Owner Directors, by definition, are leaders. So what are the key skills that they need for success? An independent survey of directors identified their chosen top qualities for success, and listed the first 3 as:
1. Strategic Planning and awareness
2. Objectivity
3. Seeing the company as a whole
There are many definitions of leadership, and it is obvious that the leader's style and skills need to be appropriate to the organisation and its objectives. A recent Leadership Cruise brought together a disparate group of business owners for 3 days under the guidance of TEN and its leader, William Montgomery. As the square rigger Sea Cloud II sailed from Nice to Elba, Porto Fino and back to Nice the topic of leadership was addressed and debated with 3 keynote speakers.
Vice Admiral George Zambellas spoke about the Royal Navy's leadership training. The Navy's purpose is to defend the nation's interests, and ultimately to fight. The training flows from that purpose to ensure that, whatever the circumstances, whoever is present knows what to do, and has been trained to do it. A deeply devolved process.
Simon Woodroffe the founder of Yo! Sushi and ex- Dragon had a very different commercial environment, with other drivers and constraints. His purpose was to start up a unique catering business with limited funds. His message and style would not necessarily win battles, but launched a successful restaurant business. The key points were seize the opportunity, believe in your objective and be determined. With a start up project this required aggression, and a dominating presence with all the detail under his control. Once the project was up and running, this approach was counter productive, and other people and skills were needed.
Ian Ayre the MD of Liverpool Football Club had started his career in the Royal Navy, and on leaving the service held a number of senior management positions in industry, including Chief Executive of Pace Micro Technology in Asia, before joining Liverpool as Commercial Director. His experience taught him that honesty must be the foundation for all actions, regardless of the difficulties. That principle has brought him and his companies success, and led to his promotion.
Three leaders with very different organisations, challenges and styles. The common factors with them all are a clear purpose, a focus on goals and strategies to get them there.
Directorpower works with ambitious owner managers to build their business and personal wealth. Leadership is a key component of those objectives. If you are interested in success for your organisation, why not give us a call?