“Leader” or “executive”?

The term leadership now adorns almost all publications on the subject of leadership. It can also be found in all management development concepts. However, they rarely specify what distinguishes a “leader” from a traditional manager.

The management of many companies is currently in a phase of self-discovery – not only because of the numerous upheavals, whether technological or social, that are taking place in the corporate environment.

What’s more: In the management debate of recent years, it has often been overlooked that every company also needs “incarnation figures”; people who embody it and to whom employees can orient their actions. For a long time, companies shied away from exposing such individuals. Instead, they tended to follow a “team-only philosophy”, which tends towards a certain egalitarianism.

Strong-willed personalities who are ready to act

In recent years, however, there has been a paradigm shift in this respect. It has been increasingly recognized that it is often individuals who drive companies forward through their actions. As a result, managers such as Elon Musk were suddenly accepted again; people who are often described as difficult to deal with on a personal level, but who everyone acknowledges that they run their companies (economically) successfully, which is why they are respected not only by shareholders but also by employees.

But what factors characterize such “leaders”, who act as the engines of their companies or the company divisions entrusted to them, so to speak? On the one hand, they have a very strong willpower that radiates to others and, on the other, they give priority to action. They are also prepared to actively use the power they have been given to accelerate decision-making and action processes and ensure that goals are achieved. They also have a “nose” for what is possible or just about feasible and a sense of where development is heading.

Leaders know that they need loyal supporters

In contrast to the “captains of industry” of the past, however, today’s “leaders” are usually not omnipotent autocrats who are enthroned like princes over their empire (even if this may be partially different in the case of Elon Musk). They have a different self-image. They know that they need fellow campaigners to bring about the necessary changes and processes that will lead their company to success. This results in a different relationship with employees.

True “leaders” initially assume that every employee contributes skills and abilities to the organization that are important for achieving the company’s goals – even if these diverge depending on their function. They also accept that their employees have an edge in terms of expertise in individual specialist areas and use their experience to achieve the (company) goals. Furthermore, they do not see their main task as controlling their employees, but rather guiding and motivating them as coaches and promoters. And: they give them their share of success. In short: a leader is an “integrator” and not a “confrontator” who also owns up to their mistakes and does not shift responsibility to subordinate “water carriers”. Consequently, they do not leave their employees out in the cold when they make mistakes.

Leaders react proactively to changes

Other skills are also required: Due to the increasingly diffuse environment in which companies operate, it is becoming increasingly difficult for their “captains” to gather all the information they need to make a sound decision. This is why a leader also needs a high tolerance for ambiguity regarding problems and goals. They must also have the necessary sensitivity to recognize even weak (change) signals in the corporate environment so that they can act proactively, because: A failure to make decisions often has more fatal consequences in day-to-day operations than a partial failure to make decisions, as a failure to make decisions often goes hand in hand with a failure to actively shape the future.

Targeted development of leadership skills

These skills and competencies are certainly more in demand in the upper management levels of companies than in the lower ones. But not only there. In decentrally organized companies with flat hierarchies, leadership qualities are in demand at all management levels, as well as leaders who see themselves more as creators than administrators.

However, project managers must also have these skills and qualities, as they often have to integrate many interests and understand many points of view in their work because their project affects numerous areas and functional groups. In addition, they often need a strong power of persuasion so that other people follow them or their ideas, even though they are not their disciplinary superiors.

Taking on (project) responsibility is often the ideal way to develop the leadership qualities required for taking on a prominent management position in (junior) managers with the corresponding development potential. This should therefore also be a central element of all management development programs.