As I reflect on the Kiwi success with the Americas Cup earlier this week, I couldn’t help but think about the lessons that can be drawn from Emirates Team New Zealand, Peter Burling, and his team(s) involved in bringing about a triumphant win for New Zealand. Lessons applicable and transferable to leadership in business and government.
The days of the autocratic ‘John Wayne’ leader are on the wane. The business environment has become too complex, uncertain, ambiguous and dynamic for ‘One Great Man’ – however great – to navigate alone. In the post-2008 era, the Chief Executive needs to build and lead an Executive Leadership Team (ELT) with a mix of capabilities and personality types. The team needs ‘sensing’ and ‘intuiting’ skills to steer the organisation through the volatility and lack of visibility of current conditions.
Not everyone who is promoted to a managerial role is an effective leader. Leadership requires an ability to think and act strategically, says Dr Geoff Lorigan.
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head.
If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.”
Nelson Mandela
