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Leadership Vision and Integrity

For some, the definition, role, and responsibility of the leaders of the organization and the managers/supervisors of the organization are blurred. The leader of the organization and the managers of the organization are not the same. One of the primary roles of a leader is to establish and clearly articulate the organization’s vision. This blog entry will highlight the importance of communicating the organization’s vision, and setting organizational direction.

Shared Vision

Leaders are visionaries. They envision a better tomorrow. They are also innovative. Leaders seek to change things from the way they are to an improved state. Business leaders monitor, measure, and analyze the existing state of the organization, and set the course for organizational improvement.

Human nature facilitates doubt, cynicism, and resistance to change. Because of this inevitable behavior, leaders must be adept in explaining why embarking upon a change in the status quo is in the best interest of all organization constituents (i.e. employees, vendors, suppliers, shareholders, community, etc.). As a result, leaders must communicate a “shared vision”- one that has value and benefit for all of those affected by the proposed change.

Leaders who ask the organization to buy into a future that will have an adverse impact on organization constituents are futile. As an example, a business leader whose vision is to increase shareholder value, but does harm to the environment – or society in general may fail. Moreover, a leader whose vision is to increase organization profitability by reducing operating expenses via employee layoffs will not be successful (in the long-term). Finally, if the organization leader’s vision is rewarding or fulfilling to only the organization leader or a select few in the organization, the overall productivity and effectiveness of that organization will suffer.

Leading Change in Times of Change

We live in a world of constant change. We are currently driven by a technology-based environment. Five years ago, maintaining business networks and social networks through facebook, twitter, etc were non-existent. Ten years ago, conducting business via webcams and international conference calls was in an infancy phase. Over twenty years ago, offshoring jobs to other countries with a workforce of arguably comparable skills, but lower salary and employee benefit demands had not been fully implemented.

In today’s business world, we expect our leaders to offer a shared vision for five to ten years in the future when the business climate over the next two to three years is uncertain. As future, aspiring leaders, you must examine past experiences (your own personal experiences as well as the experiences of others in leadership roles). What types of change have you envisioned in your personal life? What types of barriers did you overcome to achieve your objectives? How have you gone about soliciting support from others to reach a common goal? Having a feel for what has and has not worked in the past may serve as a guideline for communicating and leading future initiatives.

Involving Others – Seeking New Ideas

Leaders are also proficient at involving and empowering others to achieve a shared vision. Leaders recognize that new ideas and support for innovation can come from anywhere and almost anyone. Therefore, leaders strive on communication. The flow of information and the interaction between those who share the leader’s vision is essential. However, seeking new ideas and steering away from the norm also means taking risks. When taking risks, there is always a matter of trust and confidence involved.

As a result, carefully entwined with a leader’s vision and innovation is their credibility. Few things endear employees more than the credibility and integrity of the leader. As a leader, you must always do what you say you will do. If you have always kept your word, and established a pattern of successful innovation in the past, this will minimize employee doubt concerning the future.

Organization leaders with a high degree of credibility and integrity typically find themselves surrounded with employees who are proud of their organization; speak favorably of the organization to others; and feel a sense of belonging and ownership in helping the organization achieve the shared vision and reach what may otherwise appear to be insurmountable goals and objectives. Consequently, leadership vision and innovation can be achieved through communication, examining past experiences, involving others, and consistently performing with a high degree of integrity. On the other hand, not communicating (or miscommunication of) the vision, not involving others, or not acting with integrity is a guaranteed recipe for failure. Failure in implementing innovation may result in poor employee productivity, effectiveness, and morale. It may also result in a poor or undesirable reputation among the other organizational constituents. And these dysfunctional behaviors inevitably hit the organization bottom line and the primary organizational goal – profitability.

More information on leadership and vision can be reviewed in Corporate Leadership Selection: Impact on American Business, Employees, and Society (Authorhouse Publishing).

Feedback to the bi-monthly blog entry is always welcome.