Leadership Tools

Charles Cline

NC State Office of Information Technology

Thanks to Julie Loats and Paul Farran from KU

Goals

• Understand differences between managing and leading• Adding new tools – ideas, concepts, techniques,

broadens your ability to lead in any situation.

What is Leadership?What it’s not

• Leadership has nothing to do with seniority or one’s position in the hierarchy of a company.

• Leadership has nothing to do with titles. Titles make people feel more comfortable, as human beings learn by classifying things.

• Leadership has nothing to do with personal attributes. Extroverts and charismatic people aren’t the only leaders.

• Leadership isn’t management. Typically, managers manage things. Leaders lead people.

What is Leadership?Components of Leadership

• Followers?• Vision?• Empowerment of others?• Influence?• Values?

What is Leadership?Definition

• Kevin Kruse describes leadership as “a process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of others, towards the achievement of a goal”. [1]

• Leadership stems from social influence, not authority or power• Leadership requires others, and that implies they don’t need to be “direct

reports”• No mention of personality traits, attributes, or even a title; there are many

styles, many paths, to effective leadership• It includes a goal, not influence with no intended outcome

Every person, in every position, has an opportunity to lead.

• Sometimes you:– Lead people– Lead ideas or projects– Demonstrate leadership by the way you approach

conversations or everyday tasks in your organization

Are you managing or leading?Sometimes you do both

Managers Leaders

• Have defined responsibilities • Inspire others to follow

• Supervise others • Create vision and direction without necessarily defining exactly how to get there

• Review priorities set elsewhere and allocate resources for efficiency and effectiveness

• Focus on the people, understanding that they must attract and retain the attention longer term goals

• Focus on deliverables and delegate accordingly

• Will take risks, acknowledging that encountering hurdles is part of leadership

• May be risk adverse, avoiding conflict to keep a team running

Are you managing or leading?Sometimes you do both

Managers Leaders

• Focus on things • Focus on people

• Do the right things • Do the right things

• Plan • Inspire

• Organize • Influence

• Direct • Motivate

• Control • Build

• Follow the rules • Shape entities

• Implement • Initiate

Group Discussion:Are you managing or leading?

Sometimes you do both

• What do you think some of the differences are between managing and leading?

• Are you managing or leading?• Do any examples come to mind you want to share?• How do you identify a leader?

Leadership Styles

• The Transformational Leader• The Everywhere Leader

The Transformational Leadertrans·for·ma·tion |change in form, appearance, nature, or character

Original concept by James MacGregor Burns

Transformational leadership is one style that:• Is a catalyst for change in individuals, groups, and

organizations• Understands that a leader cannot transform people but

you can inspire them to transform themselves• Inspires people through motivation, compelling vision,

and intellectual stimulation

Inspiring transformational change• Articulate shared visions and goals

Not just the “what” – more important to understand why and where change will take you, your team, your organization• Express dedication and support

Motivation - you can do it! We can get there together!• Address crises and demonstrate high performance expectations

Acknowledge when people don’t see the vision or understand the values – rinse and repeat

The Transformational Leadertrans·for·ma·tion |change in form, appearance, nature, or character

Original concept by James MacGregor Burns

• Think of a time when someone inspired you to think differently or creatively about your work (or your role). What motivated you to approach things differently?

• Share your thoughts and experience with your group. Collectively describe two new approaches that would motivate you to approach the work you do in your organization differently.

Group Discussion:Transformational approaches

The Everywhere Leadereve·ry·where | in every place or part; in all places

Leaders exist at every level of an organization whether it is part of the job description or not.

Leading from where you are is:• Showing competence by the quality of the questions you

ask. Leaders ask more or better questions to learn from others.

• Astute assessment of people and situations. A leader can see those who are not pulling their weight or sabotaging a project.

Leading from where you are is:• Helping others feel that they have an important part to

play in the overall success of a team.• Seeking to complete a team rather than compete.

Leaders will put the organization first in order to succeed.

The Everywhere Leadereve·ry·where | in every place or part; in all places

Leaders exist at every level of an organization whether it is part of the job description or not.

Group Discussion:Leading from where you are

• Think of a time when you were successful leading from a “non-leadership” role.

• Share your thoughts and experience with your group. What could you do differently tomorrow, in your current role, to become a leader in your position?

Coalition Building and Storytelling

• Welcoming diversity means every person counts and every issue counts

• Meetings go better when everyone is included• Building a team around us is the most powerful way to bring about

institutional change• You don't change people's minds, you change their hearts. And you

change their hearts through stories• We all carry records about other groups that prevent us from

building effective alliances

In Closing

• Thank you for actively participating in this leadership work today!

• Exchange information with your neighbors to find out how other UNC system campuses are leading initiatives.

Citations

1. Kruse, Kevin. "What Is Leadership?" Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 9 Apr. 2013. Web. 4 Sept. 2015. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2013/04/09/what-is-leadership/>.

Resources

• Influencer: The Power to Change Anything by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David

Maxfield, Ron McMillan• Leading Diverse Communities

by Cherie R. Brown, George J. Mazza• Tribes

We Need You to Lead Us

by Seth Godin• Lead with a Story: A Guide to Crafting Business Narratives that Captivate,

Convince, and Inspire

by Paul Smith