Top 10 Qualities Of A Self-Empowered Leader

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1 PINK ELEPHANT THOUGHT SHIP WHITE PAPER Top Qualities Of A Self-Empowered Leader

2 Executive Summary When we consider who our leaders are, we usually think of the designated leader, a person who has been charged with leading or promoted into a leadership role. Many of us in IT Service Management (ITSM) subscribe to the thought I cannot lead because I haven t been appointed as the leader, but that is not true. The qualities that make a good leader are the ones that we employ to be effective individually, and allow us to be Self-Empowered Leaders. The qualities that make a good leader are the ones that we employ to be effective individually, and allow us to be Self-Empowered Leaders. This is a particularly important subject as our industries experience an evolution of technologies and services, making us question the traditional functions, roles, responsibilities, practices and policies that we have become so accustom to. It is more likely that people wait to be told about change instead of using their knowledge, experience, and influence to effect change. It s frustrating to hear it s not my job when people should be talking about what is right for the business. We should not simply be looking for decisions and new plans from our designated leaders, but looking at our own attitudes, behaviors, interactions, and how we mutually support each other. Included in this paper are leadership qualities that can help you be a successful Self-Empowered Leader. 2

3 Table Of Contents 1 Top Qualities Of A Self-Employed Leader Understand Your Organization s Objective Clarify Your Team s Objectives Understand The Difference Between Management & Leadership Ensure What You Do Is Relevant If Necessary, Challenge The Status Quo Make A Decision, Any Decision! Influence Others Empower Your Co-Workers Talk To Your Boss Remain Authentic About Pink Elephant

4 1) TOP -EMPOWERED 1.1 Understand Your Organization s Objectives Before you take action in your own team, get to know the greater goals of the organization. Is it the successful launch of new products? Opening up in new geographic markets? Achieving specific targets for revenue or profit? Most organizations will have a number of objectives they are working towards simultaneously. Your executive leaders should make those objectives crystal clear, along with their relative priorities. If they haven t, don t just sit back go and find out! 1.2 Clarify Your Team s Objectives The objectives for your team, and for yourself, should be framed with direct reference to the organization s objectives. Before embarking on any project, ask yourself: How does this support our organizational objectives? Often there are activities and projects deep down in an organization that seem far removed from the bottom line, so it s not always easy to identify the value of new ideas. But continue to challenge yourself to verify that your decisions are adding value Understand The Difference Between Management & Leadership Those who are engaged in management activities are preoccupied with current processes and activities where metrics keep the team on track and guide day-to-day decisions. Those who are engaged in leadership think of the future and constantly remind themselves and those around them of their work s purpose. In a nutshell, it can be said that management is about the present, and leadership is about the future. 4

5 1.4. Ensure What You Do Is Relevant Avoid being constrained by routine. Ask yourself Why am I doing this? you might find that you have become too attached to past practices. Constantly think about what value you are adding just because an activity was once important does not mean it continues to be relevant. Winston Churchill said However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results. Think about what needs to be done, not just what can be done If Necessary, Challenge The Status Quo Do not become a slave to old policies and practices when it is clear that they are getting in the way. Policies are needed because they provide useful guidance, but they should never be an excuse for not doing what is right. As technologies and objectives change over time, so should policies and practices. Begin by talking with co-workers and then bringing it to the attention of the decision-makers, asking the question Is it time for a change? 1.6. Make A Decision, Any Decision! We now have a great deal of information available to us every day. Sometimes we can over-analyze and put off making decisions because there are always opportunities to do more research or look at more data. Remember, there are often a number of approaches or techniques which will get the job done. So do not delay making decisions because you are still seeking the perfect answer. I can get from home to work via a number of different routes, some may be quicker than others but they will all get me there. Do not spend too much time trying to figure out which option is best when almost any option will work Influence Others Good leaders are influential to those around them, and they do not have to 5

6 direct or issue orders or instructions. When the opportunity presents itself, talk with your co-workers about their goals and the policies and practices they use to achieve those goals. It is not only the boss who encourages and reminds everyone what we are doing and why. General Colin Powell said Leadership is all about getting the most out of people. Organization charts and fancy titles count for next to nothing Empower Your Co-Workers Empowering someone is not about giving them permission to do something. Empowerment does not just come from a boss; we can all empower ourselves and each other through making your knowledge, skills and time available. When you observe a co-worker struggling, think about what you can do to help it may even be as simple as saying the right thing at the right time Talk To Your Boss Managers say that when their employees underperform it is usually because they work on the wrong things. Employees often say that when they are told that they are underperforming it is because I didn t know what my boss wanted from me. Fault on both sides, right? Do not let this be your world. Rather than wait for your boss to tell you how you are doing, go ask. 1.. Remain Authentic Let your co-workers see that what they hear from you matches up with how you behave. In other words- walk the talk. If you are aspiring to be a Designated Leader in your organization, which likely means a promotion and more responsibilities, then you will be a stronger candidate if you have a reputation for honesty and integrity. Plus, you will feel good about yourself and you will enjoy your work more. 6

7 2) ABOUT PINK ELEPHANT Pink Elephant is proud to be celebrating 20 years of ITIL experience more than any other supplier. Operating through many offices across the globe, the company is the world s #1 supplier of ITIL and ITSM conferences, education and consulting services. To date, more than 350,000 IT professionals have benefited from Pink Elephant s expertise. Pink Elephant has been championing the growth of ITIL worldwide since its inception in 1989, and was selected as an international expert to contribute to the ITIL V3 project as authors of V3 s Continual Service Improvement book and through representation on the International Exam Panel. For more information, please visit Service Lines Pink Elephant s service lines each provide different, but complementary business solutions: PinkCONSULTING: Using the ITIL best practices approach as a springboard, Pink Elephant provides end-to-end solutions from assessments, to strategic planning to implementation, continuous improvement and beyond. Experienced consultants work hand-in-hand with customers every step of the way PinkONLINE: Use Pink Elephant's online ITIL Implementation Tool Kit and gain access to various services that support a service management improvement program, including PinkATLAS, containing over 1,000 process deployment documents PinkEDUCATION: Pink Elephant is the most prolific creator and widespread distributor of ITIL training, and leads the way with education based ITIL V3 s service lifecycle approach. Pink is internationally accredited with EXIN, APMG and PEOPLECERT, independent examination institutes that manage the ITIL certification program. The Project Management Institute (PMI) has also recognized Pink as a Registered Education Provider PinkCONFERENCES: Pink Elephant is the world s largest producer of ITSM conferences and delivers several major events per year to thousands of IT professionals Pink Elephant World Leaders In Transforming IT Services Pink Elephant, 5575 North Service Road, Suite 200, Burlington, Ontario, Canada L7L 6M1 Tel: PINK Fax: Pink Elephant Inc., The contents of this case study are protected by copyright and cannot be reproduced in any manner. Pink Elephant and its logo, PinkVERIFY, PinkSCAN, PinkATLAS, and PinkREADYare either trademarks or registered trademarks of Pink Elephant Inc. ITIL is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited. Worldwide Locations: Africa Asia Australia New Zealand Canada Europe Mexico Middle East USA