racetracks

40 • NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA BUSINESS JOURNAL • SEPTEMBER 2003
Leaders, molded from the circumstances
of their lives and the drive from within,
share some basic traits but differ in style
and skill.
A few professionals offered their opinions
on the leadership styles of President George
Bush, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld,
Secretary of State Colin Powell and Senator
Hillary Clinton.
Intelligence tops the list of traits shared by
successful leaders.
“To be a good leader, you have to be smarter
than your troops,” says William J. Parente, Sr.,
Ph.D., professor of political science at the
University of Scranton.“You have to be able to
express yourself spontaneously when the press
is interrogating you. Powell, Rumsfeld and
Clinton, in particular, are articulate. Bush is
learning on the job.”
But strong opinions from Rumsfeld and
Clinton, who tend to overstate their ideas, can
hamper their effectiveness.
“It’s important for a leader not to alienate
segments of the people he serves,” says
Parente.“I think that means you have to moderate
your own political views so as not to
make the job of leading these people more
difficult than it already is.”
Paradoxically, Colin Powell’s style displays
that moderation, a characteristic that draws
unified support and bonds ideas along nonpartisan
lines.
Humor also creates a bond between leaders
and those they guide.“Bush is very good at
this,” says Parente.“It speaks to a person's selfconfidence
and innate self-esteem if you can
make fun of yourself.”
But some situations call for challenge, and
responsibility exhibits a leader’s true grit.
“America desperately needed a decisive,toughtalking
task-oriented leader to make us feel safe
and powerful again after 9-11,and that happened
to be President Bush's strength,”says Henry O.
Patterson,Ph.D.,assistant professor of
psychology at Penn State’s Berks-
Lehigh Valley campus.“He effectively
used confrontational and competitive
strategies to build cohesion and confidence
among Americans.”
When factors change, such as the
end of war and economic decline,
strength can turn to weakness.
Change requires a more deliberative, collaborative
and consultative style than the President
has displayed so far, according to Patterson.“If
he is not flexible enough to change his style in
response to changing situations, his leadership
effectiveness will likely diminish over the
remaining years of his presidency.”
Patterson questions whether Donald
Rumsfeld will be able to adjust his style to a
more collaborative and consultative one as the
world situation changes. Since September 11,
Rumsfeld comforted Americans’ fears with his
confidence, certainty and willingness to use his
powers in the face of extreme circumstances.
“Rumsfeld's style appears to be textbook task-oriented
autocrat,”says Patterson.“This style works
best when the situation is highly uncertain and followers
want and need structure and clarity.”
But good leaders surround themselves with
others whose skills and styles supplement their
own.“Secretary Powell displays some qualities
of a transformational leader — someone who
can inspire others by virtue of his accomplishments
and his character,” says Patterson.“Unlike
Leadership Quality
Powell
Clinton
Bush
Rumsfeld
President Bush or Senator Clinton, who rose to
prominence in part because they were thrust
into the public eye, there is little doubt that
Secretary Powell achieved his success because
of his own skill and determination. He earned
his position, and that in itself gives him respect,
credibility, and influence as a leader.”
Powell’s effective management skills and consultative,
people-oriented style contributes to
his popularity today and to his inspiring success
as a general.
Similar to Powell, Hillary Clinton appears to
be more consultative and people-centered in
her style and capable in her own right, despite
her lack of experience.“A liability Senator
Clinton appears to have as a leader is lack of
credibility,” says Patterson.“Doubts that many
people have about her management of personal
finances and her reactions to her husband's
affairs don't inspire confidence or loyalty.”
But motivation defines the style of all leaders,
according to Cathy L. Greenberg, executive
director of the Institute for Strategic
Leadership, LeBow College of Business, Drexell
University and co-author of “Global Leadership:
The Next Generation.” Motivation by affiliation,
power or achievement drives every leader.
“President Bush is motivated by achievement,”
says Greenberg.“I don’t think of him as
somebody who is motivated to do things without
the appropriate information. I think he is
driven by a specific set of milestones and an
end point that he has judged with a very strong
set of values and principles.”
Successful leaders complement their own
strengths with those of differing skills and styles.
“Colin Powell combines affiliation with
achievement quite well,” says Greenberg.“He is
somebody who does well in negotiations.That’s
a reality of what I call emotional intelligence:
his capacity to read others and to respond in a
way that allows him to create an opportunity
that people can get together, as opposed to a
position of win or lose.”
Rumsfeld, like Bush, is more motivated
by achievement.“He tends to make decisions
based on firm, practical information
that’s usable for his particular point of
view at the time,” says Greenberg.
Rumsfeld’s influence permeates through
the ranks.“His people are dedicated, practical,”
says Greenberg.“They serve in all
capacities to each other, to the public, to the
military.” His style balances well with Powell’s
to create a dynamic partnership.
Dynamic accurately describes Hillary Clinton,
whose motivation focuses on power.“A power
individual uses the style of dressing for success,
influence and discussion to achieve an outcome,”
says Greenberg.“They generally do it in
combination with their strong understanding
and emotional intelligence around affiliations.”
Clinton’s powerful presence and good judgment
helped to gain the respect of her peers.She
reflects the traditional female executive who toiled
to succeed in a male-dominated world.
“From our research,we found that women are
much better at shared leadership and network
leadership than their male counterparts,”says
Greenberg.“I think Hillary practices that well.”
So what can we learn from these
notable leaders?
“The use of accurate information balanced
with perspective from the population that they
serve is always important,” says Greenberg.
“Relying on information in a vacuum on a logical
path doesn’t necessarily always
get you to the end point that you
want.” In order to be a successful
leader, you have to use information
from several different means but
you can’t rely on that information
solely.” Learning to separate the
wheat from the chaff requires intelligence
and savvy.
“Leaders are not leaders unto
themselves,”says Greenberg.“They
have to practice their leadership in a
network of people who are helping
them with leadership.”Recognizing
you can’t be all things to all people
and sharing leadership provides a
key component for success.
By Kathy Ruff
“I think leaders who surround themselves
with people who are very similar to
themselves are making a very large mistake
because they will not get the balanced
perspective they need when they
make decisions,” says Greenberg.
Finally,recognition of diverse styles provides
the foundation for leadership success.
“I have worked in a lot of companies
where the leader is surrounded by people
who use the same characteristics and the
same style of the leader and that doesn’t
really get you where you want to be long
term,” says Greenberg.“The companies that
I’ve seen be successful over 15, 20 years
do so because they recognize that diversity
of style and thinking are complementary
in the long run.”
Tomorrow’s leaders learn what to do —
and what not to do — from those who
lead today. Their legacy is our future.
Raymond Cattell, a pioneer in the field of personality
assessment, developed the Leadership
Potential equation in 1954. The traits of an effective
leader include the following:
Emotional stability. Good leaders must be able
to tolerate frustration and stress. Overall, they must
be well-adjusted and have the psychological maturity
to deal with anything they are required to face.
Dominance. Leaders are often times competitive
and decisive and usually enjoy overcoming obstacles.
Overall, they are assertive in their thinking
style as well as their attitude in dealing with others.
Enthusiasm. Leaders are usually seen as active,
expressive, and energetic. They are often very optimistic
and open to change. Overall, they are generally
quick and alert and tend to be uninhibited.
Conscientiousness. Leaders are often dominated
by a sense of duty and tend to be very exacting
in character. They usually have a very high
standard of excellence and an inward desire to do
one's best. They also have a need for order and
tend to be very self-disciplined.
Social boldness. Leaders tend to be spontaneous
risk-takers. They are usually socially aggressive
and generally thick-skinned. Overall, they are
responsive to others and tend to be high in emotional
stamina.
Tough-mindedness. Good leaders are practical,
logical, and to-the-point. They tend to be low in
sentimental attachments and comfortable with
criticism. They are usually insensitive to hardship
and overall, are very poised.
Self-assurance. Self-confidence and resiliency
are common traits among leaders. They tend to
be free of guilt and have little or no need for
approval. They are generally secure and free from
guilt and are usually unaffected by prior mistakes.
Compulsiveness. Leaders are controlled and
very precise in their social interactions.Overall, they
are very protective of their integrity and reputation
and consequently tend to be socially aware and careful,
abundant in foresight, and very careful when
making decisions or taking specific actions.
Beyond these basic traits, leaders of today must
also possess traits which will help them motivate
others and lead them in new directions.They must
have the following personality traits:
High energy. Long hours and some travel are
usually a prerequisite for leadership positions,
especially as your company grows.
Intuitiveness. Reasoning and logic will not get
you through all situations. In fact, more and more
leaders are learning to the value of using their intuition
and trusting their “gut” when making decisions.
Maturity. To be a good leader, personal power
and recognition must be secondary to the development
of your employees.
Team orientation. Instead of promoting an
adult/child relationship with their employees, leaders
create an adult/adult relationship which fosters
team cohesiveness.
Empathy. Being able to “put yourself in the
other person's shoes” is a key trait of leaders
today. Without empathy, you can't build trust.
Charisma.Leaders who have charisma are able
to arouse strong emotions in their employees by
defining a vision which unites and captivates
them. Using this vision, leaders motivate employees
to reach toward a future goal by tying the goal
to substantial personal rewards and values.
Source: Small Business Administration