Leadership-Interview-Transkript - Sozialpsychologie - Goethe ...

me about changing our conceptions of leadership so that everybody understands their
individual responsibilities in society to take on leadership in difficult and complicated
situations.
Rolf van Dick: We all can be leaders in some situations. But how would you then
characterize effective leadership? Is there an overarching theme what makes people effective?
Michael West: In my opinion effective leaders are first of all people who have a positive
vision of the difference what they want to make in the world whether it’s in their communities
or in an organization. People are effective if they are positive, optimistic and confident about
pursuing that vision, because if they are not positive optimistic and confident then the people
around them surely will not be. I think it’s also people who are concerned about good
relationships, such as influencing people through being positive with them, through
establishing, cooperative relationships, cooperative ways of working, through coaching
people, giving people a feedback on their performance, through encouraging people or
through nurturing people. For me effective Leadership is also about working in teams. For
example you described my career accomplishments and I feel that those accomplishments are
not mine, they are genuinely many people’s accomplishments and I have been fortune enough
to have my name on so many of those accomplishments, but actually they are the result of the
work of many people. So I think leadership is about working with, building and being part of
teams. Effective leadership is increasingly about reaching cross boundaries so working with
people from different disciplines, working with people from different organizations.
Particularly working with people from different nations, cultures, ideologies and religions is
now in our world vital for effective leadership. Moreover effective leaders are people who are
fundamentally kind who are kind in their orientation to other human beings, because I think
that we create effective communities in the long term through building trust and kindness.
And I think effective Leaders are also people who are courageous, people who will have the
courage to pursue a vision, the courage to be kind, the courage to reach out cross boundaries
and the courage to innovate.
Rolf van Dick: From all the people you have encountered in the coal mines or at the
universities. You talked to numerous chancellors, you consulted ministers and secretaries.
Who would you think embodies what you just described, who has inspired you?
Michael West: Having said I don’t think we should been talking about heroic leaders. There
are some leaders who a rather like that, who have inspired me none of whom I have met. But I
would list people like Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar who has in a very quiet way been in
inspiring leader, not to the people in Myanmar but to people all over the world. The Dalai
Lama again not a dominant loud and extrovert sort of figure but someone who threw wisdom
gentleness and learning has had a profound influence. Nelson Mandela who’s leadership I
think was extraordinary when he was released from Robin Island. In a way what he did was to
go against his followers. At that time I think it was all of us who were aware of political
events then we anticipated that South Africa was about to embark on the most bloody awful
civil war. And the ANC, the African National Congress, was ready for nelson Mandela to lead
the ANC against the Apartheid Regime. But he went against his followers and said; we must
negotiate our way if we possibly can to a new state, to a new democracy and a new freedom.
And he had the courage to do that. So for me it’s leaders like that who particularly inspired
me, and most of them have been people of humility, kindness and gentleness especially
people who are persistent for a long period of time to achieve the vision they aspired to.