Very few managers were taught how to build high performance teams. In general, they are technically proficient but managerially inept. Even fewer leaders know what it takes to lead in today’s increasingly volatile, complex, unpredictable business landscape. Those who struggle to compete and stay ahead in business today understand that simple truth. Leadership is constantly evolving. New challenges and new realities demand new competencies and better insights – especially those that place a premium on the ability to motivate, retain and engage their employees to collaborate, innovate and go the extra mile.
This foundation course is for those who want to ascend the leadership ladder or be a better, more perceptive, competent and confident leader in the middle. It identifies the uncomfortable truths and answers the critical questions every manager must contemplate and then address on the way up. These include: Do I possess the emotional and mental qualities, interpersonal skills, street-smart insights, decision-making savvy and executive presence to lead? What specific credentials and skill sets will get me recognized for my potential and advance my career objectives?
Other critical questions include: Is there a dark side to being a leader that managers don’t know about? Can I handle the dynamic, unpredictable forces that will impact this enterprise going forward: like changing stakeholder expectations, decaying business practices, and action plans that aren’t really designed to cope with the unanticipated yet formidable black-swan events? Can I deal effectively with the increasing ethical dilemmas in my profession, manage and lead those who are smarter than I am, or build a healthy, adaptive, resilient workforce? What about my own physical and mental fitness to lead? What am I ultimately responsible for that I was not as a manager? What, for me, is the meaning of leading with purpose?
This one-of-a-kind learning experience redefines the meaning of leadership today. It was designed and is led by someone who has dealt with thousands of business leaders as clients, coachees and students as well as being the subjects of various government accountability audits and crisis interventions. So, he knows exactly what makes a poor leader, a good leader and a great leader. The course is not a philosophical discussion about what leadership is – that’s provided in supplemental readings which are optional. Rather the focus is on what you need to know to lead others to greatness.
Warren Bennis, once deemed the guru of leadership theory, claimed there are over 850 distinctive definitions of the role. Indeed, it’s highly nuanced but, to survive and thrive, one must know his or her unique leadership identity and powerfully convey that brand. It must speak to changing worker expectations (for transparency, flexibility and inclusion), the talent and innovation wars (recruitment and retention of knowledge workers), new business models that reflect an integrated but disruptive global economy, intrusive government regulation, environmental degradation, escalating stakeholder expectations, how culture shapes performance, data explosion and knowledge obsolescence. What’s your confidence level in tackling these things?
The Curriculum for 2025 (a partial list of topics – please ask if you’d like the full curriculum)
❏ Realities: The 15 uncomfortable truths about leading others; Defining your identity: What works in what context; The 10 commandments of earning leadership; The dark side of being a leader; Where leaders most often come up short and why.
❏ Competencies: What leaders actually do? Have you got what it will take? The most difficult part of leading; What to do when you do get there; How to allocate your time; Executive presence, self-promotion and brand building; Leading those smarter than you are; A leader’s most important skill set.
❏ Responsibilities: Risk intelligence; Ethical leadership: How to build the right culture; Liberating, optimizing and retaining talent; Investing in your fitness to lead; The top 10 things leaders must know; The questions you must ask in order to lead; What does leading with purpose actually mean?
The course includes an 87-page pre-course workbook of self-diagnostic tasks and supplemental readings.