Principles of Leadership Part III

This is the third installment of a series of posts of principles of leadership that I have gleaned from forty years in administration in Christian higher education. Although they gone from that setting, many, if not most are applicable to any management situation. This post deals with handling processes within the organization.Post One dealt with personal traits and characteristics. Post Two was about dealing with people.

1.   Approach problems systemically; solve them systematically Making changes in one area of a system will have effects on other areas of the system. Look at the big picture. Do not go just for a quick fix. Work through all the ramifications of your actions. Be prepared for the next steps.
2.  Think and plan strategically Strategic thinking and planning begin with the organization’s mission and vision. It proceeds through internal and external scans and an analysis of the differences between current positioning and desired future positioning. The organization must then determine the fundamental issues it has to address to achieve its mission and vision, and then develop goals, action plans and tactics to address those issues. Periodic review of the goals, action plans and tactics are essential to an ongoing institutional assessment of where it is and where it wants to be.
3. Develop a culture of evidence A culture of evidence is a way of life and thought that pervades an organization with a set of values and principles, a collective knowledge, and habitual patterns of actions that uses information and data as evidence to answer questions of importance to the organization. In the ideal organization, a culture of evidence will demonstrate the degree or extent to which the organization possesses those attributes and characteristics of high-quality programs and processes.
4.   Share knowledge and information Today’s organizations can no longer effectively be managed by the few who think and the many that do what they are told. Organizations need a higher level of knowledge and skill among all who participate in them.
5. Live within your budget An organization must operate within its means. To do this requires a balancing of the needs and available resources, along with an accurate accounting of income and expenses. I believe that budgeting should begin with needs and expenses followed by an analysis of income. I also believe that once the budget is set, the bottom line is fixed, but individual items are guidelines and within the framework of that bottom line budget directors should have as the autonomy to make changes in individual items if necessary.
6.   Take the long-term view The long-term success and viability of a project is more important than short-term successes. The long-term success and viability of an organization is more important than the short-term successes of projects. The long-term success of the organization and individual projects may need the building of foundations and superstructure that can take time to construct.
7.  Expect excellence; ensure excellence We should encourage our customers to expect excellence from us. It is our job to ensure excellence in what we deliver. The process of providing excellence includes selecting the right people and assigning them the right tasks, setting high standards and motivating them continually and holding them accountable for the outcome.
8.   Maintain the proper balance between innovation and practicality There are times when it is important to “think out-of-the-box.” There are times when it is important to remember and follow tradition. It is most important to know when to choose what.
9. Form follows function This phrase is typically used in an architectural sense. It definitely must be followed in designing space. However, I believe that it has a much broader application. We can look at processes and systems just as we look at buildings. We should first look at what we intend for them to do, and then design them accordingly.
10.  Delegate intelligently; follow-up consistently An individual can’t do everything. A supervisor must set a pattern of delegating both responsibility and authority to appropriate staff. The supervisor should also set up expectations of oversight and stick with those expectations. The follow-up should be scheduled and as consistent as possible from one project to the next, and one staff member to the next.
11.  Celebrate success People need to feel good. People need to celebrate appropriately. As successes come, set a pattern of celebrating those successes and the people who made them possible.
12.  Learn from failures Nobody is perfect. You will make mistakes; others will make mistakes. Take those mistakes and use them to become better. Analyze what went wrong. Determine what could be done to avoid these problems in the future.
13.   Leave the organization better than you found it Each decision should be made with the intent of improving the organization. The work of each day should be done with the goal of continuous improvement. Work each day as if it is your last chance to make a difference.

If you are interested in learning more about leadership

and how it effects organizations, I highly recommend the

work of Dr. Jim Laub. Check out his organization OLA

and his website  www.ola.org