By MILLIE ONG and KAREN NEOH
Through research and interviews with the best global leaders, Leaderonomics has drawn the conclusion that great leadership consists of four fundamental areas that we term masteries:
Business mastery
Personal mastery
Functional mastery
Leadership mastery
Whilst each mastery on its own is valuable, there is a synergy when all four are combined and it is this amalgamation that we believe to be the key to being a great leader of the future.
Business/Domain mastery
At the essence of business/domain mastery, is the ability to identify opportunities and connect the dots. The most successful leaders understand their environment, and are able to spot gaps and envision a way forward. This level of awareness, perspective, insight and vision is strengthened through experience and exposure, and begins with an enthusiasm to learn and keenness to see.
The essence of business/domain mastery is the ability to identify opportunities and connect the dots. The most successful leaders understand their environment, and we are able to spot gaps and envision a way forward. This level of awareness, perspective, insight and vision is strengthened through experience and exposure, and begins with an enthusiasm to learn and keenness to see.
Focus areas include:
Strategic thinking
Global perspective
Industry awareness
Domain experience
Personal mastery
Personal mastery boils down to self and how effective we are as individuals. It encompasses elements such as our ability to influence, communicate, energise, create, and manage time and projects. We believe that the cardinal key to developing this mastery is having an awareness of self so we understand how to minimise our weaker areas and how to develop them, whilst leveraging and exposing our strengths. We observe this trait in all compelling leaders.
Focus areas include:
Personal effectiveness
Passion
Self-awareness
Resourcefulness
Influencing skills
Teamwork
Creativity
Energy
Functional mastery
Functional mastery is all about expertise. Successful leaders are not jacks of all trades and masters of none. They possess depth and have spent energy and time in specified areas to acquire credibility in their chosen fields. We believe it is fundamental for leaders to select and focus on developing themselves in certain spheres to acquire a solid level of know-how and perspective.
Focus areas include:
Deep technical
Functional skills
Breadth of functional skills
Process orientation
e-savvyness
Skills including but not limited to:
Customer service
Finance
Legal
Marketing and social media
Performance management
Project management
Sales
Talent management
Leadership mastery
Leadership mastery is as much about decision-making and timing of usage of traits as it is about competency of leadership traits. Whilst it is important for a leader to be a big picture thinker, it is also crucial for a successful leader to be detail oriented, humble and assertive. Therefore, we believe that decision making lies at the core of powerful leadership. This mastery is developed through exposure to different contexts and experiences:
Change advocacy
Decision-making
Extreme leadership
Skills including but not limited to:
Management
Managing teams
Mentoring and coaching
People engagement
See main story: Where Will You Stand In 2040?
Millie Ong wonders how many future CEOs of 2040 she has met, and where everyone is on their leadership journey. Karen Neoh has been privileged to have worked with great CEOs (even of the 20th century!) and has an inkling she has met at least two CEOs of 2040. Drop us a line or two in the comment box below or email us at editor@leaderonomics.com. For more Consulting Corner articles, click here.
Published in English daily The Star, Malaysia, 11 April 2015