“Smile because you mean it” The Journey to Authentic Leadership Fiona Beddoes-Jones The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy ©The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy,

“Smile because you mean it”The Journey to Authentic Leadership

Fiona Beddoes-Jones

The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy

©The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy, 2010. All rights

reserved. www.cognitivefitness.co.uk

Flexibility, Agility, Strength

The Courage to Lead

http://www.cognitivefitness.co.uk/

Fiona Beddoes-Jones

• Background in business, training & development

• Business psychologist and Executive coach

• Author of Thinking Styles® & Cognitive Team Roles® & the new Authentic Leadership 360

• Member of CIPD, IoD, BPS & ABP. Fellow of the RSA.

• Currently undertaking a PhD in Authentic Leadership

• Passionate about people, relationships & making a difference




The Courage to Lead


“There is a crisis in the quality of our leadership.

Followers have lost faithin the moral and ethical integrity of their leaders”.




The Courage to Lead


Objectives

To explore the concept of Authentic Leadership and its relevance to you in your own leadership roles in today’s complex business environment.

• What is Authentic Leadership and why is it relevant?

• What are the characteristics of a Authentic Leader?

• What are the outcomes and results of Authentic Leadership?

• What is its relevance to you?

• How do Authentic Leaders develop?




The Courage to Lead


What is Leadership?

Who is a Leader?




The Courage to Lead





Leadership and Power French & Raven (1960)

1. Coercive power – the power to force someone to do something against their will.

Its principal goal is compliance.

Power - People - Punishment








2. Reward power – anything we find desirable can be a reward. Withholding a reward is a punishment.










3. Legitimate power – the power divested in a role or position. Legitimacy may come from a ‘higher’ power – one with Coercive power.











4. Referent power - given by another person liking you or wanting to be like you, such as Exemplars or Role Models











4. Referent power - given by another person liking you or wanting to be like you, such as Exemplars or Role Models

5. Expert power – specialist knowledge or skills that are desirable or valuable to others






A brief history of Leadership Kurt Lewin (1939)

1. Autocratic / Authoritarian Leadership

The leader has the power and makes decisions, reward & punish.

2. Democratic / Participative Leadership

The leader involves group members but retains ultimate power.

3. Laissez-Faire / Delegated Leadership

The leader offers little guidance and devolves the power of

decision-making to the group.





A brief history of Leadership

1. 1940’s – Great Man theories of leadership (Power)

Leaders are born not made. Leaders as heroic and charismatic.

Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, Genghis Khan, Steve Jobs









2. 1950’s – Trait theories of leadership (Power)

People inherit certain qualities / characteristics that make them better

suited for leadership. There is a perfect list of traits for leadership.









2. 1950’s – Trait theories of leadership (Power)

People inherit certain qualities / characteristics that make them better

suited for leadership. There is a perfect list of traits for leadership.

3. 1955 / 1965 - Contingency theories of leadership (Power)

Particular variables in the environment or the situation will suggest the

appropriate style of leadership.






4. 1960’s – Behavioural theories of leadership (Power)

Leadership can be learned. Leaders are made not born. The focus is

on a leaders’ actions, not their thinking or state. Black box psychology







on a leaders’ actions, not their thinking or state. Black box psychology.

5. 1970’s – Participative theories of leadership (Power)

People are more productive when they feel engaged and involved and

have an input into decision-making. The leader retains the power.







on a leaders’ actions, not their thinking or state. Black box psychology

5. 1970’s – Participative theories of leadership (Power)

People are more productive when they feel engaged and involved and

have an input into decision-making. The leader retains the power.

6. 1980’s – Management theories of leadership (Punishment)

Management vs. Leadership. Leadership is about discrete transactions.





7. 1980’s - 1990’s – Relationship theories of leadership (People)

Leadership can be used to transform people and organizations.

There is a strong ethical and moral component to leadership.

Pseudo-transformational vs. Authentic-transformational









8. 2000 – Pro-social theories of leadership (People)

Leadership is inter-relational and co-created between people.

Values-led leadership, Ethical leadership, Sustainable leadership.

Barak Obama, Ghandi, Mother Teresa, Superman, Nelson Mandela









8. 2000 – Pro-social theories of leadership (People)

Leadership is inter-relational and co-created between people.

Values-led leadership, Ethical leadership, Sustainable leadership.

Barak Obama, Ghandi, Mother Teresa, Superman, Nelson Mandela

Authentic Leadership

What is Authentic Leadership?

A review of the literature reveals lengthy descriptors of what authentic leaders do rather than a neat definition of what authentic leadership is

“The best leaders will be transparent with their intentions, having a seamless link between their espoused values, actions and behaviours” (Luthans & Avolio, 2003)

Someone who is ‘themselves’ (George 2003)

“Leaders who are both psychologically self-aware and philosophically ethically sound” (Fiona Beddoes-Jones, 2007)




The Courage to Lead


What is Authentic Leadership? (FBJ definitions)

A way of leading (and a way of being) that links who you are (your beliefs and values) with how you lead and manage, in a way that is transparent to others

A personal style of leading that is predominantly people focused

An underpinning personal philosophy of wanting to be Your Best Self

A process of leadership that has self-awareness and ethical action at its core; combined with having the courage to REALLY lead




The Courage to Lead


FlexibilityAgility Strength



The Courage to Lead


FlexibilityAgility Strength



The Courage to Lead

Ethics and Authentic Leadership

The US military sees ethics as a part of someone’s charactere.g. honest, trustworthy

Ethics in the UK military is becoming critical:

a) integrity and transparency within a professional role

b) higher moral reasoning (as ethical capacity)




The Courage to Lead


Ethics and Authentic Leadership

Ethics are collective, not personal (Rodney Smith, Dept of Govt Relations, Uni of Sydney)

Ethics are formal, pro-social mechanisms, they are transparent codes of conduct. They are based on democracy and discussion, and are agreed

E.g. British Defence Doctrine and The Rules of Engagement

The Ten Commandments

BUT, leadership is a personal style, not a collective mechanism




The Courage to Lead


What are the Principles of Authentic Leadership? (i)

Before you can learn to lead others, you must learn to lead yourself

As a leader, only by trusting others and being prepared to ‘follow’ them, will they trust you and follow you

Establishing long-term, meaningful relationships, based on trust & respect, is the only way to achieve long-term, sustainable results

Everyone has a voice & everyone’s perspective is valuable. Therefore taking a multi-perspective approach is always appropriate




The Courage to Lead


What are the Principles of Authentic Leadership? (ii)

Tasks are important, but people are more so; ultimately,tasks are always done by, and for, people

One size does not fit all; each authentic leader is authentic in their own way, with their own style and a voice that is recognisable by others

Having a genuine desire to serve, and leaving a legacy, are both critically important to an Authentic Leader




The Courage to Lead


What are the Characteristics of Authentic Leaders? (i)

Higher levels of self-awareness (i.e. of oneself AND others)

Higher levels of ethics & integrity, where ethics is a capacity for moral reasoning that links to TAKING ethical action

Courage & compassion, where ‘courage’ is used in its 15th century meaning of having ‘heart’ & also its 20th century meaning of bravery

Higher levels of trust; in others and by others

Their own ‘voice’ which is recognisable to others




The Courage to Lead





The Courage to Lead

Courage from old French – cuer – meaning heart

1. The heart as the source of emotion; compassion, empathy.

2. The quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face fear. Bravery, strength.

3. Have the courage of one’s convictions, to act in accordance with one’s beliefs & values, especially in the face of criticism or danger.

What are the Characteristics of Authentic Leaders? (ii)

Low levels of narcissism & need for control

They know who they are at their core & are true to themselves. They understand how their beliefs & values influence their decision making

They self-regulate their thinking & behaviour and act as a role model

They continue to develop themselves & others, & use both formal & informal networks to get feedback & support

They dialogue constantly; with themselves & others.

They are mindful of how they effect and affect others




The Courage to Lead


What are the outcomes of Authentic Leadership? (i)

Interventions made by Authentic Leaders are more favourably received by followers:

Positive outcomes such as trust, optimism and the quality of relationships are all magnified by the lens of Authentic Leadership(Chan et al. 2005)

Outcomes are more influential and the resultant impact is increased; Authentic Leadership is therefore a ‘leadership multiplier’ (Chan et al. 2005)




The Courage to Lead


What are the outcomes of Authentic Leadership? (ii)

Long-term sustainable results & some kind of legacy (linking to Jim Collin’s Level 5 Leaders in Good to Great & more recent research on ethical companies achieving better results)

Followers are able to hear the leader’s voice & predict how they would think & what they would do & use that as a positive role model to guide their own actions

Feeling valued and trusted leads to an increased sense of well-being by followers who will therefore ‘go the extra mile’ for the leader




The Courage to Lead


How do Authentic Leaders develop?

1. Naturally over time & experience

2. Through suffering & hardship

3. To promote or support a particular cause

4. As an active choice of focused development activities

A life stories approach: Shamir, Dayan-Horesh, & Adler (2005)




The Courage to Lead


Why would you want to become an Authentic Leader?

It’s an ideal and it’s hard work! It’s not an ‘easy’ path to tread!

It’s a constant & ongoing journey. It’s almost impossible to achieve

If you stick to your values & ethics you may be attacked by others; hence the need for courage and resilience in the face of disagreement

You will constantly be challenged & tested by others & by situations; emotionally, intellectually & in terms of your own resilience

If you don’t want to be ‘your best self’ – if all you want are the magnified, positive results that AL can bring, people will see through you because you are not being an authentic leader!




The Courage to Lead


How do we develop Authentic Leaders & promote Authentic Leadership? (a brief summary)

A personal journey or a series of focused temporal inputs …………?

A focus on developing self-awareness & a people orientation

A focus on helping leaders to find out what their ethical boundaries are and how to operate within them

Encouraging debate & dialogue; being reflective & reflexive

Values driven leadership development; multi-perspectives, a generosity of spirit, compassion & the courage to do the right thing




The Courage to Lead


What next?

You have reached a choice point ……….

You can continue leading your life & your organization as you are currently doing, OR you could decide to take some more steps towards getting to know your ‘best self’ & of being the best that you can be ......... for the benefit of others

It’s up to you …………. Do you have The Courage to Lead?




The Courage to Lead


If you want to learn more…..

14th September 2011 Authentic Leadership: The Courage to LeadCONFERENCE A sustainable future built on trust

http://authentic-leadership.blogspot.com has a useful resources page

True North, Discover your Authentic Leadership by Bill George, 2007

Bill George, Peter Sims, et al., Discovering Your Authentic Leadership, Harvard Business Review, February 2007http://hbr.org/2007/02/discovering-your-authentic-leadership/ar/1

Daniel Goleman, What Makes a Leader?, Harvard Business Review, 1998http://hbr.org/2004/01/what-makes-a-leader/ar/1



The Courage to Lead

http://authentic-leadership.blogspot.com/

http://hbr.org/2007/02/discovering-your-authentic-leadership/ar/1

http://hbr.org/2004/01/what-makes-a-leader/ar/1


Documents

“Smile because you mean it” The Journey to Authentic Leadership Fiona Beddoes-Jones The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy ©The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy,