Leadership is the
capacity to translate vision into reality. —Warren Bennis (an
author and expert on leadership).
If someone can organise group members to get the job done, I would consider them a good leader. However if they can get the job done while making sure that each group member is happy with their role and the end result, I would consider them a great leader.
The type of leader I
prefer to work for is a person who listens to all the members of a
group to find a shared vision for a project and then knows how to
delegate the workload fairly and efficiently to get the job done. The
kind of leader I prefer to work for is the type of leader I aim to
be.
The qualities of a
great leader:
- A visionary mind which is capable of planning out a project and seeing each individuals place.
- The focus and commitment to keep the group on task and moving in the right direction.
- The ability to inspire others in to action and keep them organized.
- Knowing how to approach different people and communicate an idea effectively.
Belbin roles which
don't (usually) work for leadership roles:
- Plants and Resource investigators are great in the beginning stages of a project as they can generate ideas and contacts however they are usually bad at organising ideas and others to get a job done.
- Monitor Evaluators and Team Workers can communicate well or see the bigger picture (respectively) however they lack the ability to inspire a group.
- Specialists could be good leaders if they were experts in leadership however when they're working outside of their specialization, they lack motivation and passion so they usually won't make a good leader.
- Completers are accurate and focused however they focus on every detail and are usually too intense to organize others well.
Belbin roles which
make excellent leaders:
- Co-ordinators are focused and good at delegating/organising the members of a team and this makes them a good candidate for a leader.
- Shapers are great visionaries who can see what needs to be accomplished within a project, they are also good at inspiring action in a group.
- Implementers are very efficient and focused on getting the job done, they know what needs to be done and how to get it done.
Note: I don't believe that a personality test can sum up a person effectively especially when different
situations arise – because people are capable of learning and
changing as different problems present themselves. If a leader role is needed, yet no one in the group is a leader on paper, someone will rise to the occasion and fill the role. For me, Belbin
roles are just a list of possible group roles which a person
could take, not which roles a person is “made” for.
2 comments:
I'm a believer in leaders being mostly made, not born. Systems can be created that allow any belbin role to be an effective leader in some capacity. For example, a Specialist can learn to develop the enthusiasm to inspire their subordinates. A hierarchy can also be created that makes inspiration unnecessary. Leadership in the military is fairly effective, yet I can't recall ever being inspired most of my crew commanders.
In the private sector people often make their own decisions about what training they receive, and are left to take away whatever they want from it. In this kind of area it can appear that leaders are born, not made because it's often impossible to determine what a good leader has been through to teach them the skills they have now.
I like the quote at the beginning. I do think that another important quality of a leader is being able to take input from those around you. People don’t always know everything about a topic, so it is important to also listen to those people who are working with you, in case they know something you don’t. Great post though, easy to follow and well structured.
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