Modeling the Way

Employees operate under growing conditions of uncertainty and stress

…as such it is critical that leaders step in to ‘model the way’

Values are a critical aspect of leaders’ ability to model the way

As a first step, leaders need to determine what is important to them and what their own values are…the path that they wish to take

A critical aspect of this is discovering what they care about, finding their voice

Knowing your “inner territory,” what you value, makes you a stronger leader because it allows you to act with integrity as your values guide your actions

When a leader’s actions are guided by values s/he is able to achieve authenticity as a leader

When leaders have clarity on their personal values they experience and demonstrate a greater sense of commitment to value-aligned action and those with whom they work

An equally important step is to create a sense of shared values among employees

Values need to be forged, not forced

Effective leaders do not impose their values on employees, they find a way to integrate their personal values with those of their employees to forge a common value system

Leaders need to model the shared values….

Leaders illustrate what the values ‘look like’ in the organizational context

Leaders model values by:

How they spend their time

The language they use The types of questions they ask

The types of feedback they seek

Leaders teach values by:

Confronting critical incidentsTelling stories that exemplify valuesVisibly demonstrating value-

consistent behavior

Storytelling is one of the most effective tools at a leaders disposal…

Why?

Storytelling is one of the most effective tools at a leaders disposal…

Why?

Stories are easy to remember People relate to stories Stories demonstrate values in a way that is

meaningful People learn more effectively through stories

What questions should you be asking if you want people to focus on……

• Continuous Improvement

• Quality• Innovation• Integrity• Teamwork • Collaboration

• Personal Responsibility• Customer /Client

Satisfaction• Trust• Growth• Communication

Authentic Leadership

Authentic Leadership Description

• Authentic Leadership – focuses on whether leadership is genuine

• Interest in Authentic Leadership – Increasing in recent times due to social upheavals– People longing for trustworthy leaders– Identified earlier in transformational leadership

research but not studied separately– Needed evidence-based research of construct

Definition of Authentic Leadership

“A pattern that draws upon and promotes both positive psychological capacities and a positive ethical climate, to foster greater self-awareness, an internalized moral perspective, balanced processing of information, and relational transparency on the part of leaders working with followers, fostering positive self-development.”

Walumbwa, Avolio, Gardner, Wernsing & Peterson, 2008

Basic Model of Authentic Leadership

• FOUR COMPONENTS:– Self-awareness

• Reflecting on one’s core values, identity, emotions, motives

• Being aware of and trusting your own feelings

– Internalized moral perspective• Self-regulatory process using internal moral standards to guide behavior

– Balanced processing• Ability to analyze informational objectively and explore other people’s

opinions before making a decision

- Relational transparency• Being open and honest in presenting one’s true self to others

Practical Approaches to Authentic Leadership

• Bill George (2003, 2007)– Leader characteristic model

– Leaders have genuine desire to serve others

– Five characteristics of Authentic Leaders• Understand their purpose

• Strong values

• Trusting relationships

• Self-discipline

• Act from the heart (mission)

Practical Approaches to Authentic Leadership

• Robert Terry (1993)– Action-centered model– Leaders should strive to do what is right– Two core leadership questions:

• What is really, really going on?• What are we going to do about it?

– Developed Authentic Action Wheel to help leaders frame problems

• Locate the problem on the diagnostic wheel• Strategically select an appropriate response to the problem

Strengths• Fulfills society’s expressed need for trustworthy

leadership. Fills a void in an uncertain world.• Provides broad guidelines for those who want to

become authentic leaders. Both practical and theoretical approaches provide a map.

• Like transformational and servant leadership, AL has an explicit moral dimension.

• Unlike traits that only some people exhibit, everyone can learn to be more authentic.

• Can be measured using an established instrument (ALQ).

Criticisms• The theory is still in the formative stages, so some concepts

in the practical approaches are not fully developed or substantiated.

• The moral component of AL is not fully explained. It’s unclear how higher values such as justice inform authentic leadership.

• The rationale for including positive psychological capacities as a part of AL has not been clearly explained by researchers.

• The link between authentic leadership and positive organizational outcomes is unclear. It is also not clear whether AL is sufficient to achieve organizational goals.

Application

• People have the capacity to become authentic leaders. It is a lifelong learning process.

• Human Resource departments may be able to foster authentic leadership behaviors in employees who move into leadership positions.

• Leaders are always trying to do the “right” thing, to be honest with themselves and others, and to work for the common good.

• Leaders are shaped by critical life events that lead to growth and greater authenticity.

Reflection Question

• What similarities do you see between Kouzes’ and Posner’s Exemplary Leadership Model and Authentic Leadership?

• What differences do you see between these two models?

• If you had to choose one as the basis for your leadership development, which would you choose? Why?