Leadership Development and the Importance of Character

Executive Summary
This essay outlines the skills a leader may need to attain to succeed. The discussion includes
what makes a good leader and whether there are known characteristics or personality traits that
are common in the leaders of today.
Some traits exist to naturally form a person with a good character and morals who is more likely
to succeed in the business world.
Introduction
As practice shows, it is not so easy to take middle managers out of their comfort zone and
encourage them to make bold decisions. Many managers lack basic leadership skills. They are
under excessive control, which often prevents them from making innovative decisions. Even
though the requirements for a leader depend on the current situation, the main competencies of a
leader remain unchanged, both, high professionalism and the ability to adapt quickly.
The leader's personality sets the tone for the entire team. That is why leadership development is
one of the most important activities of the organization's HR services. In this area, it is useful to
refer to the experience of the world's largest companies, for which the development of leadership
qualities of managers has become a familiar practice. We can identify several proven
recommendations that will help managers improve their effectiveness and start acting more
decisively and proactively.
Discussion
Examples of Leadership Development in the Workplace.
A leadership development system should include assessments and training that the best ways to
encourage an employee to develop are to identify their strengths and indicate what they need to
work on. Using modern methods for evaluating employee productivity will help you get an
objective idea of their professional level and leadership skills. You can use the popular 360-
degree method for evaluation, which can help you determine the degree of compliance of an
employee with their position using an anonymous survey of their business environment.
Performance reviews based on objective data are also important for the organization's leadership
development system. Surveys that identify the degree of client orientation can also be a useful
tool for evaluating your business. Regular assessment allows a Manager to form an objective
view of himself, his competencies, and professional success. The main purpose of this analysis is
to understand in which direction the Manager needs to develop, as well as what knowledge and
experience he needs.
Some companies regularly conduct leadership training for managers of key divisions. The task
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for a business coach is formed based on the indicators in the reports on the work of departments
for the year and on the results of employee surveys. The effectiveness of training is evaluated
based on how the employee applies the knowledge gained in practice.
Leadership development based on the 70/20/10 principle training aimed at developing leadership
skills should be as close as possible to real conditions. At least 70% of the training must take
place in the workplace so that the Manager can get new experience. Leadership development
through hands-on training involves participation in new projects, key meetings, and internships.
At the same time, 20% of the time should be devoted to the exchange of experience with other
successful managers, established leaders. This is possible if the novice leader will observe the
work of a more experienced Manager and adopt his methods of work, communication style, and
logic of finding solutions. Note that only 10% of the time is devoted to theoretical training:
visiting programs and courses, training, professional development, distance learning, reading
specialized literature.
An example of an effective training program is the Procter&Gamble leadership development
program, in which the three main blocks (professional competencies, managerial skills, and
personal qualities) are prioritized by their module. For a future leader, internal attitudes to
development are important, so training affects self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and even
the physical form of the Manager.
"Quality circles "as a tool for developing leadership in the organization in some companies, there
is an interesting practice of combining the best specialists of their different divisions into a kind
of “advanced team" to solve the most difficult tasks. This small team is fully or partially engaged
to work on the company's key projects. The "quality circle" can serve as an effective tool for
leadership development, as it brings variety to the daily work of the future leader. On the one
hand, the inclusion of a specialist in such a team means trust on the part of management. On the
other hand, it is a challenge for a specialist, forcing him to concentrate, show potential, inspire
colleagues, and make management decisions.
Leadership development requires a competitive spirit the Practice of creating a Bank of ideas is
widespread among the world's leading companies. Suggestions for improving and optimizing
business processes received from employees are combined into a single Bank. The opportunity
to offer your ideas serves as excellent motivation, creates competition, and supports the spirit of
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competition. As a rule, an employee defends his idea before the Commission and, if the idea is
approved, implements it at the company's expense.
A similar system operates in large Russian companies. An example is the universal leadership
program that operates in the management company "Alfa-Capital". If an employee develops an
economically attractive project, the company invests in it. An example is the alpha Wealth
program, which increases the loyalty of wealthy clients through a package of benefits from the
company.
Why is Character Different to Leadership?
As explained, good leaders need particular characteristics to be successful. But how is the
character different from personality? The character can be defined as a persons’ set of moral and
mental qualities and beliefs that make a person different from others. Characters indicate traits of
a person that are not always obvious on the surface.
However, the character is a central and important element of leadership, especially for the kind
of cross-corporate leadership that is essential in a complex global business organizationы, it
should not and cannot be ignored. Character fundamentally determines how we interact with the
world around us, what we notice, what we zoom in on, who we talk to, what we value, what we
choose to act on, how we decide...And the list goes on.
Why might Character be relevant to Leadership skills?
Many theories suggest that character is important to leadership because it builds trust, and
without trust, people will not follow a leader. When good leaders are described they are often
referred to as good with people, with good communication skills, and creativity. However, none
of these would be useful without a good character. As already defined, having good character
makes a person more trustworthy, and so it is relevant to discuss what makes a trustworthy
person. Trust can be categorized as someone who; keeps promises, is reliable, is honest, shows
consistent behaviors, is open to both good and bad opinions on their choices, and can look for the
common good in people.
Leaders need to be open to listening to a variety of advice, both good and bad. In the same way,
they need to be able to access the opinions given and still make an informed decision that will be
respected and valued by their peers. Over time, as a leader makes good choices for the company
they will be more highly reputed and respected within the company. Essentially, the leader can
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