of some of the great political leaders of our time, over the last century there have been many political leaders that spring to mind.

Nelson Mandela John F Kennedy Winston Churchill Adolf Hitler Mahatma Ghandi Dalai lama Genghis khan Margaret Thatcher Queen Victoria

To be a leader you don’t have to lead a political campaign, there are many leaders everywhere we look, some examples are:

Work place: In the work place there is what I call a pyramid of leadership, this starts at the top with the CEO and filtering its way down the levels of management, from managers to supervisors and team leaders Football teams: Examples of leaders in a football team could range from club management to the coach and captain.Social groups: from school to your circle of friends, we have all witnessed those people who tend to lead rather than be a followerCelebrities: Jamie Oliver, Jamie was responsible for leading people to healthy foods and changing their views on eating habits as well as educating schools on child obesity and helping them implement new menus. Business: Over the years there have been many successful business men and women, all leading the way in business and their industries.

Some examples of great business leaders are:

1.Jeff Bezos, Amazon– Jeff Bezos is a pioneer in world of internet commerce, and was instrumental in defining this space that is now defining many aspects of the internet world. It is Jeff Bezos who innovated the concept of “predictive analytics”–recommending products to customers based on search history and buying habits. Whether you like the concept or you hate it, the idea has made online commerce more profit rich and efficient, and is making online shopping a better experience for consumers throughout the world.

2.Howard Schultz, Starbucks – From his upbringing in a poor family in the Bronx to an athletic scholarship and eventually the head of Starbucks, Howard Schultz is a consummate example of courage, hard work, and the ability to achieve the American dream. Even in the glow of his own successes, Howard is also interested in investing in others’ success and continues to invest actively in other business ventures, such as eBay.

Sir Richard Branson• And last but not least I would like to talk about Richard

Branson as the leader who inspires me. Anyone who owns more than 400 companies and is worth billions of dollars is clearly doing many things right. I admire Richard Branson’s tenacity, and I admire his personal brand.

• While there are some cores principles to being a leader which I will touch on later, Sir Richard Branson defies these and has proven to be successful by implementing his own style and way of thinking, I would say that he definitely thinks outside the box.

In an interview he described his own leadership style.

Dan Schawbel: How would you describe your leadership style? How do you believe this style makes your company culture unique?

Richard Branson: Rule-breaker – because I never learned the rules in the first place. To change the game is at the heart of what Virgin stands for, so the company culture has always been: “Don’t sweat it: rules were meant to be broken.”

Schawbel: From the beginning, how often would you research what your competitors were doing? What did you learn from them early on that helped you develop your branding strategy?

Branson: Researching the competition has never been the Virgin way. Many of our products and services come about because we pay attention to what the market is missing or what’s not being done well. The commitment is about doing things differently.Our strategy has been to screw business as usual. To look at what it is our customer wants, and what it is the industry needs, and to go in and exceed their expectations. And we’ve been successful not by wasting time scrutinizing our competitors but by looking at ourselves from the point of view of our customers and seeking feedback through listening.

Richard’s 3 Leadership Principles

1. Listening is one of the most important skills that anyone can have. That’s a very Virgin trait. Listening enables us to learn from each other, from the marketplace, and from the mistake that must be made in order to get anywhere that is original and disruptive. I learn so much from guests and employees that way.

2. Learn: Learning and leadership go together. Too much credit goes to me for what we have achieved at Virgin but the successes happen from working and learning with some of the world’s most inspiring and inspired people.

3. Laughter: My number one rule in business, and in life, is to enjoy what you do. Running a business involves long hours and hard decisions; if you don’t have the passion to keep you going, your business will more than likely fail. If you don’t enjoy what you are doing, then you shouldn’t be doing it.

What leadership strengths can I bring to Rich’s?

• Firstly what is leadership?

The Definition of leadership in business:• The individuals who are the leaders in an organization, regarded collectively.• The activity of leading a group of people or an organization or the ability to do this.

Leadership involves

• Establishing a clear vision.• Sharing that vision with others so that they will follow willingly.• Providing the information, knowledge and methods to realize that vision.• Coordinating and balancing the conflicting interests of all members and stakeholders.• A leader steps up in times of crisis and is able to think and act creatively in difficult situations. Unlike management,

leadership cannot be taught, although it may be learned and enhanced through coaching or mentoring. • The act of inspiring subordinates to perform and engage in achieving a goal.

Leadership Style

A leadership style is a leader's style of providing direction, implementing plans, and motivating people. There are many different leadership styles that can be exhibited by leaders in the political, business or other fields

1. Autocratic leaders make decisions without consulting their team members, even if their input would be useful. This can be appropriate when you need to make decisions quickly, when there's no need for team input, and when team agreement isn't necessary for a successful outcome. However, this style can be demoralizing, and it can lead to high levels of absenteeism and staff turnover.

2. Democratic leaders make the final decisions, but they include team members in the decision-making process. They encourage creativity, and people are often highly engaged in projects and decisions. As a result, team members tend to have high job satisfaction and high productivity. This is not always an effective style to use, though, when you need to make a quick decision.

3. Laissez-faire leaders give their team members a lot of freedom in how they do their work, and how they set their deadlines. They provide support with resources and advice if needed, but otherwise they don't get involved. This autonomy can lead to high job satisfaction, but it can be damaging if team members don't manage their time well, or if they don't have the knowledge, skills, or self motivation to do their work effectively. (Laissez-faire leadership can also occur when managers don't have control over their work)

For me leadership doesn’t have a secret formula; all true leaders go about things in their own way. It’s this ability to think differently that sets them apart - and that enabled successful leaders like Steve Jobs to create perhaps the most respected brand in the world.

What leadership boils down to is people. Whatever your style, whatever your method, you need to believe in yourself, your ideas and your staff. Nobody can be successful alone and you cannot be a great leader without great people to lead.  So you may be asking what leadership skills can I bring to Rich ?

Traits•Adaptable to situations

•Alert to social environment

•Make people feel valued

•Ambitious and achievement orientated

•Assertive

•Cooperative

•Decisive

•Dependable

•Dominant (desire to influence others)

•Energetic

•Persistent

•Self-confident

•Tolerant of stress

•Willing to assume responsibility

Skills•Great Listener•Ability to motivate my team (incentives as a team and also for individual motivations)•Lead by example•Ability to engage the team (Communication) •Ability to deal with negativity •Clever (intelligent) •Conceptually skilled •Creative •Diplomatic and tactful •Fluent in speaking •Knowledgeable about group tasks •Organised (administrative ability) •Persuasive •Socially skilled

My Leadership Development

Whilst I believe that my leadership traits and skills are at an acceptable level there are many ways for me to hone my skills.

•Reflect and identify the skills I need to lead effectively and create my action plan to develop them.•Ask for feedback from work colleagues, line managers and my ‘followers’.•Find a mentor – learn from positive leadership role-models.•Attend further leadership and management training(CPD)•Review your performance as a Leader.•Assess myself as a Leader. •Conduct a SWOT analysis - Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats.