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I By Rod Waddell

eaders are everywhere. In every organisation there are people

others look to for support and guidance.
Most authorities agree that effective leadership contains three
common characteristics: vision, passion and a set of guiding prin-
ciples (values).
Take a moment and recall Martin Luther King's I Have a Dream
speech. This speech inspired millions by providing a clear picture
bf tn" future (vision), mobilised people toward action (passion) and
appealed to our sense offairness and equality (values). Great leaders
from Gandhi to JFK have shared these core characteristics.
Leadership vision is not just a gaggle of high sounding words. If
that is what you want, then go to the Internet, as one of my local cli-
ents did, and find one that makes a nice poster for your wall.
Leaders develop their own vision of a future state and craft it in
the language that encompasses their follower's dreams and desires.
It answers the question, why does this organisation exist? How does
it affect the lives of our customers? What characteristics make our
organisation and the people in it, unique and special? The vision
keeps the organisation on track, at everylevel. When tough decisions
have to be made this shared vision keeps people focused in the right
direction.
Passion is the indomitable drive that enables great leaders to per-
severe through hardship. It is the motivating force that propels them
and others towards an idealised moment in time, their vision. Pas-
sion is what allows people to endure long hours of practice in order
to become the best.
University of Chicago psychologist Benjamin Bloom's research
"It
indicates, seems you have to put in at least a decade of focused
work to master something and bring greatness within reach"
Passion is the fuel that drives leadership and winning.

Infl uence,pow er
Influence and power have long been accepted as hallmarks of ef-
fective leadership. These are the tools leaders use to achieve great-
ness. However, taken alone they may lead to disaster.
National flero Jim Bodden was able to share a vision for Fortune magazine used to publish a list of the Ten Toughest Boss-
Ca5rman's future that the people believed and followed. es in America. Most CEO's tried to avoid this list.

Hank Greenbergpast CEO of AIG was reported as disappointed
if he was left off it. Greenbergwas widely recognisedfor his tem-
per and sharpnessinstilling fear in those around him. No doubt Mr.
Greenberg had power and influence but was that leadership? Many
top performers drive themselvesto the top of their profession.Then,
when they reach managementlevels they drive those around them
and are frequently rewarded for their results. It seemsmost organi-
sationshavevery few measuresto define successfulleadership.Get-
ting results is frequently cited as the best measureof leadership.
But is it?
Take Charles Dutoit, conductor of Orchestre Synphonique de
Montreal. After bringing great international recognition to the
orchestra, he was forced to resign, driven out by musicians who
claimed he had developedan abusiveand arbitrary rehearsalstyle.
Heroic leadershipoften leadsto successin the short run but history
clearly showsfew leaders,businessor otherwise are able to sustain
heroically generatedresults long term.
Prime example
Russell Crow played John Nash in the movie A Beautiful Mind.
The movie is about the life of the Nobel Prize winning economist,
John Nash. The pivotal scene opens in a pub frequented by univer-
sity students.
Young Nash is a doctoral student and desperatelyneeds a topic
for his dissertation. Suddenly three co-eds walk in. Nash and his
friends begin to strategise how to make their approach. Suddenly
Nash has an epiphany and exclaims,'Adam Smith was wrong". He
repeats Smith's now famous quote, "Society does best when each
man is doing what is best for him". Nash scrambles to pick up his
books and papersand hurries out ofthe bar.
What Nash had recognised was as he put it 'A flaw in Adam
Smith's concept".Nash recognisedand later proved mathematically
that society does best when each individual does what is best for
themselvesand for the group".Arguablyyou could sayAdam Smith's
invisible hand certainly helped stoke the flames leading to our cur-
rent economicmelt down.
Doing what is best for the group is brought to life by the values
Politica l el a d e r s hiispn e a r l ay s
r a r ea st h e m y t h i c aSl i n g a
set by the leader.Valuesare the standardsby which we live our lives.
As we saw in examplesabove,a leader'svalue-setcan be destructive
or constructive. Great leaders are consistently guided by their val-
ues,they walk the talk. An organisationwithout a clear set of values
simply offers a place for staff to come and trade their tfme for mon-
ey. Values provide a deeper meaning for work. Ask yourself, "Who
would take ajob for low pay,where they would have to leavehome for
months or years at a time; a job where injury and death are real pos-
sibilities. Yet soldiershave alwaysmarched to war for high ideals
Vision, passion
Political leadershipis nearly as rare as the mythical Singa(Lion).
Singapore'srise from a volatile third-world county with few iratural
resourcesin 1965to a highly prosperous first-world country today
is accreditedto Lee Kuan Yew,prime minister, and Goh Keng Swee,
his deputy.Mr. Lee'svision, passionand valuespermeatethe Singa-
porean culture. Lee frequently stated that "Singapore'sonly natural
resourcesare its people and their strong work ethic."
Meritocracy is a central political concept in Singapore.Singa-
pore'spolicies are a model for balancingwhat is good for the individ-
ual (business)and what is good for the group (citizens).Singapore's
economy is highly diversified and poised to take advantageof emerg-
ing technologiesand geopolitical shifts. Mr. Lee remains as one of
the world's most recognisedand influential leaders.
President Bachelet,Chile's current leader,has consistentlybeen
recognisedfor her leadership.Shebecamethe Minister of Health in
2ooo. TWoyears later she was appointed Minisier of Defense;the
sameMinistry that jailed her and her mother and tortured her father
to death during Pinochet'sreign of terror. Shecould have retaliated
but she did not. Sheled and they followed. Shewas electedpresident
in zoo6. Her actions make evident her vision, passion and values
and have becomeintertwined with the aspirations of a large part of
Chilean societyfor changeand moderation.
In a relatively short period of time she has extended her influence
beyond Chilies'borders and becomea world leader.Time Magazine
ranked her r5th in the Top roo of the world's most influential people
in zoo8. Also in zoo8 Forbesranked Bacheletz5th in the roo most
10 wwrd. raym an rhc rn b* r"i<y

powerful women of the world. Leadership is more than a position.
Mo t iv at ion
Leadels recognise their peoplc don't work for them, they work
fbl themselves. Etfective leaders engage their fbllowers by providing
a motivational environment. Motivation occlu's in two forms. Ex-
ternal motivation occurs when I do something external to me, that
affects my wants or lifestyle needs. Internal motivation occurs when
I perfbrm a task for the sheer pleasure of doing it; fbr example, com-
peting in a three-mile swimrning tournament, solving a hard przzle
or learning something new.
Money, an external motivator, does motivate but it is a very ex-
pensive motivator with a very short half life. Each employee has a
unique motivational profile of intrinsic and extrinsic motivators.
Great le:rders rnobilise people by linhing their individual values and
motivators with the leader's vision, mission and goals.
Millions of dollars are wasted each year by employers trying to
motivate their pcople. People are unique. We have unique interests
and needs.
Highly cffectivc lcaders takc the time to understand what moti-
vates their staff. There are only six diff'erent categories of motiva-
tional incentives. Three examples include: money, recognition and
services. Money in all its fbrms and recognition are self explanatory.
Services include things that only the organisation can off'er to you
as the employee. Examples include, extra vacation time, designated
parking or flex time.
Banks fi'equently offer staff members preferential loan rates.
Now imagine receiving these extra incentives based on your perfor-
mance. You would have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
S i m p l es u r v e y
A simple motivational survey can make this easy for anyone in-
terested irr identifying their own rnotivators and those of their staff;
linking highly desirable incentives with performance targets in-
creasesstaff motivation. Reinfbr:cing perfbrmance this way contains
"If
cost and increascs productivity. I tell managers, you don't know
what motivates your staff you could be feeding bananas to your ti-
gers.'
The measnre of a leader is reflected in their people. The way to es-
tablish leadership eff'ectivencss is to rrreasLll'cstaff responsivcness.
How long does it take fbr staff to take action (agility)? How well do
staff perfbrm in activities that drive stlategic objcctives (compctitive
advantage)? What percentage of employees goes beyond jnst rleet-
ing job requirements (discretionary cffbrt)? How many employees
can directly link their daily activities n,ith mission or strategy (vi-
sion)?
We may not all be great leaders but we can zrll do better at leacl-
ership. Job specific leadership skills can be objectively clefineclancl
measured, including such measures in applaisals increascs lrccount-
ability. Examples include;
. Ensuring the performance range between top perfirlurels and
poor performers does not exceed 15 per cent yeal over year'.
. Individually recognise, reward and document st:rff suggestions
supporting the organisation; e.g. giving cleclit to others icleas, irs-
signing special duties when interest is explessecl, acknowleclging
employees that have cornpleted an important assignment, etc.
. Independently identify and successfully complete werysto rnea-
surably increase revenue, reduce cycle time ol incretrse quirlity (er-
ror reduction) within the department/organisation.
If we can measure it we can grow it. Research has fonnd there
is as much as a 40 per cent diff'erence between top performers and
poor performers. I believe fi'ont line supervisors are the most impor-
tant people on the management team.
Their direct influence affects everything from stlategy and goals
to staff morale and customer satisfaction. If they don't perfbrm, the
i'esults are sure to be felt in the financial statements.
Growing leaders at all levels ensrues cor-rtinueclperfblmance :rnc1
prosperity into the future. Effective leadership inspiles people to ex-
ceed expectations. It is human energy that drives progrcss, effbctive
leadership and expands focus human energy; tulning drcams into
reality.
The world needs more leaders with vision, passion and valucs.
And fewer people with megalomaniac vie'w,sthat ale wise in their
own conceit. May we all seek to nulture the leadcrship qLralitics in
ourselves and those around us. It will surely deliver a better wolld
for our future.
"The
Waltel Lippman is quoted in 1945 final measure of a lead-
er is that he leaves behind him in others the conviction and will to
carry on."

Mr. Waddell has nearlv e0 vears,of
experience in training, team building and
organizationaldevelopment.
His client base includes internationai
corporattonsano locatDuslnesses sucn
as: Admiral Administration afl:, gritish
Caymanian InsuraRce, Chevron USA and
Chevron CCR, ColgateoGeneral Motors Canada,
Coutts Caymanand,Iersey,Juiius Baer Bank,
PPCTurks and Caicosas well as the
CI Government.
Beyondtraining and team building, Mr.
Waddell has developedsoftware systems
measurablyincreasingperformance and
Rodnev E^ Waddell customersatisfactionwhile retaining costs.In
addition Mr. \a/addellhas incorporated avatar
and text-to-speechtechnologiesto animate
psychologicalassessments,customer service
surveysand 36o degreefeedbacksystems.
Mr. Waddell holds a BA in psychologyand a
Masters degreein Counselling. Post graduate
work includes attaining Advisor Specialistwith
IIR Deming Quality Management,Human
Blement Leader/Trainer,Situational Leadership
and DISC assessmentcertifications.
Mr. Waddell donatesmany hours of his time
eachyear to boards and social organisations,
such as, Junior Achievement,the Rotaract Club,
The Chamber'sMentoring Cayman Programme
and the CayrnanIslands Cultural Foundation.